The 93rd Oscars will take place on Sunday, April 26th, two months later than usual due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Academy Awards will honour the best films released in 2020 and the early months of 2021.
However, the Oscars will not be confined to a Zoom broadcast. In a letter sent to all nominees, show producers Jesse Collins and Stacey Sher stated that their plan is to “stage an intimate, in-person event at Union Station in Los Angeles, with additional show elements live from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood”. Acceptance of awards over video call will not be permitted.
Competing for Best Picture are the following; Mank, Judas and the Black Messiah, Promising Young Woman, Sound of Metal, Minari, The Trial of Chicago 7, The Father and Nomadland. Mank is currently in the lead with ten nominations, including nods for Best Actor (Gary Oldman), Best Supporting Actress (Amanda Seyfried) and Best Director (David Fincher).
Record-Breaking
This year’s event will be one to remember, with many new records for nominations. The Best Director nominations included Chloé Zhao (Nomadland) and Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman), the largest amount of women nominated for the category. A record-breaking 70 women received 76 nominations.
It is set to be the most diverse Oscars yet, with nine of the 20 acting nominees being from ethnic minority backgrounds. One noteworthy nomination is Steven Yeun for Best Actor, the first Asian-American to secure the nomination. Riz Ahmed is also the first Muslim actor in the running for Best Actor. Yuh-Jung Youn is the first South Korean actress to get an Oscar nod for Best Supporting Actress.
Chadwick Boseman is the first Black actor to be nominated posthumously for the Best Actor category. If he wins, he will be the third posthumous Best Actor winner since 1976, after Peter Finch and Heath Ledger.
Notably, Anthony Hopkins has the potential to become the oldest actor to receive the Best Actor award at 83 years old for his role in The Father. It would only be his second Oscar since his win in 1992 for Silence of the Lambs
Wolfwalkers, an Irish animated production by Kilkenny studio Cartoon Saloon, received their fourth nomination in the Best Animated Film category. This year poses their greatest chance of winning, as they appear to be neck-in-neck with Disney Pixar’s Soul.
Georgia Fenlon
Image credit: Flickr