Remember when I said last year that the Academy of Motion Picture Sciences needed to work on its representation of women and BIPOC in their awards nominations? And when I said the same thing about the Golden Globes just a couple of months ago? Well, it turns out the Academy listened and not only nominated an excellent and diverse slate of films but even made history with a number of the nominees. Here’s where the 2021 Oscar nominations made history.
- Judas and the Black Messiah
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Judas and the Black Messiah getting a Best Picture nomination marks the first time a film nominated for Best Picture has had all Black producers (and if you haven’t seen this film do yourself a favor and watch it, it really is one of the best of the year).
- Steven Yeun and Riz Ahmed
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Steven Yeun is the first Asian-American actor to be nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars for his role in Minari. Also, Riz Ahmed is the first Muslim actor to be nominated in this category for his role in Sound of Metal. The two of them together make this the first time two actors of Asian descent have competed in this category at the same time.
- Sir Anthony Hopkins
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With his nomination for Best Actor for his role in The Father, Sir Anthony Hopkins is officially the oldest Oscar nominee ever.
- Viola Davis
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With her nomination for playing Ma Rainey in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, she now has the most Oscar nominations for a Black actress. That’s four nominations, and she’s the first one to have had two Best Actress nominations.
- Glenn Close
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Make of this what you will, but Glenn Close is the first person to be nominated for a Razzie and an Oscar for the same role (Hillbilly Elegy).
- Chloe Zhao
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Chloe Zhao is the first woman of color to be nominated for Best Director and one of only seven women to ever be nominated in this category with her nomination for Nomadland (she’s also nominated this year for Best Adapted Screenplay).
- Best Director
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This is the first time in Oscar history that two women have been nominated for Best Director in the same year. Chloe Zhao (Nomadland) and Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) have received nominations, bringing the total number of women nominated for this award in history up to seven.
This year’s Oscar nominees have shaped up to be a really interesting group, so now it’s time to watch everything and start planning your Oscar pool!