Oscar Upsets: What to Look for in 2014 – Latest Odds

Oscar upsets are not common but they do happen and, when this occurs, the payouts for gamblers could prove sweet.  Bet the Oscars here.

A common rule of thumb is that Academy Awards upsets typically occur when the odds are within 3 to 5 points or 3/1 to 5/1 underdogs.   We have a few of those this year with “Gravity” in the Best Picture category at 3/1 odds and Leonardo DiCarprio at 3/1 odds in the Best Actor category.

In recent years we have witnessed upsets in both the Best Picture and Best Director categories.  “Brokeback Mountain” lost to 3/1 underdog “Crash” in 2006.  James Cameron had been an early favorite to take home the Oscar for Best Director in 2010 for “Avatar” but ultimately Katherine Bigelow, his ex, ended up the 1/6 favorite by show time and won.

A few other memorable upsets included the likes of Marisa Tomei beating out Miranda Richardson and Vanessa Redgrave for Best Supporting Actress in 1993 and “Rocky” taking home Best Picture in 1977 as the underdog going up against “Taxi Driver” and “All The President’s Men”.

Also of note, Denzel Washington shocked the Oscars by taking home the award for Best Actor in the not-so-memorable flick “Training Day”.  Washington was considered among the biggest long shots in this category.

A year later, we witnessed another huge upset in that same category with Adrien Brody beating out the likes of Nicolas Cage, Jack Nicholson, Michael Caine and Daniel Day Lewis to win Best Actor.  All had better odds of winning.

The latest Oscar betting odds appear below.

- Jordan Bach, Gambling911.com