The Oscars: Records, snubs and historic firsts

Thursday’s Oscar nominations delivered new records, some high‑profile misses and some fresh breakthroughs, including for non‑English performances, women directors and a new casting category.

‘SINNERS’ SETS A RECORD

With 16 nominations, “Sinners” set the record for most nominations for a film. The previous record of 14 was shared by “All About Eve” (1950), “Titanic” (1997) and “La La Land” (2016).

SOME NOTEWORTHY BREAKTHROUGHS…

The racing drama “F1” scored a surprising best picture nomination. Kate Hudson earned a best actress nod for her role in “Song Sung Blue,” her first Oscar nomination since “Almost Famous” in 2001. Widely acclaimed actor Delroy Lindo garnered one of the 16 nominations for “Sinners” for best supporting actor, his first Oscar nod.

…AND SOME PERCEIVED SNUBS

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo and their film “Wicked: For Good” failed to win nominations. Paul Mescal missed a nomination for his supporting role in “Hamnet.” Other notable snubs included actor Jesse Plemons for “Bugonia” and Jennifer Lawrence for “Die My Love.” Miley Cyrus was snubbed for her song in “Avatar: Fire and Ash.”

Other films ignored included “Is This Thing On?”, “Jay Kelly” and “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere.” Park Chan-wook’s “No Other Choice” failed to muster a nod in the international feature category.

A RECORD FOR NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGE PERFORMANCES

A record four non-English language performances were nominated. They were Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Wagner Moura, Renate Reinsve and Stellan Skarsgård. The previous record of three was set in 1976. “The Secret Agent” and “Sentimental Value” are the 12th and 13th non-English language films to be nominated for both international feature film and best picture in the same year. “Parasite,” released in 2019, was the only film to win both.

A MILESTONE FOR FEMALE DIRECTORS

Chloé Zhao’s nomination for “Hamnet” is the 11th directing nomination for a woman in the 98-year-old history of the Oscars. Zhao is the third woman to score multiple nominations in the directing category, alongside prior winners Kathryn Bigelow and Jane Campion.

A NEW AWARD

The award for achievement in casting is the first new award category established since best animated feature film in 2001. The award formally recognizes the role casting directors contribute to a film’s vision and its overall success.

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