The long-awaited 2024 Oscar nominations have been released, and the results are… interesting. Despite Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” topping the box office this past July, far exceeding Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” the Academy offered up plenty more nominations to the latter—not to mention completely snuffing out Gerwig’s chance at a directing award. Here’s more information about the upcoming ceremony and its nominees.
“Oppenheimer” topped the charts with 13 nominations, including Best Picture. Cillian Murphy is very likely to win Best Actor in a Leading Role. “Oppenheimer” was leagues above the rest of the nominees in terms of finances and critical reception, which gives it a high advantage. Robert Downey Jr., on the other hand, may not be so lucky. He’s facing off against Ryan Gosling for the Best Actor in a Supporting Role award, which is going to be extremely difficult to beat.
Following behind “Oppenheimer” was Yorgos Lanthimos’s “Poor Things” with eleven nominations; lead actress Emma Stone was nominated for her portrayal of a poorly socialized reanimated corpse. The film was nominated for Best Picture, but it’s unlikely that this indie film will come out on top with both “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” at its heels. Hopefully, the film’s unique original score and cinematography can land it awards in those categories.
“Barbie” was unfortunately disgraced at the Academy. Sure, it received eight nominations, but it was also snubbed of nominations that it rightly deserved. The most confusing of these is the Directing Award, which Gerwig was not nominated for. Gerwig is currently the highest-grossing female director of all time, with critical reception to boot, yet her accolades were still overshadowed by other pictures. Only one female was nominated for the Directing Award,
Not to mention poor Margot Robbie. Her portrayal of Barbie hit home with audiences worldwide, and she has been massively praised for her performance; however, this wasn’t enough for the Academy. She escaped being nominated for the Best Actress in a Leading Role, leaving many bewildered. This, combined with Gerwig’s snub for directing, hasn’t made a good impression on potential audience members for the awards show.
Another intriguing choice, for lack of a better word, was the nomination of “I’m Just Ken” for Best Original Song. “Barbie” was known for its catchy, well-received soundtrack—and, yes, “I’m Just Ken” was one of the best of the bunch, but that doesn’t mean it deserved to be nominated.
To undermine the work of nearly a dozen other female artists on the soundtrack by nominating the only song centered around a man goes directly against the message of the film as a whole. Plus, the song was mainly written for comedic purposes, which sets it apart from the rest of the nominees. It just seems out of place. There are plenty of other songs on the “Barbie” soundtrack that deserved to be nominated; luckily, Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” earned a nomination.
Many suspected that Olivia Rodrigo would receive a nomination for her original song “Can’t Catch Me Now” in the newest “Hunger Games” film, but that didn’t end up being the case. It warrants consideration about the Academy’s treatment of women and minorities, seeing as they have been historically snubbed of the credit they deserve over the years. Rodrigo, Gerwig and Robbie are prime examples of this; there has been progress, but nowhere near enough.
It’s certainly going to be an interesting Oscar season. The only way to find out the winners is to watch the ceremony, which will be airing live on Sunday, March 10 at 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on ABC.