| Jane Campion The Power of the Dog | Rebecca Hall Passing | Denis Villanueve Dune | Paul Thomas Anderson Soggy Bottom | Pedro Almodovar Parallel Mothers |
| 1 nomination (for directing) | No nominations | 1 nomination | 2 nominations (for directing) | 1 nomination (for directing) |
 |  |  |  |  |
| Despite years of quality, Campion has only one Best Director nomination and it was in 1993. This star-studded tale could get her back in Oscars’ good graces | Already winning raves out of Sundance, this well-respected actress can translate to the lineup. The Oscars love actors-turned-directors | Following his nomination for Arrival, big budgets and grand ideas have been thrown at him, but Dune HAS to be a big hit for him to have a shot | Despite eight nominations, PTA has only been nominated for Best Director twice. The film would have to be a top-line contender for him to break through | The Oscars have shown willingness to nominate Pedro before, even when his film doesn’t show up in Best Picture. He has probably been 6th place more than once |
| ALTERNATIVES | ||||
| Joel Coen The Tragedy of Macbeth | Pablo Larrain Spencer | Wes Anderson The French Dispatch | Fran Kranz Mass | Guillermo del Toro Nightmare Alley |
| 3 nominations (for directing), 1 win | No nominations | 1 nomination (for directing) | No nominations | 1 nomination (for directing), 1 win |
 |  |  |  |  |
| Already a Best Director winner, but this time without his brother. Will they be able to take to the single Coen as well as they took the brothers?. | Seen more as an actor’s director, he could translate if the film shows up in non-acting categories. | Much like PTA, Anderson has seven noms but only one directing nomination. If the Academy can look past the quirks, they might find him in the lineup again | Sometimes dark subject matter is shunned by the Academy, but they will still recognize the director (David Lynch in 1986). Kranz might end up there as well even if his film misses | Following his Best Director win in 2017, everything he makes will be on the Academy’s radar and this one has a huge cast and is headed in the buzziest direction |
| MORE ALTERNATIVES | ||||
| Ridley Scott The Last Duel/ House of Gucci | Asghar Farhadi A Hero | Steven Spielberg West Side Story | Kenneth Branagh Belfast | Paolo Sorrentino The Hand of God |
| 3 nominations (for directing) | No nominations (for directing) | 7 nominations, 2 wins (for directing) | 1 nomination (for directing) | No nominations |
 |  |  |  |  |
| He has two Best Picture minded films and a history with the Oscars. Will he cancel himself out or could he even double up? | A Hero got rave reviews at Cannes and his previous Oscar success in International Film and Screenplay could find him in his first Director lineup | The name and the numbers speak for themselves, but remakes of Best Picture winners are 0-3 so far and none of them have been decent, much less good. Will have to really impress | If Branagh’s passion project hits big with the Oscars, don’t be surprised if the five-time nominee (though only once in directing) is brought along | His films have been hit-or-miss, but his defenders are passionate. Could he be too much of auteur, or could Netflix be his mainstream breakthrough? |
