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Sam Mendes favored for Best Director Oscar for 1917

The director of the World War II saga is the favorite to hear his named called at the 92nd Academy Awards Sunday night.

Sam Mendes poses in the Winners Room during the EE British Academy Film Awards 2020 at Royal Albert Hall on February 02, 2020 in London, England. Photo by Lia Toby/Getty Images

The 92nd Academy Awards are this Sunday, February 9th, and the betting favorite for Best Director is Sam Mendes for the World War I period film 1917. The film is also the chalk for Best Picture, and has been winning most of the awards this season. 65 of the 91 films that won Best Picture also won Best Director as well.

Mendes has won the Golden Globe, the Directors Guild of America, and the BAFTA for Best Director already. But he split the Critics Choice Award in the category with Bong Joon-Ho, director of Parasite.

Parasite is a South Korean dark comedy that has earned some late buzz as a possible surging candidate for Best Director and Best Picture. But it’s still a shade behind 1917, with $1 getting you $6 back if the upset happens.

And don’t forget the two Hollywood legends that trail just behind: Quentin Tarantino has won two Oscars for Best Original Screenplay, but never for his directing. And Martin Scorsese has been nominated nine times, but famously only has one win (The Departed in 2006). Could The Academy reward one of these legends for their lifetime body of work?

Here are the current odds for Best Picture at the 92nd Academy Awards from DraftKings Sportsbook.

Best Director Oscar Odds

Name Opening Jan 23 Feb 3
Name Opening Jan 23 Feb 3
Sam Mendes (1917) -133 -230 -1250
Bong Joon-Ho (Parasite) +225 +200 +500
Quentin Tarantino (Once Upon a Time...) +800 +1000 +1400
Martin Scorsese (The Irishman) +1000 +2000 +4000
Todd Phillips (Joker) +2500 +3300 +5000

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