After being delayed twice due to the fires in Los Angeles, the Oscar nominations were, for the most part, worth the wait.
I’m Rebecca Ford, and some 24 hours after the Oscar noms announcement, I’m still reeling from yesterday’s biggest surprises, including major moves made by I’m Still Here—which not only got a nod for lead Fernanda Torres, but also nabbed a best-picture nomination. That reflects support for the Brazilian film throughout the Academy, not just in the acting branch. Could it be a real threat to win that category? Anything’s possible.
Overall, the 2025 Oscar nominations didn’t contain as many upsets as I had anticipated. There were theories that The Last Showgirl would push its way in, or that there would be a huge surprise in one of the acting categories. In the end, though, those things didn’t happen. There were omissions that I thought were disappointing, like Marianne Jean-Baptiste for best actress, but the writing was basically on the wall for that snub. On the whole, I thought there were some great choices, like including I’m Still Here and The Substance in the race for best picture. That’s something we wouldn’t have seen even a few years ago. We discussed all this and more on our latest episode of Little Gold Men.
So what can we learn from the nominations? With Emilia Pérez topping the leader board with 13 noms, there’s no more debating its front-runner status. Zoe Saldaña seems like she’s the likely winner in her category, and I expect the film to earn several more wins as well. There’s still a long way to go in the best-picture contest, but we could even be heading toward Netflix’s first win in that category—because it’s very clear that many branches of the Academy like and respect that movie. As mentioned earlier, I’m Still Here’s strong showing is also notable, with Torres giving Demi Moore a run for her money in best actress. As we pointed out on Little Gold Men, all five best-actress nominees hail from best-picture-nominated films. That’s a big change from a few years ago, when best-actress nominees were largely floating out there on their own. (At the 2022 awards, all five best-actress nominees were from films that didn’t get a best-picture nomination.)
One of the most interesting pieces of trivia from this year’s nominations: Between Emilia Pérez and Wicked, this is the first year two musicals have been nominated in the best-picture category since 1969 (when the race featured Oliver!and Funny Girl). As a fan of musicals, I’m excited to see two very different ones in that coveted top 10. Here’s hoping for plenty of dancing down the aisles at the show on March 2.
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