The 96th Academy Awards have been the buzz of the media this past week since the nominations list was released. Since its release, numerous people have commented on who was nominated and who was not. A New York Times article said that the Academy is changing for the better, but some aspects of the awards need to change. The Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 10.
Here is what to expect at the 96th Academy Awards.
The Oscars will be aired live at 7 p.m. March 10 on ABC. Comedian Jimmy Kimmel will host the program. The ceremony will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.
The Oscar nominations list was released Jan. 23. “Oppenheimer” received the most nominations with a total of 13, while “Barbie” received eight nominations. Both films were nominated for best picture. “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” both were released in July of 2023, which created the infamous phrase “Barbenheimer.” Whichever film receives the best picture could end the debate of which film was better.
The best director award featured nominations for Martin Scorsese for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Christopher Nolan for “Oppenheimer,” Yorgos Lanthimos for “Poor Things,” Justine Triet for “Anatomy of a Fall” and Johnathan Glazer for “The Zone of Interest.”
Over the years, according to a BBC article, the Oscars have been surrounded in controversy of the injustice of how few people of color have been nominated. However, in a Variety article, it is discussed how the Oscars are recognizing more people of color, especially women. Danielle Brooks was nominated for best supporting actress in “The Color Purple” for her role as Sophia — played by Oprah Winfrey in the 1985 film. Lily Gladstone was nominated for best actress in “Killers of the Flower Moon” for her role as Mollie Burkhart, becoming the first Native American to be nominated in this category.
Cillian Murphy was nominated best actor for his performance in “Oppenheimer” as J. Robert Oppenheimer, the developer of the atomic bomb. Ryan Gosling was nominated for best supporting actor in “Barbie” for his role as Ken. Gosling’s performance received critical acclaim with viewers quoting his character’s many lines and singing along to “I’m Just Ken” which was also nominated for original song.
“Spider-man: Across the Spider-Verse," another popular movie from summer 2023, was nominated for best animated feature. Despite receiving critical acclaim for its unique visuals, the film was not nominated for any other category like visual effects and editing.
A Vanity Fair article discussed how there were some films many people felt were snubbed from the categories they deserved. According to a Variety article, there has been much criticism about how Greta Gerwig was not nominated for best director for “Barbie” as well as Margot Robbie who was not nominated in best actress for “Barbie.” Leonardo DiCaprio was also snubbed again from best actor for his role in “Killers of the Flower Moon” which also happened for the Screen Actors Guild nominations.
