Academy Awards Betting
The next Academy Awards show takes place in April of 2021, and that means that Oscars betting is on the mind of many a sports gambler. Of course, if you’re on the hunt for the best Oscars bets, your options are limited through brick-and-mortar channels. For most gamblers, Academy Awards betting is only going to be available over the Internet at offshore sportsbooks that offer entertainment betting lines.
2021 Oscars Betting Odds, Categories & Information. The 2021 Oscars is set to take place on April 25, 2021 as some sportsbooks are beginning to release early odds. In 2020, only Indiana and New Jersey allowed legal betting on the Academy Awards although there is hope more states legalize the market. 888sport, a legal US operator in the United States, also has betting. Best Oscars Bets to Make With more than 20 Oscars awards up for grabs, there's plenty of wagering options for bettors to make. Generally, the top four awards (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor.
Fortunately, it’s easy to bet on the Oscars, and every reputable book offers plenty of action on the star-studded gala. That said, before you put any money on your pick for Best Picture and all the other big movie awards, you’ll want to make sure you’re placing your wagers with the most trustworthy legal online betting sites possible. Read on to find out how!
Is It Legal To Bet On The Oscars?
If you live in the US, you can legally bet on the Academy Awards in one of two ways. For those residing in New Jersey, that state has approved Oscars betting as part of the regulated sportsbook offerings there. If you live anywhere else in the country, however, you must bet on the show by using an offshore sports betting site.
Note: Residents of Connecticut and Washington are precluded from all forms of gambling over the Internet. However, these states’ laws appear to be entirely unenforced, so you can proceed at your own discretion. We nevertheless advise that you follow all local gambling laws in your area.
Best USA Sportsbook For Betting On The 2021 Academy Awards
Bovada, operating under the license of the international Bodog brand, is the most popular online sportsbook in America, and they’ve been offering Academy Awards betting odds for years. As soon as the annual list of Oscar nominees is released, Bovada has live odds on the event, usually with lines for each category. Mix in some Academy Award props, and you’ve got dozens of ways to make some money off Hollywood for a change!
Sign up at Bovada now, and you’re eligible for a $250 Sports Welcome Bonus that you can put towards your Oscar betting. Deposit with Bitcoin, and you can triple that to $750 (which, incidentally, is how much the most expensive Oscars tickets cost).
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Cons
- US residents of DE, MD, NJ, NV not accepted
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- Entertainment odds have lower limits than sports betting odds
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How To Bet On The Oscars
Wagering on the Oscars is as simple as betting on any other sport. As long as you use a reputable offshore site that offers entertainment betting, you’ll have plenty of Oscars odds and lines to choose from. You’ll even have a selection of entertainment prop bets available. Signing up with any of our recommended providers is fast and free, so you can turn the red carpet green in no time flat!
Assembling your Academy Awards betting sheet works the same way as betting on NFL games or betting on the Razzies: Just select the wager you wish to make, enter a dollar amount, and submit your ticket. You can place individual wagers or piece together parlays for even bigger payouts, making your Hollywood dreams come true!
Academy Awards 2021 Nominations
- Academy Award For Best Picture - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Director - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Cinematography - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Original Screenplay - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Adapted Screenplay - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Actor - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Actress - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Supporting Actor - TBA
- Academy Award For Best Supporting Actress – TBA
In addition to the main category odds (which will be posted here as soon as the Oscar nominations are formally released), most legal online sports betting sites already have some Oscars predictions lines posted. The following wagers are on whether or not certain popular actors will make the cut:
2020 Academy Awards Results
The 2020 Oscars are a good reference point for the 2021 odds, as the 91st Academy Awards had some heavy favorites that won – and others that didn’t. Below are the Oscars winners from the main categories last year, showing you how on-the-ball the betting public usually is, as well as how larger social narratives might drive an underdog to victory.
The following historical odds are from Bovada’s coverage of last year’s Oscars, with the winners in bold. In these main categories, you can see that the Oscar winners came from the top two choices each time. Take note of this and apply it to your betting strategy this season!
