Oscars 2025 nominations: Despite All We Imagine As Light missing the nominations, Anuja shines bright with some well-deserved recognition; Emilia Perez dominates with 13 nominations!

The 2025 Oscar nominations are here! As expected, Emilia Perez leads the pack with the most nods, but the list also packs a few surprises. Dive into the full lineup here!

The 2025 Oscar nominations have officially been unveiled, marking the beginning of what promises to be an exciting and unpredictable season. Due to the devastating fires that swept across Los Angeles some weeks ago, the Academy pushed the nominations announcement, originally scheduled for January 17. Comedians Rachel Sennott and Bowen Yang delivered the much-anticipated announcements at the Los Angeles Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn theater.In their typical light-hearted style, Sennott joked about the toll of the morning’s excitement, and this playful exchange set the stage for the anticipated list with a few surprises to follow.

The dynamic musical drama Emilia Pérezhas been a sweeper of the town this awards season since the Golden Globes; despite the film being called out for its misrepresentation by the Spanish and trans community, it has led the pack with 13 nominations, a staggering achievement that places it alongside earlier Oscar titans like Gone With the Wind. Meanwhile, the much talked about architecture epic The Brutalist and colourful marvel Wicked garnered 10 nominations each, cementing their status as strong contenders. The pulp drama Conclave and Bob Dylan's biopic A Complete Unknown followed in pursuit closely with eight nods apiece, rounding out a year of vibrant, diverse storytelling. Apart from these five films, seasons' other juggernauts—Anora, Dune: Part Two, I’m Still Here, Nickel Boys, and The Substance—will compete for Best Picture.

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The 2025 Oscar nominations reflect the fiercely competitive film season and have introduced several groundbreaking firsts celebrating the evolving cinema landscape, with veteran stars and newcomers making waves in the industry. Among other notable achievements, director Coralie Fargeat (The Substance) emerged as the only female nominee in the Best Director category and also earned a nod for Best Original Screenplay. Demi Moore, the film’s lead, scored her first Oscar nomination for Best Actress alongside Isabella Rossellini, who also earned her first nomination for Conclave.

Karla Sofía Gascón, the Spanish-born star of Emilia Pérez, made history as the first openly transgender performer to be nominated for Best Actress. The film’s director, Jacques Audiard, garnered two nominations, one for Best Director and another for Best Adapted Screenplay. Meanwhile, Zoe Saldaña earned a Supporting Actress nomination for her standout performance in the same film. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande brought home nominations for Wicked, and for The Brutalist, director Brady Corbet and writer Mona Fastvold received recognition for Best Original Screenplay, while Adrien Brody was nominated for his lead role. I’m Still Here star Fernanda Torres matched her mother Fernanda Montenegro's achievement from 1999, becoming only the second Brazilian actress nominated for Best Actress.

Other key acting nominations went to Sebastian Stan for The Apprentice and Ralph Fiennes for Conclave. Jeremy Strong will compete for Best Supporting Actor in the same category as his former Succession co-star Kieran Culkin, who was nominated for A Real Pain. Meanwhile, TimothéeChalamet's nomination for A Complete Unknown joins James Dean as the youngest two-time Best Actor nominee, and Colman Domingo for Sing Sing makes history as the first Black actor to receive back-to-back Best Actor nominations since Denzel Washington. 

Now, the heavily celebrated, highly critically acclaimed, especially after its Cannes and awards season success and despite not being India's official entry, Payal Kapadia'sAll We Imagine As Light missed out on making it to the final cut in the Best International Feature Film category alongside films like I’m Still Here, The Girl with the Needle, and The Seed of the Sacred Fig. But on a brighter note, Indian representation was still present as Anuja, a poignant short film directed by Adam J. Graves, andproduced by Guneet Monga, Mindy Kaling and Priyanka Chopra Jonas, received a nomination for Best Live Action Short Film.

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Check out the entire list of nominations here!

Best Picture

Anora
The Brutalist
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
I’m Still Here
Nickel Boys
The Substance
Wicked

Directing

Jacques Audiard Emilia Pérez
Sean Baker (Anora)
Brady Corbet (The Brutalist)
Coralie Fargeat (The Substance)
James Mangold (A Complete Unknown)

Actor in a Leading Role

Adrien Brody (The Brutalist)
Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown)
Colman Domingo (Sing Sing)
Ralph Fiennes (Conclave)
Sebastian Stan (The Apprentice)

Actress in a Leading Role

Cynthia Erivo (Wicked)
Karla Sofía Gascón Emilia Pérez
Mikey Madison (Anora)
Demi Moore The Substance
Fernanda Torres (I’m Still Here)

Actor in a Supporting Role

Yura Borisov (Anora)
Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain)
Edward Norton (A Complete Unknown)
Guy Pearce (The Brutalist)
Jeremy Strong (The Apprentice)

This year’s ceremony, still set for March 2, 2025, hosted by Conan O’Brien, will also include a tribute to Los Angeles's heroic first responders, whose efforts mitigated the devastation caused by the recent wildfires.

What did you think about the Oscars 2025 nominations? Tell us in the comments below! 

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