Record-breaking Academy nominees

My 5:25 a.m. alarm woke me up, giving me only five minutes to prepare for the Oscar nominations announcement. The first category announced was Best Supporting Actress. The names were read, and when I realized that they were past the D’s in the alphabetically ordered list, I called my friend in the U.K., another avid “Triangle of Sadness” stan, and gave him the news. Dolly De Leon had been snubbed by the Academy despite her tour de force performance. 

But as the categories rolled along, disappointment swept under the surface, and one began to realize how far the Academy has come since the #OscarsSsoWhite movement of 2015-2016. Though there’s still a long way to go as reflected by there being a measly two Black acting nominees this year, it doesn’t take counting the nominations to realize the absolutely mindblowing watershed moment these nominations are for BIPOC representation on the world stage overall. Specifically Asian talent, who have notoriously never gotten their due at the Academy Awards. Yes, though De Leon was unfortunately snubbed, this is not a year where an entire continent’s Oscar eggs are placed in the basket of one contender. 

“Everything Everywhere All at Once,” a kooky indie A24 film centered around the multiverse that is the Asian immigrant experience is the nomination leader, with 11 total. If that doesn’t tell you how far the Academy has come not just in diversity of the nominees but the sheer diversity of taste, I don’t know what does. Who would have thought having a votership that increasingly reflects the multicultural and generational complexity of film lovers could pay off after all?

And yet, there is still much work to be done — Danielle Deadwyler was passed over for Best Actress for her stirring portrayal of Mamie Till-Mobley in the harrowing “Till,” while Viola Davis and “The Woman King” got zero nods. And Andrea Riseborough’s grassroots social media campaign led by A-listers such as Kate Winslet and Amy Adams, seems to have paid off. The last-minute hail mary landed her a coveted Best Actress nomination for “To Leslie,” which her peers have made clear everybody on the face of the industry (and Film Twitter) knows is a “small film with a giant heart,” potentially changing the face of traditionally studio-run awards campaigning forever. Though an underdog story in some way, it’s ultimately soured by the possible repercussions on what seemed like a tight, satisfying final five just a few weeks ago. 

Though possibly unintentional, it’s disheartening how Riseborough and Ana de Armas were both able to get in over Davis and Deadwyler, especially de Armas for a film as degrading and problematic as “Blonde.” To learn more read Arianna Garcia’s review for the Daily Trojan. “The Woman King” and “Till”, in comparison, were both far more agreeable picks, as reflected by their success with critics as well as the major precursors, with Davis not missing out on a single precursor award. Though it is definitely hard to discuss this in context of awards given the personal biases tied to voting, it’s more than suspicious how Black talent has only truly been able to win in the supporting categories — Halle Berry is still the only Black woman to win Best Actress — a pattern which inevitably continues with this slew of nominees, where Brian Tyree Henry and Angela Bassett, the only Black acting nominees, are in supporting. It’s almost as if we can’t have Asian and Black talent properly represented in the same ceremony; it continues to be either/or. 

It’s also unfortunate how after the historic winning streak of Chloé Zhao and Jane Campion in the last two years, winning Best Director for “Nomadland” and “The Power of the Dog,” respectively, we’re back to a year with zero female directors — Maria Schrader, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Sarah Polley and Chinonye Chukwu were right there.

On the bright side, what can be said that hasn’t already been said about the legend that is Michelle Yeoh, finally an Academy Award nominee — and hopeful winner. The fact that she is the first Asian woman nominated for Best Actress in the Oscars’ 95-year history is as sad as it is history-making, as it just goes to show how rare it is that Asian actors get such opportunities in Hollywood. It’s a similar story with her co-star Ke Huy Quan, who received a Best Supporting Actor nomination after decades of being shut out of opportunities in the film industry. In his Golden Globe acceptance speech, he spoke of feeling that he had “nothing more to offer” after playing “Short Round” and “Data” —  but here’s to another major ceiling being broken. Let’s just make sure it stays broken.

After a semi-surprising Critics Choice Awards win for Cate Blanchett for her performance in Todd Field’s phenomenal “Tár” which was previously reviewed in the Daily Trojan, given the organization’s love for “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” where it got 14 nominations, it was almost certain that Blanchett was the new frontrunner. Yet the Academy recognizing “EEAAO” in costume design, original score and original song, categories where it was far from expected to appear, and the fact that the entire Academy membership, regardless of branch, will vote for all the races proves that it’s still an incredibly tight race between the two veterans after all. In addition to the awaited results of the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the BAFTAs, two major precursors and historical predictors in the Best Actress race, it remains to also be seen whether Blanchett’s polarizing Critics Choice Awards speech, in which she called out the patriarchal nature of awards hurt her campaign after all, or if it’s really just “EEAAO” global domination.

On the international scene, Netflix’s “All Quiet on the Western Front” dominated, with nine nominations including Best Picture, but it was Park Chan-wook’s “Decision to Leave” that got the short end of the stick, coming home with zero nominations, which should really come as no surprise considering how many times they have snubbed the director and his films before. Ireland, though, had a phenomenal day, with nine nominations for “The Banshees of Inisherin” including Best Picture, Best Director and four acting nominations, a Best Actor nomination for Paul Mescal in “Aftersun” and an International Feature nomination for “The Quiet Girl.” And though global sensation “RRR” was not submitted by India in the International Feature category — a mind-boggling decision — it did manage to secure a spot in Original Song after all for its juggernaut musical number “Naatu Naatu” which promises an instantly iconic Oscars performance.

Another major takeaway from the nominations: the amount of first-time nominees, with a record-breaking 16 out of the 20 acting nominees never having been nominated for an Oscar before. More than anything, it’s refreshing to see new faces recognized for their work in 2022 and in cases like Michelle Yeoh, Colin Farrell and Jamie Lee Curtis, their entire careers. There was even redemption for Hong Chau’s snub for 2017’s “Downsizing.” 

Even legendary Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer nabbed his first ever nomination for producing “Top Gun: Maverick.” And though “Maverick” missed out on Best Cinematography for Claudio Miranda, where it had been sweeping in all the precursors, it made up for it with a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination, taking out previous frontrunner “The Whale” — a welcome shock to say the least. Ruben Östlund also got his first well-deserved Oscar nominations for “Triangle of Sadness” in both Best Original Screenplay and the elusive Best Director category.

All in all, putting aside the initial disappointment of the criminal De Leon snub, with “Everything Everywhere All At Once” seriously in the running to win Best Picture, it’s shaping up to be an Oscar ceremony for the history books. Just make sure you’re stocked up on everything bagels and hotdogs come March 12th.