Earlier this morning, the 96th Academy Award nominations were announced live from the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Los Angles by actors Zazie Beetz and Jack Quaid, definitively ending months of speculation and guessing games. Now we're entering the home stretch, with all roads leading to the big show on March 10th, once again hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. But the key difference this year isn't just an unusually high number of quality films, but a couple of huge critical and commercial hits the mainstream moviegoing public actually turned out for.
Since the general consensus was always that Barbie and Oppenheimer would do really well, the question became how well, and where the rest of the cards would fall. With ten nominees for Best Picture and an avalanche of precursor awards, it's hard to have many shocks in that category, but those looking for other snubs and surprises definitely found them. Who was robbed? Who miraculously snuck in? As usual, there's plenty to talk about. Let's see how the voters did. Click here for the complete list.
-Oppenheimer leads the pack with 13 nominations, with a decent portion potentially resulting in wins. That's the major story coming out of this, as many titles already earmarked for victories further solidified their frontrunner status. Poor Things and Killers of the Flower Moon followed with 10 nods, with the former even doing a little better than expected, dominating technical categories like Costume, Production Design, Cinematography and Editing.
-Despite an 8 nomination haul, it's still hard not to look at Barbie's showing as somewhat of a disappointment. Sure, it got in for Picture, Adapted Screenplay (despite that controversial classification), both supporting categories and had two Original Song nominees, but Greta Gerwig (Director) and Margot Robbie's (Actress) snubs had to sting. They're in super competitive fields but Gerwig's absence really highlights the side effect of having ten Best Picture nominees: half those directors get left out.
-You may as well give Christopher Nolan his Oscar now. Scorsese is probably his closest competition (and the oldest ever nominee in this category at 81) but his momentum stalled. Neither Anatomy of a Fall's Justine Triet, Poor Things' Yorgos Lanthimos or The Zone of Interest's Jonathan Glazer pose much of a threat, but can be proud their movies overperformed. Alexander Payne (The Holdovers) joins Gerwig on the sidelines, which is a shame since I'd switch out almost anyone not named Nolan or Scorsese for them and Maestro's Bradley Cooper.
-All signs pointed toward DiCaprio being passed over for, if we're being honest, not one of his strongest performances in an unlikable role. Barry Keoghan for Saltburn, The Iron Claw's Zac Efron and Air's Matt Damon were sadly never realistic possibilities, leaving us with the predictably strong five of Bradley Cooper (Maestro), Colman Domingo (Rustin), Paul Giamatti (The Holdovers), Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer) and Jeffrey Wright (American Fiction). This race will come down to Giamatti vs. Murphy and it could get tight.
-How about that ovation for Lily Gladstone? If that's any indication, Emma Stone's in for a battle and should probably be worried. The Academy rarely resists nominating Annette Bening (Nyad) so it's fair to say Anatomy of a Fall's Sandra Hüller took Robbie's spot. That Carey Mulligan got in for Maestro is good news for a film many wanted to see crash and burn, picking up up 7 nods instead. That indignity was reserved for May December which missed just about everything except Original Screenplay. This leaves Natalie Portman out in the cold despite delivering some of her most compelling work in years. But after the film's lackluster showing at the BAFTA and SAG, the writing was on the wall.
-Sterling K. Brown's Supporting nod for American Fiction wasn't a total surprise, but it's nice he got in since the category is pretty stacked with Robert De Niro (KOTFM), Robert Downey Jr. (Oppenheimer), Ryan Gosling (Barbie) and Mark Ruffalo (Poor Things) all sliding in. Remember when people were talking about Charles Melton winning this whole thing for May December? Completely snubbed. The Poor Things slot went to Ruffalo instead of Willem Dafoe, but it sure would have been great to see The Holdovers' Dominic Sessa here, as it was starting to feel like a real possibility. Saltburn is burned again as Jacob Elordi is left out. Downey's victory has never seemed more certain.
-In the crowded Supporting Actress category, Emily Blunt scores her first ever nod for Oppenheimer. The Color Purple had a poor showing overall, but the one actress everyone thought could go the distance was Danielle Brooks. America Ferrera is an Oscar nominee for Barbie after months of back and forth speculation about her chances. Like Bening, voters couldn't pass up the opportunity to include her co-star Jodie Foster, who was arguably even more impressive in Nyad. If there's any lingering doubt just how little voters think of May December, even Julianne Moore was ignored. Ferrari's Penelope Cruz, Saltburn's Rosamund Pike, Air's Viola Davis and Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret's Rachel McAdams failed to crack the top five, with the latter being the longest of long shots. The Holdovers' Da’Vine Joy Randolph just cemented her deservedly inevitable win.
-Best Picture is Oppenheimer's to lose at this point, with prestige picks like Anatomy of a Fall, Past Lives and The Zone of Interest establishing their status alongside wider known selections like American Fiction, Barbie, The Holdovers, KOTFM and Maestro. As much as the AMPAS likes to tout all its changes, this was business as usual. The only real exclusions here would be the cursed May December, The Color Purple, Saltburn, Society of the Snow, All of Us Strangers and The Iron Claw. But good luck finding any takers to bet on those.
Other Random Observations:
-That Napoleon scored 3 nominations (Production Design, Costume Design, Visual Effects) has to be considered a success given the film's lukewarm reception.
-How about that audience response for Godzilla: Minus One? Almost Gladstone-level.
-91 year-old John Williams picks up his 49th (!) Oscar nomination for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
-Am I the only one surprised that Asteroid City didn't get either a cinematography or production design nod? Like all of Wes Anderson's work, it's divisive, but even those who despised it seemed to at least acknowledge the visual achievement. Apparently this just got lost in the shuffle with its earlier release, much like Air.
-The most overlooked snub has to be the exclusion of Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie, the award-winning feature on the actor many thought had not only secured its ticket to the ceremony, but should win. The Academy never tires of screwing up this category, but they really hit a new low with this one.
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