Best Picture
- Roma -280
- Green Book +300
- Bohemian Rhapsody +1800
- The Favourite +1800
- Black Panther +2500
- BlacKkKlansman +2800
- A Star Is Born +3300
- Vice +6600
Best Director
- Alfonso Cuaron (Roma) -2000
- Spike Lee (BlacKkKlansman) +650
- Pawel Pawlikowski (Cold War) +2500
- Adam McKay (Vice) +3300
- Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite) +3300
Best Cinematography
- Roma -2000
- Cold War +900
- The Favourite +1500
- A Star is Born +1500
- Never Look Away +4000
Best Original Screenplay
- The Favourite -200
- Green Book +200
- Roma +750
- First Reformed +1400
- Vice +4000
Best Adapted Screenplay
- BlacKkKlansman -275
- Can You Ever Forgive Me? +275
- If Beale Street Could Talk +600
- A Star is Born +2000
- The Ballad of Buster Scruggs +5000
Best Actor
- Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody) -550
- Christian Bale (Vice) +275
- Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born) +2000
- Viggo Mortensen (Green Book) +3300
- Willem Dafoe (At Eternity's Gate) +6600
Best Actress
- Glenn Close (The Wife) -650
- Olivia Colman (The Favourite) +325
- Lady Gaga (A Star Is Born) +1500
- Yalitza Aparicio (Roma) +4000
- Melissa McCarthy (Can You Ever Forgive Me?) +5000
Best Supporting Actor
- Mahershela Ali (Green Book) -1400
- Richard E. Grant (Can You Ever Forgive Me?) +700
- Sam Elliott (A Star is Born) +900
- Adam Driver (BlacKkKlansman) +3300
- Sam Rockwell (Vice) +5000
Best Supporting Actress
- Regina King (If Beale Street Could Talk) -300
- Amy Adams (Vice) +350
- Rachel Weisz (The Favourite) +700
- Marina de Tavira (Roma) +1500
- Emma Stone (The Favourite) +2200
Who votes for the Oscars?
There is only one entity that who votes for Oscar winners, and that’s the Academy of Motion Pictures Art and Sciences, or AMPAS. Unless you’re a member of the Academy, you don’t get to vote on these awards, which means there’s no way to help boost your Oscars bets. Like Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman, you’ll be going into this one blind!
About The Oscars - When Are The Academy Awards?
If you’re looking for how to watch the Academy Awards, you can catch the big show live on ABC in February 2020. However, if you don’t have traditional television, you may need to know how to stream the Oscars. Regardless, we’ve got all the applicable broadcast info here:
- Date: Sunday, April 25, 2021
- Time: 6:30 p.m. (pre-show), 8:00 p.m. (main show)
- Location: Los Angeles, CA
- Venue: Dolby Theatre
- Broadcast: ABC
- Streaming: ABC.com, ABC iPhone/Android app, ABC YouTube TV/Sling TV/Playstation Vue channels
Legal Oscars Betting FAQs
Who is hosting the Academy Awards this year?
Those looking for who is hosting the Oscars in 2021 will be disappointed to learn that – like last year – there is no Academy Awards host on hand. This is likely a move by the show producers to minimize any kind of social media scandal that may result from the chosen host’s past comedy or performance routines.
Should I take a shallow Oscar performance seriously when betting?
Picking Oscar winners is tough. In sports betting, you generally have a good statistical framework when handicapping players and teams. However, there are only a few real strategies for picking the folks who are going to receive Oscar trophies. While some bettors think the industry only awards those who turn in grand performances, be careful: Shallow performances are often the order of the day.
Remember, Oscars betting is like political betting, and Hollywood is extremely political in and of itself. If a role meshes with the social narratives of the day, it’s worth betting on. Talent and skill are often secondary to Hollywood’s mission to “drive culture.”
What should I look for when predicting the best Academy Award movies?
In addition to the above, there are other tips to take into consideration if you want to pick the winners successfully. The Oscars is rarely about any kind of empirical “best,” instead defaulting to politics and popularity. A great movie might not even get a nomination, after all, and Oscar-worthy performances are often ignored.
Empirically, there are two workable strategies if you want to pad your payroll. The first is to pick one of the two front-runners in any given category (as exemplified by last year’s award winners above). The second is to pick the underdog that most needs a critical shot in the arm to boost its retail and streaming sales. If a big earner and small earner are getting equal Oscar buzz, go with the smaller earner.
Can I bet on the Academy Awards in Vegas?
You cannot currently bet on the Oscars in Las Vegas, as only New Jersey allows entertainment betting at its state-regulated sportsbooks. While you will see things purporting to be Vegas odds on the Oscars at many online outlets, these are all hypothetical, and they’re almost always referencing the lines at offshore sportsbooks.
How can I get tickets to the Oscars?
