The race for the 2026 Academy Awards is officially underway. This year’s list of Oscar nominees reflects a broad and sometimes surprising snapshot of where the film industry stands right now, blending large-scale studio productions with more intimate, auteur-driven projects.
Several films emerged as clear leaders across multiple categories, while others secured more selective recognition that still positions them as serious awards-season players. As always, the nominations offer more than just a preview of potential winners. They reveal shifting industry priorities and evolving audience tastes. Below is a closer look at the key nominees shaping the 2026 Oscars conversation.
Read more: 2025 Oscar-related live streams garnered 20% more viewers than the 67th Grammy Awards
The 2026 Oscar nominations reflect a competitive year across both blockbuster cinema and more traditionally awards-driven releases. Sinners emerged as the clear frontrunner with a record 16 nominations, while One Battle After Another, Frankenstein and Hamnet followed as multi-category contenders.
As the Academy prepares to bring the ceremony to YouTube beginning in 2029, understanding which films and creators currently command attention becomes increasingly relevant. The full list of nominees below offers a snapshot of the projects that resonated most strongly this year, across genres and regions alike.
Best Picture
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Bugonia
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F1
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Frankenstein
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Hamnet
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Marty Supreme
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One Battle After Another
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The Secret Agent
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Sentimental Value
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Sinners
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Train Dreams
Best Actress
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Jessie Buckley (Hamnet)
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Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You)
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Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue)
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Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value)
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Emma Stone (Bugonia)
Best Actor
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Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme)
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Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another)
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Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon)
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Michael B. Jordan (Sinners)
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Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent)
Best Supporting Actress
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Elle Fanning (Sentimental Value)
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Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value)
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Amy Madigan (Weapons)
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Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners)
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Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another)
Best Supporting Actor
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Benicio del Toro (One Battle After Another)
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Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein)
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Delroy Lindo (Sinners)
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Sean Penn (One Battle After Another)
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Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value)
Best Director
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Chloé Zhao (Hamnet)
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Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme)
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Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another)
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Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value)
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Ryan Coogler (Sinners)
Best Original Screenplay
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Blue Moon
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It Was Just an Accident
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Marty Supreme
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Sentimental Value
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Sinners
Best Adapted Screenplay
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Bugonia
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Frankenstein
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Hamnet
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One Battle After Another
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Train Dreams
Best International Feature
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The Secret Agent (Brazil)
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It Was Just an Accident (France)
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Sentimental Value (Norway)
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Sirāt (Spain)
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The Voice of Hind Rajab (Tunisia)
Best Animated Feature
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Arco
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Elio
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KPop Demon Hunters
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Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
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Zootopia 2
Best Animated Short
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Butterfly
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Forevergreen
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The Girl Who Cried Pearls
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Retirement Plan
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The Three Sisters
Best Documentary Feature
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The Alabama Solution
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Come See Me in the Good Light
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Cutting Through Rocks
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Mr. Nobody Against Putin
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The Perfect Neighbor
Best Documentary Short
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All the Empty Rooms
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Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud
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Children No More: Were and Are Gone
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The Devil Is Busy
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Perfectly a Strangeness
Best Original Song
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‘Dear Me’ from Diane Warren: Relentless
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‘Golden’ from KPop Demon Hunters
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‘I Lied To You’ from Sinners
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‘Sweet Dreams Of Joy’ from Viva Verdi!
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‘Train Dreams’ from Train Dreams
Best Original Score
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Bugonia
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Frankenstein
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Hamnet
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One Battle After Another
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Sinners
Best Cinematography
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Frankenstein
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Marty Supreme
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One Battle After Another
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Sinners
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Train Dreams
Best Visual Effects
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Avatar: Fire and Ash
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F1
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Jurassic World Rebirth
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The Lost Bus
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Sinners
Best Editing
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F1
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Marty Supreme
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One Battle After Another
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Sentimental Value
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Sinners
Best Sound
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F1
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Frankenstein
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One Battle After Another
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Sinners
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Sirāt
Best Production Design
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Frankenstein
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Hamnet
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Marty Supreme
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One Battle After Another
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Sinners
Best Casting
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Hamnet
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Marty Supreme
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One Battle after Another
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The Secret Agent
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Sinners
Best Live Action Short
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Butcher’s Stain
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A Friend of Dorothy
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Jane Austen’s Period Drama
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The Singers
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Two People Exchanging Saliva
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
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Frankenstein
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Kokuho
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Sinners
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The Smashing Machine
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The Ugly Stepsister
Best Costume Design
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Avatar: Fire and Ash
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Frankenstein
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Hamnet
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Marty Supreme
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Sinners
The 98th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The event will be broadcast live on ABC, with additional digital coverage available via Hulu, continuing the ceremony’s gradual expansion across platforms.