While 2016 will be in the history books for the wrong reasons, it was a great year for cinema. Barry Jenkins’s first major feature, Moonlight, was universally applauded by critics and audiences; the renaissance song and dance flick La La Land made musicals popular again. Dramas Hacksaw Ridge and Hidden Figures brought incredible real-life events to the silver screen. It comes as no surprise that they all have made the cut for Best Picture at the 2017 Academy Awards.
Nominations were announced this morning and, as well at its nomination for Best Picture, La La Land is in the running in 13 other categories, including for Best Actor (Ryan Gosling) and Best Actress (Emma Stone). The musical, directed by Damien Chazelle, ties with 1950s film All About Eve and Titanic for the most nominations for a single film ever. Denzel Washington is nominated in the Best Actor category for his leading role in the adaptation of August Wilson’s Fences, which he also co-produced.
Refreshingly, a more diverse range of talent has been recognized this year after 2016’s all-white acting nominations, which resulted in the #OscarsSoWhite campaign. Seven of the 20 acting nominations have gone to actors of color; three of the five films nominated for Best Documentary Feature — 13th (Ava DuVernay), I Am Not Your Negro (Raoul Peck), and O.J. Made in America (Ezra Edelman) — were helmed by directors of color. However, not a single woman was nominated for best director.
Ruth Negga and Naomie Harris earned their first Academy Award nominations for Loving and Moonlight, respectively. Previously nominated actresses Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, and Michelle Williams have again earned nods for their roles in Fences, Hidden Figures, and Manchester By The Sea.
The bad news is that we have to wait until the ceremony on February 26 to learn the winners. But at least that leaves us plenty of time to place our bets.
Check out the full list of 2017’s Oscar nominees here.
Credits
Still from Moonlight