In the highly anticipated nominations for the 96th Academy Awards, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer emerged as the frontrunner with an impressive tally of 13 nods.
The film is closely trailed by Poor Things, a feminist Frankenstein fantasy that secured 11 nominations, and Killers of the Flower Moon, a historical crime drama, which garnered 10 nominations. The recognition of these films, exploring poignant chapters of American history, comes against a backdrop of heightened political unrest and division in the nation, adding a layer of significance to their dark subject matter.
Last year’s mega-hit Barbie, raking in substantial box office numbers, received eight nominations, despite notable snubs of director Greta Gerwig and star/producer Margot Robbie. Oppenheimer, Barbie, and Killers of the Flower Moon all clinched nominations in the Best Picture category, sharing the spotlight with other contenders such as Poor Things, American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, The Holdovers, Maestro, Past Lives, and The Zone of Interest.
Of particular note is the inclusion of three female-directed Best Picture contenders—Barbie, Anatomy of a Fall, and Past Lives. However, only one of these directors, Justine Triet, secured a nomination in the Best Director category.
At 81, Martin Scorsese made history by becoming the oldest directing nominee. Triet and Scorsese are set to compete against Jonathan Glazer (The Zone of Interest), Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things), and Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer) in the Best Director category.
In the Best Actor race, notable contenders include Paul Giamatti, Cillian Murphy, Bradley Cooper, Colman Domingo, and Jeffrey Wright. The Best Actress category features Lily Gladstone, Emma Stone, Annette Bening, Sandra Hüller, and Carey Mulligan.
As with any Oscar season, there were surprise omissions, with notable figures like Charles Melton and Leonardo DiCaprio overlooked. On the flip side, unexpected nods went to America Ferrera for Barbie in the Best Supporting Actress category and Sterling K. Brown for American Fiction in the Best Supporting Actor category.
REELated:
Check out the full list of nominees below:
Best Picture
- “American Fiction,” Ben LeClair, Nikos Karamigios, Cord Jefferson and Jermaine Johnson, producers
- “Anatomy of a Fall,” Marie-Ange Luciani and David Thion, producers
- “Barbie,” David Heyman, Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley and Robbie Brenner, producers
- “The Holdovers,” Mark Johnson, producer
- “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Dan Friedkin, Bradley Thomas, Martin Scorsese and Daniel Lupi, producers
- “Maestro,” Bradley Cooper, Steven Spielberg, Fred Berner, Amy Durning and Kristie Macosko Krieger, producers
- “Oppenheimer,” Emma Thomas, Charles Roven and Christopher Nolan, producers
- “Past Lives,” David Hinojosa, Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler, producers
- “Poor Things,” Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone, producers
- “The Zone of Interest,” James Wilson, producer
Best Director
- Justine Triet — “Anatomy of a Fall”
- Martin Scorsese — “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- Christopher Nolan — “Oppenheimer”
- Yorgos Lanthimos — “Poor Things”
- Jonathan Glazer — “The Zone of Interest”
Actor in a Leading Role
- Bradley Cooper — “Maestro”
- Colman Domingo — “Rustin”
- Paul Giamatti — “The Holdovers”
- Cillian Murphy — “Oppenheimer”
- Jeffrey Wright — “American Fiction”
Actress in a Leading Role
- Annette Bening — “Nyad”
- Lily Gladstone — “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- Sandra Hüller — “Anatomy of a Fall”
- Carey Mulligan — “Maestro”
- Emma Stone — “Poor Things”
Actor in a Supporting Role
- Sterling K. Brown — “American Fiction”
- Robert De Niro – “Killers of the Flower Moon”
- Robert Downey Jr. — “Oppenheimer”
- Ryan Gosling — “Barbie”
- Mark Ruffalo — “Poor Things”
Actress in a Supporting Role
- Emily Blunt — “Oppenheimer”
- Danielle Brooks — “The Color Purple”
- America Ferrera – “Barbie”
- Jodie Foster — “Nyad”
- Da’Vine Joy Randolph — “The Holdovers”
Adapted Screenplay
- “American Fiction,” written for the screen by Cord Jefferson
- “Barbie,” written by Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach
- “Oppenheimer,” written for the screen by Christopher Nolan
- “Poor Things,” screenplay by Tony McNamara
- “The Zone of Interest,” written by Jonathan Glazer
Original Screenplay
- “Anatomy of a Fall,” screenplay by Justine Triet and Arthur Harari
- “The Holdovers,” written by David Hemingson
- “Maestro,” written by Bradley Cooper and Josh Singer
- “May December,” screenplay by Samy Burch; story by Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik
- “Past Lives,” written by Celine Song
Cinematography
- “El Conde” – Edward Lachman
- “Killers of the Flower Moon” – Rodrigo Prieto
- “Maestro” – Matthew Libatique
- “Oppenheimer” – Hoyte van Hoytema
- “Poor Things” – Robbie Ryan
Original Song
