iWorld
Oscars 2026: Five nominated films you can stream now
From horror to historical drama, catch up on the frontrunners before 16 March ceremony.
MUMBAI: The 98th Academy Awards are revving up, and the real race is happening on your screen because why wait for the red carpet when the nominees are already red-hot on streaming? The 98th Academy Awards will air on Monday, 16 March 2026, from 4:30 am to 7:30 am IST, and several of this year’s most talked-about nominees are already available to stream. Here are five standout films shaping the conversation, perfect for catching up before Oscar night.
Sinners (Prime Video & JioHotstar) Ryan Coogler’s genre-bending return after three years blends horror, history and music in 1930s Mississippi. Michael B. Jordan plays twin brothers Smoke and Stack, World War I veterans opening a juke joint for the Black community until vampires drawn to their cousin’s musical talent turn the dream into a nightmare. The film examines exploitation of Black art and culture through atmospheric direction and Jordan’s dual performance.
Sentimental Value (Prime Video & Mubi) Joachim Trier crafts an emotionally layered drama about two sisters, Nora and Agnes, reuniting with their estranged father Gustav, a once-celebrated director. After their mother’s death, Gustav tries to reconnect by casting Nora in his comeback film. When she refuses, old grief and family wounds resurface. The film explores memory, inspiration and complicated ties with quiet power.
One Battle After Another (Prime Video & JioHotstar) Paul Thomas Anderson’s political thriller stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Bob, a former revolutionary living off-grid with his daughter while haunted by paranoia and his radical past. When old conflicts resurface, he’s pulled into a relentless chase to protect her. The film mixes tension, dark humour and sharp commentary on activism, identity and the cost of living outside the system.
F1 (Prime Video & Apple TV+) Brad Pitt leads this high-octane racing drama as a veteran Formula One driver returning after a career-ending crash. Joining a struggling team with a young rookie, he chases redemption on the world’s toughest tracks. Filmed during real race weekends with unprecedented access, the film delivers breathtaking sequences alongside a story of mentorship, rivalry and victory against the odds.
Hamnet (Prime Video) Chloé Zhao directs this historical drama inspired by Maggie O’Farrell’s novel and Shakespeare’s family life. Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal play Agnes and William Shakespeare navigating grief after losing their young son Hamnet. The film imagines how personal tragedy may have shaped Hamlet, portraying love, loss and artistic creation with haunting intimacy.
These five films offer everything from pulse-racing spectacle to quiet emotional depth. With the Oscars just around the corner, the real winners might be the stories already streaming ready to turn your living room into a front-row seat to cinema’s biggest night.
iWorld
WhatsApp may soon let users to pick who sees their status updates
The messaging giant is borrowing a page from Instagram’s playbook as it pushes to give users finer control over their social circles.
CALIFORNIA: WhatsApp is quietly working on a feature that could make its Status function considerably smarter and considerably more private.
According to reports from beta tracking platforms, the app is testing a tool called Status lists, which would allow users to create named groups such as close friends, family and colleagues, and control precisely which group sees each update. It is a meaningful step up from the platform’s current blunt instruments, which offer only three options: share with all contacts, exclude specific people, or manually select individuals each time.
The new feature draws an obvious comparison with Instagram’s Close Friends function, and the resemblance is unlikely to be accidental. Both platforms sit within Meta’s family, and the company has been nudging them toward a common logic of audience segmentation for some time.
The move also fits neatly into WhatsApp’s broader privacy push. The platform has been rolling out enhanced chat protections and is exploring the introduction of usernames, which would allow users to connect without exchanging phone numbers. Status lists extend that philosophy from messaging into broadcasting.
Meanwhile, Status itself has been evolving well beyond its origins as a simple photo-and-text slideshow. The feature now supports music stickers, collages, longer videos and interactive elements, pushing it closer to the social-media-style story format pioneered by Snapchat and refined by Instagram. In that context, finer audience controls are not merely a privacy feature. They are a precondition for people sharing more.
The feature remains in development and has not been confirmed for release. WhatsApp routinely tests tools that are later modified or quietly shelved. But the direction of travel is clear: the app wants Status to be a destination, not an afterthought. Letting users decide exactly who is in the audience is how it gets there.
