Oscars: Will `Power of the Dog' reign supreme?

Ahead of the 94th Academy Awards, Associated Press Film Writers Lindsey Bahr and Jake Coyle share their predictions for major categories in a ceremony with much still up in the air.

BEST PICTURE >> The Nominees: “Belfast”; “CODA”; “Don't Look Up”; “Drive My Car”; “Dune”;

“King Richard”; “Licorice Pizza”; “Nightmare Alley”; “The Power of the Dog”; “West Side Story.” BAHR: At this point it really feels like the award will go to “The Power of the Dog.”

COYLE: I'm calling the “CODA” upset. The smart money is on Campion's film. But the win for “CODA” at the Screen Actors Guild suggests strong passion for the film.

BEST ACTRESS >> The Nominees: Jessica Chastain, “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”; Olivia Colman, “The Lost Daughter”; Penélope Cruz, “Parallel Mothers”; Nicole Kidman, “Being the Ricardos”; Kristen Stewart, “Spencer.” COYLE: Jessica Chastain as the televangelist Tammy Faye — has moved to favorite status after winning the SAG Awards. That may partly be because Chastain, a three-time nominee but never a winner, is one of Hollywood's best actors and the time has come to honor her. I think she'll win, but Olivia Colman — “The Lost Daughter” — could sneak in for her second Academy Award. BAHR: Chastain should have already won several Oscars at this point, and not even necessarily for the ones she got nominations for (“The Help” and “Zero Dark Thirty”). However, I still think there's a small possibility that it will go to Kristen Stewart, who has been on a rollercoaster path after starting the season at the top.

BEST ACTOR >> The Nominees: Will Smith, “King Richard”; Denzel Washington, “The Tragedy of Macbeth”; Javier Bardem, “Being the Ricardos”; Benedict Cumberbatch, “The Power of the Dog”; Andrew Garfield, “Tick, Tick … Boom!” BAHR: It's always a bit of a snooze when categories are locked for months, but it would be a major surprise if Will Smith didn't get his first Oscar win for “King Richard.”

COYLE: Smith will over-share his way to the Oscar, a deserved win for one of the movies' most insanely charming stars. Smith might have already won best actor (for “Ali”) if not for Denzel's titanic performance that year in “Training Day.”

Amazon closes $8.5B deal to acquire MGM

Amazon has finalized a deal to acquire MGM studios, and more than 4,000film titles, Variety is reporting today.

The $8.5billion deal was first announced in May, the companies told Variety.

The deal includes more than 14,000TV episodes, 180Academy Award winning movies and 100 Emmy award winning shows. It will be added to the Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Studios collection.

MGM was founded in 1924 and created the James Bond, Pink Panther and Rocky franchises. The MGM film catalog includes “12Angry Men,” “Basic Instinct,” “Creed,” “Legally Blonde,” “Moonstruck,” “Poltergeist,” “Raging Bull,” “Robocop,” “Silence of the Lambs,” “Thelma & Louise,” “Tomb Raider” and “The Magnificent Seven.”