In the wake of devastating wildfires in Los Angeles that struck at the heart of the movie industry, an embattled Hollywood lined up behind the Netflix narco-musical about trans identity “Emilia Pérez” in Oscar nominations Thursday.
Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Pérez,” a Spanish language, French-made film, dominated the nominations with a leading 13 nominations, including best picture and best actress for Karla Sofía Gascón, making her the first openly trans actor ever nominated for an Oscar. The film also landed nominations for directing, original screenplay, two of its songs and for Zoe Saldaña.
Netflix, despite its starring role in Hollywood, has never won best picture. Many of its top contenders have previously racked up large numbers of nominations (including “Mank,” “The Irishman” and “Roma”) but gone home with only a handful of trophies.
“Emilia Pérez,” though, may be its best chance yet. It became the most nominated non-English language film ever, surpassing Netflix’s own “Roma,” which scored 10 nominations. Only three films — “All About Eve,” “Titanic” and “La La Land” — have scored more nominations in Academy Awards history.
Another musical — “Wicked,” the smash Broadway adaptation — came away with nearly as many nominations. Jon M. Chu’s lavish “Wizard of Oz” riff scored 10 nominations, including best picture and acting nods for its stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.
“The Brutalist,” Brady Corbet’s postwar epic filmed in VistaVision, also came away with a commanding 10 nominations, including best picture, best director and nominations for actor Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce and Felicity Jones. The A24 release
The nominees for best picture are: “Anora”; “The Brutalist”; “A Complete Unknown”; “Conclave”; “Dune: Part Two”; “Emilia Pérez”; “I’m Still Here.”; “Nickel Boys”; “The Substance”; “Wicked.”
In a wide-open Oscar race, the six most honored films — ” “Emilia Pérez,” “Wicked,” “The Brutalist,” “Anora” (six nominations) “Conclave” (eight nominations) and “A Complete Unknown” (eight nominations) — all fared as expected. The biggest surprises were the Brazilian film “I’m Still Here,” which also landed Fernanda Torres a best actress nomination, and RaMell Ross’ “Nickel Boys,” a POV-shot drama that had been overlooked by many guilds in earlier voting.
Those nominees likely displaced a few best-picture possibilities in “Sing Sing,” “September 5” and “A Real Pain,” though those films all landed nominations elsewhere.
One of 2024’s most audacious films, “The Apprentice ” landed a surprising pair of nominations, for Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong. The film dramatizes the formative years of President Donald Trump’ s emergence in New York real estate under the tutelage of attorney Roy Cohn. Trump has called those involved with the film “human scum.”
In the best actor category, where Stan and Brody were nominated, the other nominees were Timothée Chalamet (“A Complete Unknown”), Colman Domingo (“Sing Sing”) and Ralph Fiennes (“Conclave”). Most notably left out was Daniel Craig, acclaimed for his very un-James Bond performance in “Queer.”
Best actress, a category that Demi Moore has appeared to have locked up for her full-bodied performance in “The Substance,” saw nominations for Moore, Gascón, Torres, Erivo and the star of “Anora,” Mikey Madison. Arguably the year’s most competitive category, that left out Marianne Jean-Baptiste (“Hard Truths”), Pamela Anderson, “The Last Showgirl”), Nicole Kidman (“Babygirl”) and Angelina Jolie (“Maria”).
In the directing category, “The Substance” filmmaker Coralie Fargeat managed to crack into the otherwise all-male group of Sean Baker (“Anora”), Corbet, Audiard and James Mangold (“A Complete Unknown”). Most had expected Edward Berger to be nominated for directing the papal thriller “Conclave.”
Supporting actor was led by Kieran Culkin, the favorite for the award, for his performance in “A Real Pain.” The other nominees were: Yura Borisov (“Anora”), Guy Pearce (“The Brutalist”), Edward Norton (“A Complete Unknown”) and Strong.
The supporting actress nominations went to Grande, Saldaña, Jones, Monica Barbaro (“A Complete Unknown”) and Isabella Rossellini (“Conclave”).
The nominations had originally been planned for Jan. 17. But after wildfires on Jan. 7 began burning through the Pacific Palisades, Altadena and other areas around Los Angeles, leaving behind historic levels of destruction, the academy extended its voting window and twice postponed the nominations announcement. Fresh fires outside Los Angeles continued Thursday.
