The Oscar Nominations Have Dropped and Genre Films Are Running the Show

The Oscar nominations just dropped, and they’ve thrown awards season into overdrive. With nearly two months to go before the ceremony on March 15, this year’s race feels wide open and unpredictable.

Genre films made a serious impact this year, and it’s great to see genre movies get a lot of Oscar love! Leading the charge is Sinners, which shattered records with a jaw-dropping 16 nominations. That makes it the most-nominated film in Oscars history.

The film landed nods for Best Picture, Best Director for Ryan Coogler, Best Actor for Michael B. Jordan, and Best Supporting nominations for Wunmi Mosaku and Delroy Lindo. That’s a massive showing and one that firmly plants Sinners at the center of the Oscar conversation.

Frankenstein, directed by Guillermo del Toro, pulled in 9 nominations of its own, including Best Picture. Del Toro’s long-anticipated take on the classic story clearly resonated with voters and could end up being one of the night’s biggest players.

Another notable contender is Bugonia, which secured 10 nominations, including a Best Picture nod. It might not be leading the pack, but that kind of presence means it’s far from a background player when the envelopes start opening.

Genre representation keeps going with KPop Demon Hunters landing nominations for Best Animated Feature and Best Song, putting it in a strong position to take home hardware. Avatar: Fire & Ash showed up in the technical categories with a nomination for Best Visual Effects, which shouldn’t surprise anyone who’s followed the franchise’s visual ambition.

One of the biggest changes this year is the introduction of Best Casting, a new category making its debut at the Oscars. It’s a long-overdue addition and one that could shine a spotlight on an often underappreciated part of the filmmaking process.

With the nominations announced, the conversation is only going to get louder. Expect momentum shifts, unexpected frontrunners, and plenty of passionate arguments as we inch closer to Oscar night.

The full list of nominees is out now, and if this lineup is any indication, March 15 can’t get here fast enough.

Best Picture

Bugonia
F1
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
The Secret Agent
Sentimental Value
Sinners

Best Director

Chloé Zhao, Hamnet
Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme
Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
Joachim Trier, Sentimental Value
Ryan Coogler, Sinners

Best Lead Actor

Timothée Chalamet, Marty Supreme
Leonardo DiCaprio, One Battle After Another
Ethan Hawke, Blue Moon
Michael B. Jordan, Sinners
Wagner Moura, The Secret Agent

Best Lead Actress

Jessie Buckley, Hamnet
Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Kate Hudson, Song Sung Blue
Renate Reinsve, Sentimental Value
Emma Stone, Bugonia

Best Supporting Actor

Benicio Del Toro, One Battle After Another
Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein
Delroy Lindo, Sinners
Sean Penn, One Battle After Another
Stellan Skarsgård, Sentimental Value

Best Supporting Actress

Elle Fanning, Sentimental Value
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Sentimental Value
Amy Madigan, Weapons
Wunmi Mosaku, Sinners
Teyana Taylor, One Battle After Another

Best Animated Feature Film

Arco
Elio
KPop Demon Hunters
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
Zootopia 2

Best Animated Short Film

Butterfly
Forevergreen
The Girl Who Cried Pearls
Retirement Plan
The Three Sisters

Best Costume Design

Avatar: Fire and Ash
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
Sinners

Best Casting

Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
The Secret Agent
Sinners

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Frankenstein
Kokuho
Sinners
The Smashing Machine
The Ugly Stepsister

Best Original Score

Bugonia
Frankenstein
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
Sinners

Best Sound

F1
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Sirât

Best Adapted Screenplay

Bugonia, Will Tracy
Frankenstein, Guillermo del Toro
Hamnet, Chloé Zhao & Maggie O’Farrell
One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson
Train Dreams, Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar

Best Original Screenplay

Blue Moon, Robert Kaplow
It Was Just an Accident, Jafar Panahi & Script Collaborators
Marty Supreme, Ronald Bronstein & Josh Safdie
Sentimental Value, Joachim Trier & Eskil Vogt
Sinners, Ryan Coogler

Best Cinematography

Frankenstein (Netflix) Dan Laustsen
Marty Supreme (A24) Darius Khondji
One Battle after Another (Warner Bros.) Michael Bauman
Sinners (Warner Bros.) Autumn Durald Arkapaw
Train Dreams (Netflix) Adolpho Veloso

Best Documentary Feature Film

The Alabama Solution
Come See Me in the Good Light
Cutting Through Rocks
Mr. Nobody Against Putin
The Perfect Neighbor

Best Documentary Short Film

All the Empty Rooms
Armed Only With a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud
Children No More: “Were and Are Gone”
The Devil Is Busy
Perfectly a Strangeness

Best Film Editing

F1, Stephen Mirrione
Marty Supreme, Ronald Bronstein & Josh Safdie
One Battle After Another, Andy Jurgensen
Sentimental Value, Olivier Bugge Coutté
Sinners, Michael Shawver

Best International Feature Film

Brazil, The Secret Agent
France, It Was Just an Accident
Norway, Sentimental Value
Spain, Sirât
Tunisia, The Voice of Hind Rajab

Best Original Song

“Dear Me” from Diane Warren: Relentless
“Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters
“I Lied To You” from Sinners
“Sweet Dreams of Joy” from Viva Verdi!
“Train Dreams” from Train Dreams

Best Production Design

Frankenstein, Tamara Deverell
Hamnet, Fiona Crombie
Marty Supreme, Jack Fisk
One Battle After Another, Florencia Martin
Sinners, Hannah Beachler; Set Decoration: Monique Champagne

Best Visual Effects

Avatar: Fire and Ash
F1
Jurassic World Rebirth
The Lost Bus
Sinners