Brendan Fraser wins Best Actor at 2023 Oscars

While Everything Everywhere All At Once has been the big winner so far at the Academy Awards, Brendan Fraser was awarded the Oscar for Best Actor for his role in The Whale. It’s Fraser’s first Academy Award victory.

Brendan Fraser opened with the best odds for Best Actor back in November, listed at -160 at DraftKings Sportsbook for his starring role in The Whale. Behind him was Austin Butler (+400) for his portrayal of the iconic American singer and actor in Elvis, and rounding out the top three was The Banshees of Inisherin’s Colin Farrell (+600), who stars in the black tragicomedy film opposite Brendan Gleeson.

While the odds have since shifted slightly heading into Oscars night, the aforementioned top three favorites have held comfortably in the same place. Fraser (-190), Butler (+135), and Farrell (+1400) continue to hold the best odds for Best Actor, with a close race brewing between Fraser and Butler in particular.

With this race essentially boiling down to two nominees, it should come as no surprise to see Fraser and Butler leading the race for Best Actor, as each of their films was also nominated for Best Makeup. Transforming these two actors into their respective personas was a tandem effort by the actor and their makeup team, and it is hard to argue that the finished effect on film could have been achieved by one without the other.