With so many in the film industry reeling from the fires, some called on the academy to cancel the Oscars altogether. Academy leaders have argued the March 2 ceremony must go ahead, for their economic impact on Los Angeles and as a symbol of resilience for the industry. Organizers have vowed this year’s awards will “celebrate the work that unites us as a global film community and acknowledge those who fought so bravely against the wildfires.”
“We will reflect on the recent events while highlighting the strength, creativity, and optimism that defines Los Angeles and our industry,” Bill Kramer, academy chief executive, and Yang said in an email to members Wednesday.
But much of the usual frothiness Hollywood’s award season has been severely curtailed due to the fires. The film academy canceled its annual nominees luncheon. Other events have been postponed or downsized. On Wednesday, Kramer and Yang said original song nominees won’t be performed this year. Conan O’Brien, whose Pacific Palisades home was spared by the fires, is hosting.
The Oscar nominations followed a up-and-down year for Hollywood that saw expansive post-strike delays, wide swaths of unemployed workers due to an industry-wide production slowdown and the tragedy of the California fires in January. Most humbling, perhaps, was the presidential election that returned Trump to office in a race where podcaster Joe Rogan seemed to hold more sway than all A-listers combined.
At the same time, even amidst a downturn for the superhero film, the industry rallied behind some galvanizing hits, including Universal Pictures’ “Wicked,” and three Walt Disney Co. $1 billion grossers in “Inside Out 2,” “Deadpool and Wolverine” and “Moana 2,” a film originally developed as a series for Disney+. Those films missed nominations Thursday, except for “Inside Out 2,” which joined the best animated nominees of “The Wild Robot,” “Flow,” “Memoir of a Snail” and “Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl.””
That uncertain state of the movies seemed to be reflected in the Oscar nominations, which were spread across films both widely seen and little noticed, theatrically released and predominantly streaming.
But unlike last year, when Hollywood rallied around the success of “Oppenheimer,” the 2024 movie year offered up no clear frontrunner for the industry’s top honor. With five weeks to go until the Oscar ceremony, at least four or five movies – including “The Brutalist,” “Emilia Pérez,” “Anora,” “Conclave” and “Wicked” – are seen having a shot at best picture.
NOMINATIONS BY CATEGORY – 97TH AWARDS
Performance by an actor in a leading role
Adrien Brody in “The Brutalist” (A24)
Timothée Chalamet in “A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight)
Colman Domingo in “Sing Sing” (A24)
Ralph Fiennes in “Conclave” (Focus Features)
Sebastian Stan in “The Apprentice” (Briarcliff Entertainment/Rich Spirit)
Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Yura Borisov in “Anora” (Neon)
Kieran Culkin in “A Real Pain” (Searchlight)
Edward Norton in “A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight)
Guy Pearce in “The Brutalist” (A24)
Jeremy Strong in “The Apprentice” (Briarcliff Entertainment/Rich Spirit)
Performance by an actress in a leading role
Cynthia Erivo in “Wicked” (Universal)
Karla Sofía Gascón in “Emilia Pérez” (Netflix)
Mikey Madison in “Anora” (Neon)
Demi Moore in “The Substance” (MUBI)
Fernanda Torres in “I’m Still Here” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Monica Barbaro in “A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight)
Ariana Grande in “Wicked” (Universal)
Felicity Jones in “The Brutalist” (A24)
Isabella Rossellini in “Conclave” (Focus Features)
Zoe Saldaña in “Emilia Pérez” (Netflix)
Best animated feature film of the year
“Flow” (Sideshow/Janus Films) Nominees to be determined
“Inside Out 2” (Walt Disney) Kelsey Mann and Mark Nielsen
“Memoir of a Snail” (IFC Films) Adam Elliot and Liz Kearney
“Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl” (Netflix) Nominees to be determined
“The Wild Robot” (Universal) Chris Sanders and Jeff Hermann
Best animated short film
“Beautiful Men” (Miyu Distribution) Nicolas Keppens and Brecht Van Elslande
“In the Shadow of the Cypress” Shirin Sohani and Hossein Molayemi
“Magic Candies” (Toei Animation) Daisuke Nishio and Takashi Washio
“Wander to Wonder” (Miyu Distribution) Nina Gantz and Stienette Bosklopper
“Yuck!” (Miyu Distribution) Loïc Espuche and Juliette Marquet
Achievement in cinematography
