Oscar 2026: List of Nominees, Sinners and Battle After Battle Lead

The vampire movie directed by Ryan Coogler, Sinners, leads the list of nominees for the Oscar 2026 with 16 mentions, surpassing the historical record of 14 they held for Eve Naked, Titanic, and La La Land. He follows One Battle After Another, the political drama of Paul Thomas Anderson, with 13 nominations. Both productions compete for the best film statuette along with eight other titles, including Frankenstein of Guillermo del Toro, Hamnet of Chloé Zhao, and Marty Supreme of Josh Safdie. Warner Bros. stars in an unexpected turn after a start to 2025 marked by commercial failures such as Mickey 17 and The Alto Knights. Rumors about the departure of Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy, executives responsible for approving these high-budget, high-risk projects, dissipated when Sinners became a box office phenomenon.

Oscar 2026: List of Nominees, Sinners and Battle After Battle Lead

Although One Battle After Another, he did not recover his budget of 135 million dollars. Its dominant presence in the awards season reinforces the value of both bets for the studio. Netflix accumulated 18 total nominations with Frankenstein, which obtained nine mentions, and Train Dreams, an intimate drama about a railway worker with four nominations. The platform completed the purchase of Warner Bros. for 82.7 billion dollars, an operation that generates uncertainty in the industry about the future of theater productions. Neon, an independent producer behind foreign language films such as Sentimental Value and The Secret Agent, equals Netflix with 18 nominations despite its much smaller structure.

Oscar 2026: Sinners and Battle After Battle Concentrate on the Main Categories

Ryan Coogler and Paul Thomas Anderson will compete for the award for best direction alongside Chloé Zhao (Hamnet), Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value), and Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme). Zhao already won the Oscar for Nomadland, and he returns with an adaptation of the play about William Shakespeare’s son.

The best actor category faces Timothee Chalamet, whose promotional actions helped convert Marty Supreme in A24’s biggest commercial success, against Leonardo DiCaprio by One Battle After Another. DiCaprio maintains his status as a reliable star at the box office, while Chalamet opts for a role that combines physical athleticism and charisma. Michael B. Jordan (Sinners), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon) and Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent), recent winner of the Golden Globe, complete the shortlist.

Jessie Buckley (Hamnet) and Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You) They dominated previous conversations due to their interpretations of mothers faced with extreme situations. They will compete against Emma Stone, a two-time Oscar winner and now nominated for Bugonia, besides Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue) and Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value).

In the supporting actor category, One Battle After Another placed two interpreters: Benicio del Toro, winner of Traffic, and Sean Penn, who has statuettes for Milk and Mystic River. Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value), and Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein) seek their first recognition from the Academy. The women’s category includes two nominees from Value Sentimental, Elle Fanning and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, next to Amy Madigan (Weapons), Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners), and Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another).

Surprises, Notable Absences, and a New Category

F1, an action film set in motorsports, achieved an unexpected nomination for best film. The film of Joseph Kosinski, produced by Apple with Brad Pitt as a protagonist and producer, he competes in technical categories such as visual effects, editing and sound, areas where large-scale productions often stand out.

Absences generate as much comment as nominations. Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, recognized by Wicked, were left out for their performances in Wicked: For Good. Paul Mescal, praised by critics and the public for his interpretation of William Shakespeare in Hamnet, it also received no mention. These exclusions contrast with the recognition of performances in films with lower media visibility.

This year marks the first edition in which casting directors receive official recognition. The inaugural nominees are Nina Gold (Hamnet), Jennifer Venditti (Marty Supreme), Cassandra Kulukundis (One Battle After Another), Francine Maisler (Sinners), and Gabriel Domingues (The Secret Agent). The incorporation responds to years of demands from the union to make their work visible in the creative process.

When and Where the Ceremony is Broadcast

The ceremony will be broadcast on ABC on March 15, with Conan O’Brien as host for the second time. The industry is going through a period of corporate consolidation that resulted in the sale of legendary studios such as MGM, 20th Century Fox , and now Warner Bros. The box office is not recovering pre-pandemic levels, and artificial intelligence raises concerns about layoffs in a sector already affected by budget cuts.

Lynette Howell Taylor, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, declared before the nominations announcement: “Our deep conviction is that the heart of cinema is and always will be unmistakably human”. The phrase seeks to reaffirm the value of artisanal work in the face of technologies that threaten to automate creative processes.

Sinners surpasses the records that Eve, Naked, Titanic, and La La Land shared. Of those three movies, alone La La Land didn’t win best picture. Vampirism as a genre is making a strong comeback after years of superhero dominance and established franchises. Coogler constructed a violent narrative set in the American South that connected with mass audiences without sacrificing risky formal proposals.

Oscar 2026: Warner Bros., the Most Nominated Studio

Warner Bros. accumulate 30 total nominations, leading the competition between studies. The studio opted for directors with a clear authorial vision and considerable budgets, a strategy that seemed doomed after the failures of the first quarter. The box office victory of Sinners he validated decisions that in January seemed reckless. One Battle After Another, despite its commercial failure, it provides prestige and real possibilities for statuettes in main categories.

The competition for best film includes productions of different scales and origins. Bugonia, the new collaboration between Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone, the Greek director’s streak continues after the success of Poor Things. Train Dreams, an adaptation of the novel by Denis Johnson, represents the intimate cinema that Netflix continues to finance along with its more commercial bets. The Secret Agent, Neon’s international co-production, confirms the independent studio’s ability to position non-English language films.

The animated and live-action short films present independently produced works with academic institutions. Tel Aviv University appears as a producer of Butcher’s Stain, while Canada’s National Film Board endorses The Girl Who Cried Pearls. Canal+ and The New Yorker collaborated on Two People Exchanging Saliva, fusion between traditional media and new distribution platforms.

