A look at Oscars snubs and firsts

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.

Miley Cyrus poses on the red carpet at the 83rd Annual Golden Globes in Beverly Hills, California, US, on January 11 2026. (Mike Blake)

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.

Chloe Zhao, winner of the award for Best Picture for "Nomadland," poses in the press room at the Oscars, in Los Angeles, California on April 25 2021. Picture: REUTERS/CHRIS PIZZELLO — Chloe Zhao, winner of the award for Best Picture for "Nomadland", poses in the press room at the Oscars in Los Angeles, California, on April 25 2021. Photo: REUTERS/CHRIS PIZZELLO

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 previous winners Kathryn Bigelow and Jane Campion.

A NEW AWARD

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

Reuters