The 2021 Oscars nominations are in – and it’s an interesting bunch.
It’s no secret that 2021 has been a strange year for cinema. The COVID-19 pandemic decimated theatres across the world. And with the industry shut down and release dates pushed back, the Oscars have become more diverse than ever.
British actor Riz Ahmed has become the first Muslim actor to clinch a Best Actor nomination, while nine out of the 20 acting nominees are from ethnic minority backgrounds.
Additionally, it’s the first time in history that more than one woman has been nominated for Best Director. And Minari has been making waves for Asian representation with six nominations.
Here’s the full list of 2021 Oscars Nominees:
Best Picture:
| The Father |
| Judas and the Black Messiah |
| Mank |
| Minari |
| Nomadland |
| Promising Young Woman |
| Sound of Metal |
| The Trial of the Chicago 7 |
Best Director:
| Thomas Vinterberg – Another Round |
| David Fincher – Mank |
| Lee Isaac Chung – Minari |
| Chloé Zhao – Nomadland |
| Emerald Fennell – Promising Young Woman |
Best Actor in a Leading Role:
| Riz Ahmed – Sound of Metal |
| Chadwick Boseman – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom |
| Anthony Hopkins – The Father |
| Gary Oldman – Mank |
| Steven Yeun – Minari |
Best Actress in a Leading Role:
| Viola Davis – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom |
| Andra Day – The United States v. Billie Holiday |
| Vanessa Kirby – Pieces of a Woman |
| Frances McDormand – Nomadland |
| Carey Mulligan – Promising Young Woman |
Best Actor in a Supporting Role:
| Sacha Baron Cohen – The Trial of the Chicago 7 |
| Daniel Kaluuya – Jusade and the Black Messiah |
| Leslie Odom Jr – One Night in Miami |
| Paul Raci – Sound of Metal |
| Lakeith Stanfield – Judas and the Black Messiah |
Best Actress in a Supporting Role:
| Maria Bakalova – Borat Subsequent Moviefilm |
| Glenn Close – Hillbilly Elegy |
| Olivia Colman – The Father |
| Amanda Seyfried – Mank |
| Yuh-jung Youn – Minari |
Best Animated Feature Film:
| Onward (Pixar) |
| Over the Moon (Netflix) |
| A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon (Netflix) |
| Soul (Pixar) |
| Wolfwalkers (AppleTV+) |
Best Adapted Screenplay:
| Borat Subsequent Moviefilm – Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Peter Baynham, Erica Rivinoja, Dan Mazer, Jena Friedman, Lee Kern; Story by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Nina Pedrad |
| The Father – Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller |
| Nomadland – Chloé Zhao |
| One Night in Miami – Kemp Powers |
| The White Tiger – Ramin Bahrani |
Best Original Screenplay:
| Judas and the Black Messiah – Screenplay by Will Berson, Shaka King; Story by Will Berson, Shaka King, Kenny Lucas, Keith Lucas |
| Minari – Lee Isaac Chung |
| Promising Young Woman – Emeral Fennell |
| Sound of Metal – Screenplay by Darius Marder, Abraham Marder; Story by Darius Marder, Derek Cianfrance |
| The Trial of the Chicago 7 – Aaron Sorkin |
Best Original Song:
| Fight for You – Judas and the Black Messiah |
| Hear My Voice – The Trial of the Chicago 7 |
| Húsavik – Eurovision Song Contest |
| Io Si (Seen) – The Life Ahead |
| Speak Now – One Night in Miami |
Best Original Score:
| Da 5 Bloods – Terence Blanchard |
| Mank – Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross |
| Minari – Emile Mosseri |
| News of the World – James Newton Howard |
| Soul – Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste |
Best Sound:
| Greyhound – Warren Shaw, Michael Minkler, Beau Borders and David Wyman |
| Mank – Ren Klyce, Jeremy Molod, David Parker, Nathan Nance and Drew Kunin |