Oscar 2026: International competition and the Argentine absence

The international film category includes a Brazil (The Secret Agent), France (It was just an accident), Norway (Sentimental Value), Spain (Sirāt) and Tunisia (The Voice of Hind Rajab). The geographic diversity reflects the Academy’s efforts to broaden its perspective beyond Western American and European productions.

Brazil achieves its candidacy with The Secret Agent by Kleber Mendonça Filho, while France presents It was just an accident from the Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi. Tunisia represents the African continent with a film that addresses contemporary conflicts from a local perspective.

Argentina’s absence is notable after Belen out shortlisted in the short list from 15 movies. Belen it had generated expectations at international festivals during 2025, but was left out of the five nominees. This exclusion is added to that of other Latin American titles that failed to advance in the competition, leaving Brazil as the only representative of the region. The Academy usually privileges films with wide international distribution or support from studios with a presence in the United States, a factor that may have influenced the final selection.

Ludwig Göransson and Jonny Greenwood compete for best soundtrack

Ludwig Göransson competes on original soundtrack for Sinners against Jonny Greenwood (One Battle After Another), Alexandre Desplat (Frankenstein), Max Richter (Hamnet) and Jerskin Fendrix (Bugonia). Göransson previously won by Black Panther and Oppenheimer, while Greenwood accumulates nominations without winning the award. Multiple winner Desplat returns with his frequent collaboration with Del Toro.

The 2026 Oscars mark a moment of transition for Hollywood. Business consolidation is advancing as film production faces unprecedented economic and technological challenges. The nominations reflect both the persistence of traditional production models and the search for new narrative forms. Sinners and One Battle After Another, they represent creative bets that found space within increasingly concentrated corporate structures. The outcome of the March 15 ceremony will tell whether the Academy rewards formal renewal or leans toward more conservative options.

Oscar 2026: Complete list of nominees

Best Picture

• Bugonia
• Frankenstein
• F1
• Hamnet
• Marty Supreme
• One Battle After Another
• The Secret Agent
• Sentimental Value
• Sinners
• Train Dreams

Best Actor

• Timothée Chalamet – Marty Supreme
• Leonardo DiCaprio – One Battle After Another
• Ethan Hawke – Blue Moon
• Michael B Jordan – Sinners
• Wagner Moura – The Secret Agent

Best Actress

• Jessie Buckley – Hamnet
• Rose Byrne – If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
• Kate Hudson – Song Sung Blue
• Renate Reinsve – Sentimental Value
• Emma Stone – Bugonia

Best Supporting Actress

• Elle Fanning – Sentimental Value
• Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas – Sentimental Value
• Amy Madigan – Weapons
• Wunmi Mosaku – Sinners
• Teyana Taylor – One Battle After Another

Best Supporting Actor

• Benicio del Toro – One Battle After Another
• Jacob Elordi – Frankenstein
• Delroy Lindo – Sinners
• Sean Penn – One Battle After Another
• Stellan Skarsgård – Sentimental Value

Best Director

• Paul Thomas Anderson – One Battle After Another
• Ryan Coogler – Sinners
• Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme
• Joachim Trier – Sentimental Value
• Chloé Zhao – Hamnet

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Bugonia
• Frankenstein
• Hamnet
• One Battle After Another
• Train Dreams

Best Original Screenplay

• Blue Moon
• It Was Just an Accident
• Marty Supreme
• Sentimental Value
• Sinners

Best Original Song

• Dear Me – Diane Warren: Relentless
• Golden – KPop Demon Hunters
• I Lied to You – Sinners
• Sweet Dreams of Joy – Viva Verdi!
• Train Dreams – Train Dreams

Best Original Score

• Bugonia
• Frankenstein
• Hamnet
• One Battle After Another
• Sinners

Best International Feature

• It Was Just an Accident
• Sentimental Value
• Sirât
• The Secret Agent
• The Voice of Hind Rajab

Best Animated Feature

• Arco
• Elio
• KPop Demon Hunters
• Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
• Zootopia 2

Best Documentary feature

• Come See Me in the GOOD Light
• Cutting Through the Rocks
• Nobody Against Putin
• The Alabama Solution
• The Perfect Neighbor

Best Costume Design

• Avatar: Fire and Ash
• Frankenstein
• Hamnet
• Marty Supreme
• Sinners

Best Make-up and Hairstyling

• Frankenstein
• Kokuho
• Sinners
• The Smashing Machine
• The Ugly Stepsister

Best Production Design

• Frankenstein
• Hamnet
• Marty Supreme
• One Battle After Another
• Sinners

Best Sound

• Frankenstein
• F1
• One Battle After Another
• Sinners
• Sirât

Best Film Editing

• F1
• Marty Supreme
• One Battle After Another
• Sentimental Value
• Sinners

Best Cinematography

• Frankenstein
• Marty Supreme
• One Battle After Another
• Sinners
• Train Dreams

Best Visual Effects

• Avatar: Fire and Ash
• F1
• Jurassic World Rebirth
• Sinners
• The Lost Bus

Best Live Action Short

• A Friend of Dorothy
• Butcher’s Stain
• Jane Austen’s Period Drama
• The Singers
• Two People Exchanging Saliva

Best Animated Short

• Butterfly
• Forevergreen
• Retirement Plan
• The Girl Who Cried Pearls
• The Three Sisters

Best Documentary Short

• All the Empty Rooms
• Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud
• Children No More: Were and Are Gone
• The Devil Is Busy
• Perfectly a Strangeness

Best Casting

• Hamnet
• Marty Supreme
• One Battle After Another
• Sinners
• The Secret Agent