Which star is the bookies' favourite to win Best Actress at the Oscars?

The 96th Academy Awards will occur on 10 March 2024 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

The Oscars ceremony is dedicated to celebrating the best of film each year whether it be from an artistic or technical point of view. It is generally considered to be the most prestigious movie award ceremony in the world and has been running since the first ceremony took place at The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in 1929.

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The most coveted awards are for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Director, though each of the 23 awards given on the night comes with its own degree of prestige.

Each category winner is awarded a copy of a golden statuette as a trophy, officially called the 'Academy Award of Merit' though it is colloquially known now as simply an 'Oscar'

With regards to the Best Actress award, there is one major front-runner, according to betting website Oddschecker.

Oscar Odds 2024

Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon) - 4/9

Here are some snippets of what critics have had to say about Lily Gladstone's performance:

"Best of all is Lily Gladstone as DiCaprio’s proud, strong-willed Osage wife, although it does beg credulity that she would stick with this loser as long as she does." - Bill Newcott of The Saturday Evening Post.

"Poignant and sobering, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON dissects America's revolting treatment of the indigenous. Martin Scorsese’s directing shines but it’s Lily Gladstone who truly steals every moment with an incredible performance." - Sheraz Farooqi of CinemaDebate.

"This film is methodical, emotional, and ultimately one of Scorsese’s more powerful outings. Gladstone steals every single scene. The subtle score is the heartbeat that keeps everything moving fluidly, even with the slower pacing." - Austin Burke of Fan Nation.

Emma Stone (Poor Things) - 7/4

Another contender to win the Academy Award for Best Actress is Emma Stone. She is already the recipient of the award, having won previously for her performance in La La Land.

"No actor in 2023 has committed to a role more than Emma Stone does in Poor Things." - Chris Hewitt of Minneapolis Star Tribune.

"To say anything more would be to spoil this superbly realised, genuinely original experience and one of the best films in recent memory. Cue heaps of award nods and likely wins, especially for Stone." - Ana Yorke of PopMatters.

"A glorious gothic fantasy of the grotesque and the macabre rendered with high art and low comedy. We should just give the Oscar to Emma Stone right now. Hers is a performance of breathtaking boldness. Fearless is too trite a word for it." - Andrea Chase of Killer Movie Reviews.

Sandra Huller (Anatomy of a Fall) - 33/1

"Sandra Hüller truly makes you forget that she is acting. You can literally pick any moment in the movie from her as her awards clip." - Dave Giannini of InSession Film.

"Like most courtroom dramas there are loads of extended flashbacks here, and while the film runs long, the exceptional lead performance from Sandra Hüller holds it together." - Jim Schembri of jimschembri.com.

"Directed with masterful precision, this is a compelling and fascinating work that will linger in the memory, and Sandra Hüller's performance is one of the great interpretations of the year." - Valentina Morillo of El Espanol.

Carey Mulligan (Maestro) - 66/1

"Mulligan’s display of toughness and fragility is a tour de force. Cooper gives his co-star top billing, but he is the indisputable auteur of this passionate work." - Whang Yee Ling of The Straits Times.

"Carey Mulligan and Bradley Cooper give career-defining performances in Maestro, which also features some of the best editing and cinematography of the year." - Lauren Veneziani of DC Film Girl.

"To say that Carey Mulligan shines in the film is an understatement; through her outstanding performance, we learn so much about this famous, important person." -  Sarah Knight Adamson of Sarah's Backstage Pass.

Annette Bening (Nyad) - 66/1

"Add a great soundtrack and awards-worthy turns from Bening and (Jodie) Foster and you get a feel-good crowd-pleaser that hits all the right notes to educate, inspire, and entertain." - Jared Mobarak of Hey, Have You Seen...?

"In her Oscar-worthy performance in the title role, Annette Bening is endurance exemplified." - Steve Crum of Crum on Showbiz.

"The film benefits hugely from its casting, Annette Bening makes of her Nyad an almost superhuman force." - Robert W. Butler of Butler's Cinema Scene.