Culture reporter
Netflix musical Emilia Pérez leads this year’s Oscars nominations, with Wicked also among the top contenders.
Emilia Pérez, about a Mexican drug lord who changes gender, has 13 nominations in total – although one of its stars, Selena Gomez, missed out.
Wicked received 10 nominations – including nods for British actress Cynthia Erivo and her co-star Ariana Grande.
Three-and-a-half-hour epic The Brutalist, starring Adrien Brody, also has 10 nominations, while Demi Moore has the first Oscar nomination of her career.
Moore, 62, is nominated for best actress for playing a fading star who swaps her body for a younger and more beautiful version of herself in The Substance.
In the best actor category, two big names are in contention for portraying the early years of very different real-life figures – Timothée Chalamet for playing Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown, and Sebastian Stan for playing Donald Trump in The Apprentice.
The top nominees:
- Emilia Pérez – 13 nominations
- Wicked – 10
- The Brutalist – 10
- A Complete Unknown – 8
- Conclave – 8
The Academy Awards ceremony, hosted by US comedian Conan O’Brien, will take place on 2 March.
The nominations had been due to be announced last week, but were postponed twice because of the Los Angeles wildfires.
Organisers have said the ceremony will “reflect on the recent events while highlighting the strength, creativity, and optimism that defines Los Angeles and our industry”.
Emilia Pérez makes history
Emilia Pérez, which follows the leader of a Mexican drugs cartel who decides to change gender and identity, hasn’t set Netflix alight so far and has divided opinion among those who have watched it.
But Oscar voters have given it a resounding seal of approval.
It it the most-nominated non-English language film of all time. It’s actually a French production, is set mostly in Mexico and is mostly acted in Spanish.
Karla Sofía Gascón is nominated for best actress for the movie’s lead role, making her the first trans person to be nominated in an acting category (although Elliot Page was nominated for Juno in 2008, before the actor transitioned).
Zoe Saldaña, who plays Perez’s lawyer, is up for best supporting actress (despite having more screen time than Gascón). The film’s only notable omission is Selina Gomez, who was an outsider for a nod in the same category for playing Perez’s wife.
Brits in contention
Erivo is the first black British woman to receive two Oscar nominations for acting, after also being nominated for Harriet in 2020.
If she wins best actress this time, for playing Elphaba in Wicked, she’ll become an EGOT – having completed the set of Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards.
Ralph Fiennes is flying the flag in the best actor category with his first nomination for 28 years. He’s recognised for playing a cardinal who oversees the selection of a new Pope in Conclave.
Elsewhere, Felicity Jones is nominated for best supporting actress for The Brutalist – a decade after her first Oscar nomination – while Sir Elton John is in the best original song race.
The country will also be rooting for two more screen legends – Wallace and Gromit (and their makers Aardman Animations), who are hoping for their fourth Oscar. They are shortlisted for best animated feature for their latest outing, Vengeance Most Fowl.
Wicked casts an Oscars spell
Wicked has been a big box-office success and is now also a hit with Oscar voters, exceeding many expectations with its 10 nominations.
That’s two more than Barbie managed last year.
After their widely-praised performances in both the film and on the press tour, Erivo and Grande will be reunited on the Oscars red carpet, after Grande received the first Academy Award nomination of her career.
However, the film’s mastermind Jon M Chu missed out on a nomination for best director.