“The Brutalist” (A24) Lol Crawley
“Dune: Part Two” (Warner Bros.) Greig Fraser
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix) Paul Guilhaume
“Maria” (Netflix) Ed Lachman
“Nosferatu” (Focus Features) Jarin Blaschke
Achievement in costume design
“A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight) Arianne Phillips
“Conclave” (Focus Features) Lisy Christl
“Gladiator II” (Paramount) Janty Yates and Dave Crossman
“Nosferatu” (Focus Features) Linda Muir
“Wicked” (Universal) Paul Tazewel
Achievement in directing
“Anora” (Neon) Sean Baker
“The Brutalist” (A24) Brady Corbet
“A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight) James Mangold
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix) Jacques Audiard
“The Substance” (MUBI) Coralie Fargeat
Best documentary feature film
“Black Box Diaries” (MTV Documentary Films)
A Hanashi Films/Cineric Creative/Star Sands Production
Shiori Ito, Eric Nyari and Hanna Aqvilin
“No Other Land”
An Antipode Films Production
Basel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and
Yuval Abraham
“Porcelain War” (Picturehouse)
A Songbird Studios/Imaginary Lane Production
Brendan Bellomo, Slava Leontyev, Aniela Sidorska and Paula DuPre’ Pesmen
“Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat” (Kino Lorber)
An Onomatopee Films/Warboys Films Production
Johan Grimonprez, Daan Milius and Rémi Grellety
“Sugarcane” (National Geographic Documentary Films)
A Hedgehog Films/Kassie Films/Impact Partners/Fit
Via Vi Production
Nominees to be determined
Best documentary short film
“Death by Numbers” Kim A. Snyder and Janique L. Robillard
“I Am Ready, Warden” (MTV Documentary Films) Smriti Mundhra and Maya Gnyp
“Incident” (The New Yorker) Bill Morrison and Jamie Kalven
“Instruments of a Beating Heart” (The New York Times OpDocs/Cineric Creative) Ema Ryan Yamazaki and Eric Nyari
“The Only Girl in the Orchestra” (Netflix) Molly O’Brien and Lisa Remington
Achievement in film editing
“Anora” (Neon) Sean Baker
“The Brutalist” (A24) David Jancso
“Conclave” (Focus Features) Nick Emerson
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix) Juliette Welfling
“Wicked” (Universal) Myron Kerstein
Best international feature film of the year
“I’m Still Here”
A VideoFilmes Produções Artísticas Production
Brazil
“The Girl with the Needle”
A Nordisk Film Creative Alliance Production
Denmark
“Emilia Pérez”
A Pathé Production
France
“The Seed of the Sacred Fig”
A Run Way Pictures Production
Germany
“Flow”
A Dream Well Studio Production
Latvia
Achievement in makeup and hairstyling
“A Different Man” (A24) Mike Marino, David Presto and Crystal Jurado
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix) Julia Floch Carbonel, Emmanuel Janvier and Jean-Christophe Spadaccini
“Nosferatu” (Focus Features) David White, Traci Loader and Suzanne StokesMunton
“The Substance” (MUBI) Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli
“Wicked” (Universal) Frances Hannon, Laura Blount and Sarah Nuth
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
“The Brutalist” (A24) Daniel Blumberg
“Conclave” (Focus Features) Volker Bertelmann
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix) Clément Ducol and Camille
“Wicked” (Universal) John Powell and Stephen Schwartz
“The Wild Robot” (Universal) Kris Bowers
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
“El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez”
(Netflix)
Music by Clément Ducol and Camille
Lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard
“The Journey” from “The Six Triple Eight”
(Netflix)
Music and Lyric by Diane Warren
“Like A Bird” from “Sing Sing”
(A24)
Music and Lyric by Abraham Alexander and Adrian Quesada
“Mi Camino” from “Emilia Pérez”
(Netflix)
Music and Lyric by Camille and Clément Ducol
“Never Too Late” from “Elton John: Never Too Late”
(Disney+)
Music and Lyric by Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Andrew Watt and Bernie Taupin
Best motion picture of the year
“Anora” (Neon)
A Cre Films Production
Alex Coco, Samantha Quan and Sean Baker, Producers
“The Brutalist” (A24)
An A24/Brookstreet Pictures/Kaplan Morrison Production
Nominees to be determined
“A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight)
A Veritas Entertainment Group/White Water/Range/Picture Company/Turnpike Films Production
Fred Berger, James Mangold and Alex Heineman, Producers
“Conclave” (Focus Features)
A FilmNation Entertainment/Indian Paintbrush/House Production
Tessa Ross, Juliette Howell and Michael A. Jackman, Producers
“Dune: Part Two” (Warner Bros.)
