Oscar Nominations 2025

WRITER'S NOTE: The following was originally posted on my Facebook page on January 24, 2025. (As such, some of the films listed were not seen by yours truly by then.) 

Over the last quarter century (wait, has it really been that long?!), the Oscars ceremony—and any other awards show, for that matter—has had no shortage of being affected by current events. From 9/11 to COVID-19, the Writer’s Strikes in 2007 and 2023, and memorials honoring filmmakers and performers who are no longer with us, it’s a reminder that the anticipated event is not just a time of celebrating film, but also honoring how far it’s come, thanks to those who have made it happen, as well as how the medium and its forms can be used for more than that. This year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences will be using the televised broadcast (which will also be streaming on Hulu, for the first time) to honor and support those affected by, and those working on the front lines to recover from, the recent California wildfires—where the epicenter of Hollywood has been for ages. 

Many of the nominated films announced yesterday feature stories of characters with diverse hopes and dreams, facing insurmountable challenges in a difficult world. And while I haven’t seen all of these films (except for those marked as such *), nor would I be recommending or endorsing all of these, the thematic comparisons and arcs are nonetheless intriguing. 

Sean Baker’s Palme d’Or-winning and Best Picture-nominated romantic tragicomedy Anora (about a sex worker who quickly marries the son of a Russian oligarch, only to have his thugs come to annul the marriage) picked up six nominations, including two for Baker’s directing and original screenplay, as well as editing and for Mikey Madison (lead actress) and Yura Borisov’s (supporting actor) performances. 

Brady Corbet’s three-and-a-half-hour immigrant saga The Brutalist (about a Hungarian architect who seeks new opportunities in post-World War II America, against a manipulative business tycoon) picked up ten nominations, including Best Picture. Other accolades include Corbet’s directing and original screenplay (shared with Mona Fastvold), production design, editing, cinematography (shot in VistaVision), Daniel Blumberg’s original score, and the performances of Adrien Brody (lead actor), Guy Pearce (supporting actor), and Felicity Jones (supporting actress). 

*James Mangold’s transcendent 1960s-set biopic about enigmatic folk-rock singer-musician Bob Dylan, A Complete Unknown, picked up eight nominations, including Best Picture and for Mangold’s directing and adapted screenplay (shared with Jay Cocks). Actors Timothée Chalamet (lead actor), Edward Norton (supporting actor), and Monica Barbaro (supporting actress) received well-earned nominations for their transformative portrayals of Dylan, Pete Seeger, and Joan Baez, respectively. The film was also nominated for its period costume design and sound. 

Edwards Berger’s Best Picture-nominated religious drama-thriller Conclave (about a skeptical cardinal who discovers conspiracies and secrets within the Vatican during the election of a new pope) also recognized Peter Straughan’s adapted screenplay, Volker Bertelsmann’s original score, the performances of screen veterans Ralph Fiennes (lead actor) and Isabella Rossellini (supporting actress), and the film’s editing, production design, and costume design. 

Jacques Audiard’s genre-bending crime-musical Emilia Pérez (about a Cartel boss who undergoes a sex-change operation) is the most-honored film this year, with 13 nominations including Best Picture and Best International Feature (representing France). Audiard was recognized for his directing and adapted screenplay (shared with Thomas Bidegain, Léa Mysius, and Nicolas Livecchi), while two of the film’s songs and its score (written by Clément Ducol & Camille) received nominations. Zoe Saldaña was recognized for her supporting role (as an attorney), while Karla Sofía Gascón has become the first transgender actress to be nominated for a leading role. The film also picked up nominations for its sound, makeup & hairstyling, film editing, and cinematography. 

Speaking of body changes, Coralie Fargeat’s reportedly-excessive body horror feature, The Substance (about an aging fitness instructor who uses an experimental drug to appear younger and meet “industry-standards” of beauty and success), has become the first horror film in seven years (the last being Jordan Peele’s Get Out) to be nominated for Best Picture. Fargeat also picked up nominations for her directing (the only female recognized in the category this year) and for her original screenplay. Lead actress Demi Moore also received her first Oscar nomination in a decades-long career. The film was also recognized for its makeup and hairstyling. Another horror feature recognized this year is Robert Eggers’ update of the Dracula-esque Nosferatu. The terrifying period feature received four technical nominations, including production design, costume design, makeup & hairstyling, and cinematography. 

Other nominees reflect what it means to be human, as well as the value of community and friendship against prejudice and other life challenges. Jesse Eisenberg’s A Real Pain (a comedy-drama about two cousins who go on a Holocaust tour in Europe to honor their late grandmother) picked up two nominations: one for Eisenberg’s original screenplay, and the other for Kieran Culkin’s highly-acclaimed supporting role. Another film with dual nominations is Ramell Ross’s Nickel Boys (a story of two young African-American men in a controversial reform school in the 1960s south), for Best Picture and for Ross and Joslyn Barnes’ adapted screenplay. 

*One of my favorite films of the year was director Greg Kwedar’s Sing Sing, based on the true story of the performing arts program of the same name at the titular maximum security correctional facility. The film is recognized for its original song, “Like a Bird,” as well as for its adapted Screenplay (written by Kwedar and Clint Bentley, along with real-life former inmates Clarence Maclin and John “Divine G” Whitfield). Lead actor Colmon Domingo (who was nominated last year for his portrayal of March on Washington organizer Bayard Rustin) was recognized for his portrayal Whitfield—a rare occasion where both the real person and the actor playing him are both nominated for the same film, in the same year. 