| News of the World – Oliver Tarney, Mike Prestwood Smith, William Miller and John Pritchett |
| Soul – Ren Klyce, Coya Elliott and David Parker |
| Sound of Metal – Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés and Phillip Bladh |
Best Costume Design:
| Emma – Alexandra Byrne |
| Mank – Trish Summerville |
| Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – Ann Roth |
| Mulan – Bina Daigeler |
| Pinocchio – Massimo Cantini Parrini |
Best Animated Short Film:
| Burrow (Pixar) |
| Genius Loci (Kazak Productions) |
| If Anything Happens I Love You (Netflix) |
| Opera (Beasts and Natives Alike) |
| Yes-People (CAOZ hf. Hólamói) |
Best Live-Action Short Film:
| Feeling Through |
| The Letter Room |
| The Present |
| Two Distant Strangers |
| White Eye |
Best Cinematography:
| Judas and the Black Messiah – Sean Bobbitt |
| Mank – Erik Messerschmidt |
| News of the World – Dariusz Wolski |
| Nomadland – Joshua James Richards |
| The Trial of the Chicago 7 – Phedon Papamichael |
Best Documentary Feature:
| Collective |
| Crip Camp |
| The Mole Agent |
| My Octopus Teacher |
| Time |
Best Documentary Short Subject:
| Colette |
| A Concerto is a Conversation |
| Do Not Split |
| Hunger Ward |
| A Love Song for Latasha |
Best Film Editing:
| The Father |
| Nomadland |
| Promising Young Woman |
| Sound of Metal |
| The Trial of the Chicago 7 |
Best International Feature Film:
| Another Round (Denmark) |
| Better Days (Hong Kong) |
| Collective (Romania) |
| The Man Who Sold His Skin (Tunisia) |
| Quo Vadis, Aida? (Bosnia and Herzegovina) |
Best Makeup and Hairstyling:
| Emma – Marese Langan, Laura Allen, Claudia Stolze |
| Hillbilly Elegy – Eryn Krueger Mekash, Patricia Dehaney, Matthew Mungle |
| Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal, Jamika Wilson |
| Mank – Kimberley Spiteri, Gigi Williams, Colleen LaBaff |
| Pinocchio – Mark Coulier, Dalia Colli, Francesco Pegoretti |
Best Production Design:
| The Father – Peter Francis, Cathy Featherstone |
| Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – Mark Richter, Karen O’Hara, Diana Stoughton |
| Mank – Donald Graham Burt, Jan Pascale |
| News of the World – David Crank, Elizabeth Keenan |
| Tenet – Nathan Crowley, Kathy Lucas |
Best Visual Effect:
| Love and Monsters – Matt Sloan, Genevieve Camilleri, Matt Everitt and Brian Cox |
| The Midnight Sky – Matthew Kasmir, Christopher Lawrence, Max Solomon and David Watkins |
| Mulan – Sean Faden, Anders Langlands, Seth Maury and Steve Ingram |
| The One and Only Ivan – Nick Davis, Greg Fisher, Ben Jones and Santiago Colomo Martinez |
| Tenet – Andrew Jackson, David Lee, Andrew Lockley and Scott Fisher |
As you can see from the nominations above, Netflix’s rather impressive Mank leads with ten nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress.
Following behind are The Father, Judas and the Black Messiah, Minari, Nomadland, Sound of Metal and The Trial of the Chicago 7 with a still=impressing six nominations each.
Promising Young Woman trails with five nominations.
The 2021 Oscar Nominations reveal an impressive year in spite of the difficulties faced by the industry. It’s promising that we’re beginning to see some real progress when it comes to diversity, too.
Minari’s nods signal a real progression from last year’s Oscars with Steven Yeun up for Best Actor.
After all, despite Parasite winning Best Picture and Best Director at last year’s awards, none of its cast were even nominated in any acting category.
This year, that seems to have changed with Minari. And it’s about time.
The 2021 Oscar Winners will be announced on April 25, 2021.