A Legendary Pictures Production
Mary Parent, Cale Boyter, Tanya Lapointe and Denis Villeneuve, Producers
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix)
A Netflix/Page 114/Why Not Productions/Pathé/ France 2 Cinéma/Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello in association with Library Pictures International Production
Nominees to be determined
“I’m Still Here” (Sony Pictures Classics)
A VideoFilmes/RT Features/Mact Production
Nominees to be determined
“Nickel Boys” (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios)
A Plan B Entertainment/Anonymous Content/Louverture Films Production
Nominees to be determined
“The Substance” (MUBI)
A Match Factory/Working Title/Blacksmith/A Good Story Production
Nominees to be determined
“Wicked” (Universal)
A Universal Pictures/Marc Platt Production
Marc Platt, Producer
Achievement in production design
“The Brutalist” (A24) Production Design: Judy Becker. Set Decoration: Patricia Cuccia
“Conclave” (Focus Features) Production Design: Suzie Davies. Set Decoration: Cynthia Sleiter
“Dune: Part Two” (Warner Bros.) Production Design: Patrice Vermette. Set Decoration: Shane Vieau
“Nosferatu” (Focus Features) Production Design: Craig Lathrop. Set Decoration: Beatrice Beatrice Brentnerová
“Wicked” (Universal) Production Design: Nathan Crowley. Set Decoration: Lee Sandales
Best live action short film
“A Lien” Sam Cutler-Kreutz and David Cutler-Kreutz
“Anuja” Adam J. Graves and Suchitra Mattai
“I’m Not a Robot” (The New Yorker) Victoria Warmerdam and Trent
“The Last Ranger” Cindy Lee and Darwin Shaw
“The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent” (Manifest) Nebojša Slijepčević and Danijel Pek
Achievement in sound
“A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight) Tod A. Maitland, Donald Sylvester, Ted Caplan, Paul Massey and David Giammarco
“Dune: Part Two” (Warner Bros.) Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix) Erwan Kerzanet, Aymeric Devoldère, Maxence Dussère, Cyril Holtz and Niels Barletta
“Wicked” (Universal) Simon Hayes, Nancy Nugent Title, Jack Dolman, Andy Nelson and John Marquis
“The Wild Robot” (Universal) Randy Thom, Brian Chumney, Gary A. Rizzo and Leff Lefferts
Achievement in visual effects
“Alien: Romulus” (20th Century) Eric Barba, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser, Daniel Macarin and Shane Mahan
“Better Man” (Paramount) Luke Millar, David Clayton, Keith Herft and Peter Stubbs
“Dune: Part Two” (Warner Bros.) Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd Nefzer
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” (20th Century) Erik Winquist, Stephen Unterfranz, Paul Story and Rodney Burke
“Wicked” (Universal) Pablo Helman, Jonathan Fawkner, David Shirk and Paul Corbould
Adapted screenplay
“A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight) Screenplay by James Mangold and Jay Cocks
“Conclave” (Focus Features) Screenplay by Peter Straughan
“Emilia Pérez” (Netflix) Screenplay by Jacques Audiard In collaboration with Thomas Bidegain, Léa Mysius and Nicolas Livecchi
“Nickel Boys” (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios) Screenplay by RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes
“Sing Sing” (A24) Screenplay by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar. Story by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John “Divine G” Whitfield
Original screenplay
“Anora” (Neon) Written by Sean Baker
“The Brutalist” (A24) Written by Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold
“A Real Pain” (Searchlight) Written by Jesse Eisenberg
“September 5” (Paramount) Written by Moritz Binder, Tim Fehlbaum, Co-Written by Alex David
“The Substance” (MUBI) Written by Coralie Fargeat