Oscar tickets prices aren’t totally outrageous ($150-$750), but availability is a problem. In short, unless you’re “in Hollywood,” you can’t get a ticket to the event.
Tickets to the Academy Awards are reserved for invited celebrities, performers, presenters, nominees, and their guests. If you aren’t on the short list, you’ll have to watch from home.
How many people watch the Oscars?
The Oscars are popular, as is wagering on them. However, the market is considerably smaller for the Academy Awards than for, say, Super Bowl betting, since major sporting events still dwarf the Hollywood award show.
Just as a point of comparison, the NFL’s championship game attracts roughly 100 million viewers each year, while the Oscars pull in only 25-30 million viewers annually. Still, that’s pretty good, especially considering that around 40% of US adults bet on sports and entertainment at least semi-regularly.
What was the biggest Oscar winner?
This is tough to quantify, from either a critical perspective or betting perspective. From a critical standpoint, Bob Fosse winning Best Director for Cabaret over Francis Ford Coppola for The Godfather in 1973 is an easy pick.
However, a movie about the ultimate underdog winning Best Picture as a major underdog has to rank pretty highly in an industry that values metaphor, simile, irony, and poetic justice. So for our money, 1977’s Rocky is the biggest Oscar winner ever.
For stat heads, of course, that lofty mantle probably belongs to Gone with the Wind (1939), which is the highest-grossing Best Picture winner of all time after earning an adjusted $1.8 billion since its release.
Why doesn’t my local sportsbook have Academy Awards betting?
Oscars betting odds are popular, and in most other countries with legal sports wagering, you can access lines on Hollywood’s biggest evening with ease or even find odds for the BAFTA awards. However, in the US, even as more legal sports betting venues crop up around the country, you can’t currently wager on the Oscars anywhere but in New Jersey.
This is largely due to the precedent set by the Nevada Gaming Control Board when Las Vegas was the only game in town, and while individual sports betting states haven’t outlawed entertainment betting, they tend not to offer reality TV and Oscars odds. This is likely to change in the future as more states adopt NJ’s online gambling model.
Academy Awards Betting
When awards season started, it looked like a certain pop star was a lock for the Best Actress Oscar award. Oh, how things can change. Now there is another near-lock for the Academy Awards, and she is someone who is very familiar with the honor.
Check out who is in pole position and which longshots are the best bet to cause the upset.
Sportsbook | Glenn Close (The Wife) | Olivia Colman (The Favourite) | Lady Gaga (A Star is Born) | Yalitza Aparico (Roma) | Melissa McCarthy (Can You Ever Forgive Me?) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
DraftKings | -715 | +500 | +1200 | +3300 | +6600 |
BetStarsNJ | -700 | +500 | +2000 | +2000 | +8000 |
FanDuel | -600 | +550 | +800 | +4000 | +7500 |
Caesars | -700 | +600 | +1600 | +3000 | +5000 |
888 | -715 | +500 | +1000 | +3300 | +6600 |
Resorts | -910 | +450 | +2200 | +4000 | +8000 |
SugarHouse | -715 | +500 | +1800 | +3300 | +6600 |
PointsBet | -1000 | +400 | +1000 | +5000 | +6600 |
Golden Nugget | -910 | +450 | +2200 | +4000 | +10000 |
playMGM | -800 | +550 | +2000 | +5000 | +10000 |
William Hill | -800 | +500 | +1200 | +3000 | +7500 |
BetAmerica | -910 | +450 | +2200 | +4000 | +10000 |
Hard Rock | -850 | +475 | +1800 | +4000 | +6600 |
Glenn Close (The Wife)
Legendary actress Glenn Close is known for her work in films such as The Big Chill, The Natural, Fatal Attraction, and 101 Dalmatians. Over the course of her 45-year career, the versatile star of stage and screen has won three Tony Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and three Primetime Emmy Awards.
In The Wife, Close stars as a woman who questions her life choices as she travels to Stockholm with her husband (Jonathan Pryce), a soon-to-be Nobel Prize winner. Her performance in the Sony Pictures Classics drama has earned her a Golden Globe as well as a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress. When it comes to the Academy, Close is a seven-time Oscar nominee, meaning she has more nominations without a win than any other living actor.
With a chance at making history, Close is a lock for Best Actress. The Academy loves to reward performers who are consistently nominated without a win. Remember when Leonardo DiCaprio finally won Best Actor for The Revenant? Despite strong competition from Olivia Colman and Lady Gaga, it’s all but guaranteed that the Academy recognizes Close for a career filled with terrific performances. BetStarsNJ currently has Close as a -800 favorite.