*And I can’t talk about the nominees without mentioning the amazing Wicked. Based on both Gregory McGuire’s original novel and the Broadway musical of the same name, Jon M. Chu’s first installment of a 2-part saga (Wicked: For Good is due out the end of this year) picked up nominees for Best Picture (the first for a musical since 2016’s La La Land, and sharing the same honor as Emilia Pérez this year), original score (by John Powell and Stephen Schwartz), production design, costume design, makeup & hairstyling, film editing, sound, and visual effects. And the film’s two leading ladies, Cynthia Erivo (actress) and Ariana Grande (supporting actress), were nominated for their phenomenal takes on Elphaba and Glinda, respectively. I wouldn’t be surprised if this movie musical walked away with several awards. The quality and craftsmanship and dedication of this cast and crew is, without a doubt, extraordinary. 

One of the biggest surprise nominees this year (thanks to a recent win at the Golden Globes) is Walter Salles’ Brazilian period drama I’m Still Here (a true story about a family in 1970s Rio de Janeiro, who struggle after the disappearance of a family patriarch in a time of political and militant upheaval). Along with Emilia Pérez, this is one of two International Feature nominees recognized in the Best Picture category as well. (Other International Feature nominees include Denmark’s The Girl With the Needle and Germany’s The Seed of the Sacred Fig.) Lead actress Fernanda Torres’s win at the Golden Globes was arguably the moment that peaked my interest in seeing this film, and her nominated performance. (I have yet to, as of this writing.) 

Another International Feature nominee this year (representing Latvia) is the dialogue-free Flow, a 90-minute piece about a group of animal survivors on a life raft in a flooded world. It’s the first international film since 2021’s animated documentary Flee to be nominated in more than one category. (On a different note, the Academy snubbed Pharrell Williams’ acclaimed Lego-animated documentary, Piece By Piece.) 

*Then there’s the DreamWorks animated The Wild Robot from director Chris Sanders (based on Peter Brown’s children’s novel of the same name), about a service robot who lands on a stranded island and learns to adapt. An amazing, game-changing blend of hand-drawn/painterly and CGI techniques, both this film (also nominated for its sound and for Kris Bowers’ profound score) and Flow have in common that they are both emotional stories being recognized as more than just stunning animation. 

While seasonal tentpoles like Marvel’s Deadpool & Wolverine, Disney’s Moana 2, Lee Isaac Chung’s Twisters, and George Miller’s Furiosa were left out of the race, at least two major blockbuster releases from 2024 were recognized. Denis Villeneuve's Best Picture-nominated Dune: Part Two (the second-half of his screen adaptation of Frank Herbert’s celebrated science-fiction novel) wasn’t recognized for Villeneuve's directing, or even for its screenplay. It did, however, get commended for its production design, cinematography, sound and visual effects (no surprises on those last two). 

And let’s not forget Pixar’s record-breaking and critically-acclaimed sequel, Inside Out 2, which was the highest-grossing film of the year. The terrific follow-up to their 2015 classic about the emotions of a little girl picked up a sole nomination for Best Animated Feature, an accolade it shares with the stop-motion features, Memoir of a Snail (directed by Mary and Max helmer Adam Elliot) and Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (directed by Aardman veteran Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham). 

A few other single nominations this year include the visual effects of Fede Alvarez’s franchise entry, Alien: Romulus, a recognition it shares with Michael Gracey’s chimp-centered Robbie Williams biopic Better Man and 20th Century Studio’s primal-futuristic Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. (How’s that for commonality?) There’s also the makeup and hairstyling of Aaron Schimberg’s dark comedy A Different Man, about a man with facial tumors who undergoes an experimental surgery before meeting a man with the same condition. That film’s lead Sebastian Stan (who recently won a Golden Globe for his performance, and was reportedly interested in seeing a double-bill of this film alongside The Substance) was nominated for Best Actor for the other film he made in 2024, as Donald Trump in The Apprentice. (Jeremy Strong also received a nomination for his supporting role in that film, as attorney Roy Cohn.) Other single nominees include the music documentary Elton John: Never Too Late (for Original Song), music biopic Maria (for its cinematography, while Angelina Jolie’s acclaimed performance was left out), historical thriller September 5 (for Original Screenplay), and the war drama The Six Triple Eight (for an original song, written by longtime nominee Diane Warren). 

As for snubs this year, other people are likely disappointed that Payal Kapadia’s Indian drama All We Imagine As Light (which is high on my watchlist) and Luca Guadagnino’s dark tennis drama Challengers didn’t make the cut. Ditto Denzel Washington’s supporting role in Ridley Scott’s long-awaited sequel Gladiator II. That film didn’t even get nominated for its stunning production design, visual effects, or Harry Gregson-Williams’ powerful score. It did, however, get one lone nomination: for its costume design. Personally, I would’ve liked to see Nicholas Hoult get a nomination for his complex and layered performance in Clint Eastwood’s severely-underrated Juror #2. 

I discovered one other theme this year. As I’ve said many times before, the irony of the Academy Awards is that many of the films nominated each year are titles that many people have never heard of. On the other hand, they (and we, for that matter) may have never heard of those films if they weren’t recognized by the Academy. I don’t know how many of us have considered this before (myself included), but these are films that have been around for a while. We just didn’t realize it. Think about that. 

I look forward to seeing how the Academy honors those who are working tirelessly in the state of California. My thoughts and prayers to the residents and stars there as well. Not to mention the countless individuals who continue to make movies—and the moviegoing experience—powerful.