‘Battle After Battle’ and ‘Sinners’ are on track to break Oscar nomination records
Los Angeles (USA), Jan 21 (EFE)
The comedy about a former revolutionary, “One Battle After Another,” and the vampire thriller exploring the history of music, “Sinners,” are emerging as the films with the best chances of breaking records in the Oscar nominations to be announced this Thursday, which would solidify their success in the 2026 awards season.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will reveal this Thursday the list of films, actors, and directors that will compete in the 98th edition of its awards, whose ceremony will be held on March 15 in Los Angeles at 5:30 p.m. local time (1:30 p.m. GMT).
The season’s initial momentum has placed both films among the most highly praised by critics and industry guilds. Hollywood trade publications predict that Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ will become the most nominated film of all time, with a potential nomination in 15 categories.
Currently, only ‘All About Eve’ (1950), starring Bette Davis and Marilyn Monroe; James Cameron’s ‘Titanic’ (1997); and Damien Chazelle’s ‘La La Land’ (2016) hold the record, having each garnered 14 nominations in their respective years.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s film is projected to receive 13 nominations, including, like Coogler’s film, some of the most prestigious categories such as Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor and Actress.
The odds are in favor of Leonardo DiCaprio, Chase Infiniti, Benicio Del Toro, Sean Penn, and Teyana Taylor receiving nominations in all four acting categories, a feat not achieved since ‘American Hustle’ in 2013.
Another favorite is ‘Hamnet,’ the drama about the young William Shakespeare directed by Chloé Zhao and starring Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal.
The film could earn Zhao her second directorial nomination, a category that could also include Guillermo del Toro (‘Frankenstein’), Anderson, Coogler, Jafar Panahi (‘Accidental’), and Josh Safdie (‘Marty Supreme’).
‘Frankenstein’ and ‘Marty Supreme’ could also be among the ten productions selected for Best Picture, along with ‘F1’, ‘Weapons’, ‘Train Dreams’, ‘Sentimental Value’, ‘Bugonia’, and it’s even predicted that the Brazilian film ‘O agente secreto’ (‘The Secret Agent’) could secure a place in this category as well as for Best International Feature Film.
The outlook isn’t good for ‘Wicked: For Good’.the second part of the film adaptation of the Broadway musical, nor for James Cameron’s ‘Avatar: Fire & Ash’.
Both have been left out of key awards for the Best Picture category, such as those given by the Producers Guild of America (PGA), which are usually a strong indicator for the Oscar race, while predictions point to little chance of nominations even in technical categories.
Buckley, who has already won awards like the Golden Globe and the Critics’ Choice, could be a contender for Best Actress alongside names like Rose Byrne (‘If I Had Legs I’d Kick You’), Infinity (‘One Battle After Another’), Renate Reinsve (‘Sentimental Value’), and Emma Stone (‘Bugonia’).
The Best Actor category, meanwhile, seems to have a guaranteed spot for Timothée Chalamet for ‘Marty Supreme’, Leonardo DiCaprio (‘One Battle After Another’), Ethan Hawke (‘Blue Moon’), Michael B. Jordan (‘Sinners’), and the Brazilian actor Wagner Moura (‘The Secret Agent’).
Mescal could be one of the five nominees for Best Supporting Actor, a category that the specialized press predicts will include Benicio Del Toro and Penn (‘One Battle After Another’), Jacob Elordi (‘Frankenstein’), and recent Golden Globe winner Stellan Skarsgård (‘Sentimental Value’).
Ariana Grande (‘Wicked: For Good’) may be nominated for Best Supporting Actress alongside Amy Madigan (‘Weapons’), Wunmi Mosaku (‘Sinners’), Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (‘Sentimental Value’), and Teyana Taylor.
The Best International Feature Film category could see contenders including the Iranian film ‘A Simple Accident’, the Brazilian film ‘The Secret Agent’, the Norwegian film ‘Sentimental Value’, the Spanish film ‘Sirat’, and the Tunisian film ‘The Voice of Hind’.
The 98th Academy Awards will take place on March 15 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles and will be hosted by Conan O’Brien for the second year in a row.