Key awards for Glenn Close
Golden Globes: Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
Screen Actors Guild of America: Outstanding Female Actor in a Leading Role
Olivia Colman (The Favourite)
English actress Olivia Colman is best known for her roles in Edgar Wright’s Hot Fuzz(2007), The Iron Lady(2011), and Tyrannosaur (2011). After working with Yorgos Lanthimos on his 2015 film, The Lobster, Colman reunited with the Greek filmmaker for The Favourite, in which she portrays Anne, Queen of Great Britain.
For her work in the period piece, Colman won the Golden Globe for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and was nominated by the Screen Actors Guild Award. This is her first Oscar nomination, so it’s safe to say that the Academy will choose to award 71-year-old actress Close over Colman, as she’ll likely be nominated again in the future. Sportsbook playMGM currently has Colman at +550.
Key awards for Olivia Colman
Golden Globes: Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
Screen Actors Guild of America: Outstanding Female Actor in a Leading Role
British Academy of Film and Television Awards: Leading Actress
Lady Gaga (A Star is Born)
Lady Gaga lives for the applause (the applause, the applause). The singer, songwriter and actress is beloved for her chart-topping singles and provocative visual style. In A Star is Born, the pop megastar plays Ally, a waitress and aspiring artist who falls in love with Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper), a famous rocker with a drinking problem who sees her talent and coaxes her out of obscurity and into the spotlight.
AStar is Born was chosen by both the National Board of Review as one of the Top 10 Films of 2018 and won Best Actress, Best Director and Best Supporting Actor. It also received five Golden Globe nominations, two Directors Guild of America Awards nods, four Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations and eight Oscar nods.
Gaga delivers a fantastic performance in Cooper’s film, but it seems like the Academy will choose to recognize her contribution elsewhere, namely the Best Song category. Her song, “Shallow,” is a shoo-in to win that category, but the Best Actress belongs to Close.
Key awards for Lady Gaga
Golden Globes: Best Original Song
National Board of Review: Top Ten Best Films of 2018, Best Actress
Academy Awards Betting Games
Yalitza Aparicio (Roma)
Academy Awards Betting Sheet
First-time actress Yalitza Aparicio is the first Indigenous woman and the second Mexican woman to be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar, following Salma Hayek for her role in Frida (2002). In Roma, Aparicio plays Cleo Gutiérrez, an indigenous live-in maid in a middle-class household in the Colonia Roma neighborhood of Mexico City.
For her first time in front of a camera, Aparicio, who is a preschool teacher in Mexico, delivers a solid, naturalistic performance but it’s hard to imagine her winning the Best Actress trophy for her debut, especially considering the competition. As a result, Aparicio is a major underdog in the race, with FanDuel listing her at +4500.
Key awards for Yalitza Aparicio
Despite being recognized by various groups, including the Chicago Film Critics Association, the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, the Gotham Awards, the San Francisco Film Critics and the Women Film Critics Circle, Aparicio has yet to score a major win.
Melissa McCarthy (Can You Ever Forgive Me?)
Known primarily for her work in comedies like Bridesmaids (2011), The Heat(2013), and Spy (2015), Melissa McCarthy ventures into dramatic territory with Marielle Heller’sCan You Ever Forgive Me? based on Lee Israel’s 2008 memoir of the same name. McCarthy stars as Israel and follows the author as she tries to revitalize her failing career by forging letters from deceased authors and playwrights.
The film has garnered near-universal praise from critics (it sits at 98 percent on Rotten Tomatoes), with the performances of McCarthy and supporting actor Richard E. Grant being the standouts. Can You Ever Forgive Me? was named by the National Board of Review as one of the top ten of 2018. For her work in the biopic, McCarthy earned nominations at the Golden Globes and the British Academy Film Awards in addition to her Oscar nod.
Academy Awards Betting
This is McCarthy’s second Oscar nomination and her first in the Best Actress category. In 2012, she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her breakout role in Bridesmaids. Like every actress in this category, McCarthy delivers a memorable performance worthy of a trophy, but it’s a crowded year and the Best Actress Oscar feels destined to go to Close. Currently, McCarthy is at the bottom of the rankings and the biggest underdog, with William Hill ranking her at +7500.
Academy Awards Betting Odds
Key awards for Melissa McCarthy
National Board of Review: Top Ten Best Films of 2018