In January 2026, the nominations for the 98th Academy Awards were announced with many surprises, snubs and historical milestones being made.
The film with the most nominations is Sinners, receiving 16 nominations. This record was 14 nominations, previously held by All About Eve (1950), La La Land (2016) and Titanic (1997).
“It is kind of crazy that Sinners was able to get 16 nominations. The real question is whether Sinners is going to win most of those awards,” said sophomore Noah Cytrynbaum.
Directed by Ryan Coogler and starring Michael B. Jordan, Sinners follows twin brothers Smoke and Stack, both played by Jordan, who return to their hometown in the Mississippi Delta to discover evil waiting for them.
One of the most discussed topics about the 2026 Academy Awards is about Best Actor and who will win, the newcomer or the veteran.
The nominees are Timothee Chalamet (Marty Supreme), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Michael B. Jordan (Sinners) and Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent).
According to the Gold Derby, Chalamet is projected to win Best Actor. However, Leonardo DiCaprio remains a strong competitor.
The Academy is known for very rarely giving young male actors the Best Actor award. Last year Chalamet (A Complete Unknown) lost to Adrien Brody (The Brutalist) who had won before for The Pianist at the 2003 Academy Awards.
Chalamet would be the second-youngest winner for Best Actor if he wins, behind Brody. Chalamet is also the youngest actor to receive three Best Actor nominations, which was previously held by Marlon Brando since 1954.
It took DiCaprio four acting nominations and snubs for performances like Titanic, Catch Me If You Can and The Departed before he won Best Actor in 2016 for The Revenant. People believe that The Academy will treat Chalamet the same way.
The Best Picture category will have many surprises and snubs.
The nominees are Bugonia, F1, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sinners and Train Dreams.
Wicked: For Good not only failed to be nominated for Best Picture but received zero nominations in total.
Sophomore Marlo Buber said, “When I come to think about, it makes sense Wicked: For Good wasn’t nominated. There were parts that felt unnecessary and made the plot hard to follow.”
It came as a surprise that F1 was nominated rather than Avatar: Fire and Ash or No Other Choice.
Currently, One Battle After Another is the favorite to win Best Picture.
One Battle After Another, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, follows an ex-revolutionary (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his journey to rescue his daughter, Willa Ferguson (Chase Infiniti). The movie features an ensemble cast featuring other actors such as Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Regina Hall and Teyana Taylor.
In the Best Actress category, the nominees are Jessie Buckley (Hamnet), Emma Stone (Bugonia), Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue), Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You) and Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value).
It came as a surprise that Kate Hudson was nominated rather than Chase Infiniti (One Battle After Another).
People speculated Infiniti’s snub was an example of taking priority of veteran actors rather than encouraging newcomers. One Battle After Another was Infiniti’s acting debut and she was nominated at other ceremonies like the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards.
Emma Stone, 37, broke the record for the youngest woman to earn seven nominations at the Academy Awards with her nomination for Bugonia. This was previously held by Meryl Streep who was 38 and has held this record for 36 years.
Jessie Buckley (Hamnet) is currently the frontrunner for Best Actress.
Hamnet tells the story of Agnes Shakespeare (Jessie Buckley) of her life while raising her children, dealing with the death of her son with her husband, William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal), that goes on to inspire Hamlet.
The nominees for Best Supporting Actor are Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Sean Penn (One Battle After Another), Stellan Skasgård (Sentimental Value) and Benicio Del Toro (One Battle After Another).
Elordi’s nomination for the award came as a surprise to many.
Despite having many famous roles like Nate Jacobs in Euphoria, it was unexpected considering the prestige his competitors have. Sean Penn is a two-time Academy Award winner and Stellan Skarsgård has been active in film for nearly five decades.
Not only was his nomination unexpected, but he currently has the second-highest odds according to Gold Derby behind Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value).
Sentimental Value, directed by Joachim Trier is a Norwegian-language film about two sisters, Nora (Renate Reinsve) and Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lillieas) and their relationship with their estranged father Gustav (Stellan Skarsgård).
The nominees for Best Supporting Actress are Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another), Elle Fanning (Sentimental Value), Inga Ibsdotter Lillieas (Sentimental Value), Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners) and Amy Madigan (Weapons).
Many expected Ariana Grande (Wicked: For Good) to be nominated considering her nomination at the Golden Globes and her nomination last year. Also unforeseen, Elle Fanning was nominated because many thought only Ibsdotter Lillieas would be nominated from Sentimental Value.
Teyana Taylor is the current frontrunner for Best Supporting Actress.
The final major category is Best Director with the nominees being Chloe Zhao (Hamnet), Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme), Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value) and Ryan Coogler (Sinners).
None of the nominees were surprises, however, Guillermo Del Toro (Frankenstein) was unexpectedly snubbed from a nomination and so was Yorgos Lanthimos (Bugonia).
Guillermo Del Toro is an Academy favorite, he previously won Best Picture and Best Director for The Shape of Water. Chloe Zhao (Hamnet) was nominated this year and she won both of those awards for Nomadland.
Lanthimos was a six-time nominee before this year and he is well-known by critics for his innovative style and high-quality production.
Paul Thomas Anderson is the current frontrunner for Best Director.
The Academy Awards will take place at the Dolby Theater on Sunday, March 15, 2026 at 7:00 EST, hosted by Conan O’Brien. It will be available to watch live on ABC or stream on Hulu.
