NEW YORK (AP) — After a tumultuous movie year marked by strikes and work stoppages, the Academy Awards showered nominations Tuesday on Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster biopic, “Oppenheimer,” which came away with a leading 13 nominations.
Nolan’s three-hour opus, viewed as the best picture frontrunner, received nods for best picture and Nolan’s direction; acting nominations for Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr. and Emily Blunt; and multiple honors for the sweeping craft of the J. Robert Oppenheimer drama.
Though Nolan is regarded as the big-canvas auteur of his era, he’s never won an Academy Award — nor have any of his films won best picture. This, though, could be his year. Reflecting on the rarity of his film’s success — a lengthy drama dense with talk and the convulsions of history that nevertheless grossed nearly $1 billion — Nolan, in an interview Tuesday, called Oppenheimer “one of the great American stories.”
“I grew up loving Hollywood movies and believing studio filmmaking can take on anything,” said Nolan. “Seeing audiences respond to that this summer was incredibly thrilling and getting this kind of recognition from the academy, I don’t know what to say, really. It certainly confirms our faith in what studio filmmaking can be.”
The year’s biggest hit, “Barbie,” came away with a nominations haul slightly less than its partner in Barbenheimer mania.Greta Gerwig’s feminist comedy, with more than $1.4 billion in ticket sales, was nominated for eight awards, including best picture; Ryan Gosling for best supporting actor; and two best song candidates in “What Was I Made For” and “I’m Just Ken.”
Gerwig was surprisingly left out of the best director field. She was nominated for best director in 2018 for her solo directorial debut, “Lady Bird.” At the time, Gerwig was just the fifth woman nominated for the award. Since then, Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”) and Jane Campion (“The Power of the Dog”) have won best director. Before those wins, Kathryn Bigelow (“The Hurt Locker,” in 2010) was the only woman to win the Oscar’s top filmmaking honor.
Both Yorgos Lanthimos’ Frankenstein riff “Poor Things” and Martin Scorsese’s Osage epic “Killers of the Flower Moon” were also widely celebrated, with 11 and 10 nods apiece.
Lily Gladstone, star of “Killers of the Flower Moon,” became the first Native American nominated for best actress. For the 10th time, Scorsese was nominated for best director. Leonardo DiCaprio, though, was left out of best actor. The late Robbie Robertson, who died in August, also became the first Indigenous person nominated for best score.
“It happens to be that I’m carrying this honor right now (but) it’s all so long overdue,” Gladstone said by phone from Pawhuska, Oklahoma, where she traveled to be close to her character. “It’s a real moment of restoration, placing Indigenous talent in these roles, spotlighting their humanity, their their characters, just the way that all of the sisters exist on screen, I think is shattering a lot of stereotypes people have about Indigenous women, particularly Native American women.”
“Poor Things,” a dark Victorian era fantasy about Bella Baxter’s sexual awakening, received nominations for Lanthimos’ direction, Emma Stone’s leading performance, Mark Ruffalo’s supporting performance and widespread nods for the old-school craft of its fantastical design.
The 10 films nominated for best picture were: “Oppenheimer,” “Barbie,” “Poor Things,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “The Holdovers,” “Maestro,” “American Fiction,” “Past Lives,” “Anatomy of a Fall” and “The Zone of Interest.”
That group, which mirrored the Producers Guild Awards nominees, went much as expected and, as critics noted, a remarkably strong collection of films. For the first time, three of the best picture nominees were directed by women: “Past Lives” by Celine Song;“Anatomy of a Fall” by Justine Triet, also nominated for best director; and Gerwig’s “Barbie.”
But surprises abounded in other categories.
The best actor category had been seen one of the most competitive. In the end, the nominees were Murphy, Paul Giamatti (“The Holdovers”), Jeffrey Wright (“American Fiction”), Bradley Cooper (“Maestro”) and Colman Domingo (“Rustin”). Domingo’s nomination, for his performance as civil rights activist Bayard Rustin, made him just the second openly gay man to be nominated for playing a gay character, following Ian McKellen for the 1998 film “Gods and Monsters.”
“American Fiction,” Cord Jefferson’s insightful drama about a frustrated novelist, had an especially good day, collecting five nominations. That included a nod for Sterling K. Brown for best supporting actor. Robert De Niro (“Killers of the Flower Moon”) rounded out that category with Downey, Gosling and Ruffalo.
Best actress was also closely contested. Along with Gladstone and Stone, the nominees were Carey Mulligan (“Maestro”), Annette Bening (“Nyad”) and Sandra Hüller (“Anatomy of a Fall”). That left out Margot Robbie, the star of “Barbie,” and Fantasia Barrino from “The Color Purple.”
OSCAR NOMINATIONS 2024 BY CATEGORY – 96th AWARDS
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
Actor in a Leading Role
Bradley Cooper in MAESTRO
Colman Domingo in RUSTIN
Paul Giamatti in THE HOLDOVERS
Cillian Murphy in OPPENHEIMER
Jeffrey Wright in AMERICAN FICTION
Actor in a Supporting Role
Sterling K. Brown in AMERICAN FICTION
Robert De Niro in KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Robert Downey Jr. in OPPENHEIMER
Ryan Gosling in BARBIE
Mark Ruffalo in POOR THINGS
Actress in a Leading Role
Annette Bening in NYAD
Lily Gladstone in KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Sandra Hüller in ANATOMY OF A FALL
Carey Mulligan in MAESTRO
Emma Stone in POOR THINGS
Actress in a Supporting Role
Emily Blunt in OPPENHEIMER
Danielle Brooks in THE COLOR PURPLE
America Ferrera in BARBIE
Jodie Foster in NYAD
Da’Vine Joy Randolph in THE HOLDOVERS
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
Cinematography
EL CONDE
Edward Lachman
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Rodrigo Prieto
MAESTRO
Matthew Libatique
OPPENHEIMER
Hoyte van Hoytema
POOR THINGS
Robbie Ryan
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
Directing
ANATOMY OF A FALL
Justine Triet
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Martin Scorsese
OPPENHEIMER
Christopher Nolan
POOR THINGS
Yorgos Lanthimos
THE ZONE OF INTEREST
Jonathan Glazer
Documentary Feature Film
BOBI WINE: THE PEOPLE’S PRESIDENT
Moses Bwayo, Christopher Sharp and John Battsek
THE ETERNAL MEMORY
Nominees to be determined
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
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
International Feature Film
IO CAPITANO
Italy
PERFECT DAYS
Japan
SOCIETY OF THE SNOW
Spain
THE TEACHERS’ LOUNGE
Germany
THE ZONE OF INTEREST
United Kingdom
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
Music (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
Music (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
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
Short Film (Animated)
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
Short Film (Live Action)
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
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
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
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
AMERICAN FICTION
Written for the screen by Cord Jefferson
BARBIE
Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach
OPPENHEIMER
Written for the screen by Christopher Nolan
POOR THINGS
Screenplay by Tony McNamara
THE ZONE OF INTEREST
Written by Jonathan Glazer
Writing (Original Screenplay)
ANATOMY OF A FALL
Screenplay – Justine Triet and Arthur Harari
THE HOLDOVERS
Written by David Hemingson
MAESTRO
Written by Bradley Cooper & Josh Singer
MAY DECEMBER
Screenplay by Samy Burch; Story by Samy Burch & Alex Mechanik
PAST LIVES
Written by Celine Song