- “The Fire Inside” from “Flamin’ Hot,” music and lyric by Diane Warren
- “I’m Just Ken” from “Barbie,” music and lyric by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt
- “It Never Went Away” from “American Symphony,” music and lyric by Jon Batiste and Dan Wilson
- “Wahzhazhe (A Song For My People)” from “Killers of the Flower Moon,” music and lyric by Scott George
- “What Was I Made For?” from “Barbie,” music and lyric by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell
Costume Design
- “Barbie” – Jacqueline Durran
- “Killers of the Flower Moon” – Jacqueline West
- “Napoleon” – Janty Yates and Dave Crossman
- “Oppenheimer” – Ellen Mirojnick
- “Poor Things” – Holly Waddington
Sound
- “The Creator,” Ian Voigt, Erik Aadahl, Ethan Van der Ryn, Tom Ozanich and Dean Zupancic
- “Maestro,” Steven A. Morrow, Richard King, Jason Ruder, Tom Ozanich and Dean Zupancic
- “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,” Chris Munro, James H. Mather, Chris Burdon and Mark Taylor
- “Oppenheimer,” Willie Burton, Richard King, Gary A. Rizzo and Kevin O’Connell
- “The Zone of Interest,” Tarn Willers and Johnnie Burn
Original Score
- “American Fiction” – Laura Karpman
- “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” John Williams
- “Killers of the Flower Moon” – Robbie Robertson
- “Oppenheimer” – Ludwig Göransson
- “Poor Things” – Jerskin Fendrix
Live Action Short Film
- “The After,” Misan Harriman and Nicky Bentham
- “Invincible,” Vincent René-Lortie and Samuel Caron
- “Knight of Fortune,” Lasse Lyskjær Noer and Christian Norlyk
- “Red, White and Blue,” Nazrin Choudhury and Sara McFarlane
- “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” Wes Anderson and Steven Rales
Animated Short Film
- “Letter to a Pig,” Tal Kantor and Amit R. Gicelter
- “Ninety-Five Senses,” Jerusha Hess and Jared Hess
- “Our Uniform,” Yegane Moghaddam
- “Pachyderme,” Stéphanie Clément and Marc Rius
- “War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko,” Dave Mullins and Brad Booker
Documentary Feature Film
- “Bobi Wine: The People’s President,” Moses Bwayo, Christopher Sharp and John Battsek
- “The Eternal Memory”
- “Four Daughters,” Kaouther Ben Hania and Nadim Cheikhrouha
- “To Kill a Tiger,” Nisha Pahuja, Cornelia Principe and David Oppenheim
- “20 Days in Mariupol,” Mstyslav Chernov, Michelle Mizner and Raney Aronson-Rath
Documentary Short Film
- “The ABCs of Book Banning,” Sheila Nevins and Trish Adlesic
- “The Barber of Little Rock,” John Hoffman and Christine Turner
- “Island in Between,” S. Leo Chiang and Jean Tsien
- “The Last Repair Shop,” Ben Proudfoot and Kris Bowers
- “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó,” Sean Wang and Sam Davis
International Feature Film
- “Io Capitano” (Italy)
- “Perfect Days” (Japan)
- “Society of the Snow” (Spain)
- “The Teachers’ Lounge” (Germany)
- “The Zone of Interest” (United Kingdom)
Animated Feature Film
- “The Boy and the Heron,” Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki
- “Elemental,” Peter Sohn and Denise Ream
- “Nimona,” Nick Bruno, Troy Quane, Karen Ryan and Julie Zackary
- “Robot Dreams,” Pablo Berger, Ibon Cormenzana, Ignasi Estapé and Sandra Tapia Díaz
- “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Amy Pascal
Makeup and Hairstyling
- “Golda,” Karen Hartley Thomas, Suzi Battersby and Ashra Kelly-Blue
- “Maestro,” Kazu Hiro, Kay Georgiou and Lori McCoy-Bell
- “Oppenheimer,” Luisa Abel
- “Poor Things,” Nadia Stacey, Mark Coulier and Josh Weston
- “Society of the Snow,” Ana López-Puigcerver, David Martí and Montse Ribé
Production Design
- “Barbie,” production design: Sarah Greenwood; set decoration: Katie Spencer
- “Killers of the Flower Moon,” production design: Jack Fisk; set decoration: Adam Willis
- “Napoleon,” production design: Arthur Max; set decoration: Elli Griff
- “Oppenheimer,” production design: Ruth De Jong; set decoration: Claire Kaufman
- “Poor Things,” production design: James Price and Shona Heath; set decoration: Zsuzsa Mihalek
Film Editing
- “Anatomy of a Fall” – Laurent Sénéchal
- “The Holdovers” – Kevin Tent
- “Killers of the Flower Moon” – Thelma Schoonmaker
- “Oppenheimer” – Jennifer Lame
- “Poor Things” – Yorgos Mavropsaridis
Visual Effects
- “The Creator,” Jay Cooper, Ian Comley, Andrew Roberts and Neil Corbould
- “Godzilla Minus One,” Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, Masaki Takahashi and Tatsuji Nojima
- “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” Stephane Ceretti, Alexis Wajsbrot, Guy Williams and Theo Bialek
- “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,” Alex Wuttke, Simone Coco, Jeff Sutherland and Neil Corbould
- “Napoleon,” Charley Henley, Luc-Ewen Martin-Fenouillet, Simone Coco and Neil Corbould
Amid the challenging landscape of the film industry, grappling with evolving audience viewing habits and economic uncertainties, the 96th Academy Awards promise to be a compelling event. The Oscars ceremony will take place on Sunday, March 10, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, with late-night star Jimmy Kimmel returning as host.
