All Oscars 2026 Best Supporting Actor Performances, Ranked Worst To Best

by

While Best Actor is getting a lot of attention for its strong contenders, the Best Supporting Actor category at the 2026 Oscars is actually the most competitive. All five nominees come from the year’s most-nominated films, and early awards have been split between them, making it incredibly difficult to pick a winner. The reason? All the performances are remarkably similar in quality.

I’ve been ranking the Oscar nominees for Best Picture, Actor, and Actress for Ebaster, and putting together this list of Supporting Actor nominees was the most challenging yet. My rankings could easily change on another day, but here’s how I’d order the five nominees, from least to most likely to win, as of today.

5. Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein

Any of these five actors deserve to win an Oscar. Jacob Elordi is a rising star, and his work in the film is impressive—even potentially saving it. However, if I had to pick just one winner, he wouldn’t be my first choice.

As a huge fan of Guillermo del Toro, I’ve always loved how much heart he brings to his monsters, and he consistently creates some of the most memorable creatures in film – often with the incredible Doug Jones inside those amazing prosthetics. Honestly, the creature design in this new Frankenstein is right up there with del Toro’s best work, and Jacob Elordi’s performance is a major reason why. He completely blew me away with his physical acting – it’s a side of him I hadn’t seen before. The movie just wouldn’t have the same emotional weight without him; he truly becomes the creature.

4. Delroy Lindo, Sinners

Delroy Lindo is the surprise contender for Best Supporting Actor this year, having not campaigned at earlier awards shows. A win would be a welcome recognition for his overlooked performance in Da 5 Bloods – many consider it one of the biggest Oscar snubs of the past ten years. However, voters shouldn’t base their decision on his long and impressive career alone; it’s the power of his current performance that truly deserves attention.

I really enjoyed the first half of Ryan Coogler’s film, but I struggled with the second half – particularly the shift towards action and horror, which didn’t serve the actor Lindo well. However, Lindo is the heart of the first hour, bringing a depth and realism to his character that impacts everyone around him. Beyond the film’s central reveal, the most important moment is when he channels his pain into music. While the film features strong performances across the board, Lindo’s is arguably the most crucial to its success.

3. Stellan Skarsgård, Sentimental Value

Stellan Skarsgård is a consistently great actor who often blends into the background, but this film makes you truly notice him. Director Joachim Trier has a knack for bringing out hidden depths in performers, and with Skarsgård, he reveals a new, fragile side to the actor’s typically strong and reserved persona. The performance feels both comfortably familiar and surprisingly nuanced.

The character he plays seems like a typical, self-absorbed director – creating elaborate worlds to avoid dealing with his own life and only expressing himself through his work. However, that’s actually a misleading way to look at Bill Skarsgård’s performance. While the other characters perceive him as distant, the audience is let in on his inner world and sees a surprisingly wide range of raw emotions. If you only take the character at face value, you might miss the subtle ways Skarsgård shows us a reserved man while simultaneously making his feelings completely clear.

2. Benicio del Toro, One Battle After Another

Most people believe the two candidates will split the vote, and I agree – I struggled to pick a favorite myself. Benicio del Toro brings a unique, calm energy to the film. While everything around him feels chaotic and powerful, he remains grounded and steady. He’s essential to the movie’s success; without him, it risks becoming the confusing and politically charged film some critics claim it is. With him, it’s sharp, exciting, and perfectly captures the mood of today’s culture.

As a movie fan, I’m really struck by Del Toro’s character. He’s not driven by any grand ideas, just a strong sense of right and wrong, and he always sticks to it. What’s amazing is he plays it completely straight, with real weight, but also manages to be the perfect foil to DiCaprio’s more over-the-top performance. It’s subtle acting – he makes everyone around him better without showing off. But honestly, it’s incredibly memorable. The film clearly loves this performance and doesn’t want you to forget it. I have a feeling that even with all the wild characters in One Battle After Another, Sensei will be the one people remember most.

1. Sean Penn, One Battle After Another

Sean Penn’s acting in One Battle After Another is almost the reverse of Guillermo del Toro’s. Where del Toro brings a sense of realism to the film, Penn creates a performance that desperately needs it. He’s over-the-top, exaggerated, and plays everything for maximum effect. Whenever he’s on screen, it feels like he’s competing with the other actors for the audience’s focus—and he’s incredibly compelling while doing it.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s film clearly draws inspiration from Dr. Strangelove, particularly through a character who feels like a combination of Peter Sellers’, Sterling Hayden’s, and George C. Scott’s iconic figures from that movie. However, the film’s satire is especially effective because, in today’s world, real-life problematic leaders have become even more extreme than the caricatures meant to satirize them – making the character disturbingly relatable. The actor playing this role masterfully portrays the contrast between the man’s constructed persona and his true self. The more he attempts to maintain the false image he’s created, the more it falls apart, revealing his unpleasant core.

I can see why some people think Sean Penn, with his two Oscars already, might be the least interesting choice among these five nominees. I might even agree, wanting to see someone new win. But I feel the same way about this race as I did when Anthony Hopkins unexpectedly won, preventing a posthumous award for Chadwick Boseman. If Penn does win, it will be simply because, objectively, he delivered the strongest performance of any supporting actor in 2025.

Read More

2026-03-12 15:42