Nolan's Journey to the Oscars: The Race for Best Director and Best Picture
A look into Christopher Nolan's journey to the Oscars, his chances for Best Director, and the competition for Best Picture with his film Oppenheimer.
Nolan's Quest for the Oscars
Christopher Nolan has never won an Oscar, but a new, different nomination is good news for his chances with Oppenheimer, even if it introduces more competition. With Christopher Nolan’s iconic cinematography, it may come as a shock that he has only five Oscar nominations for only three of his films, and only one was for his direction.
Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer in Oppenheimer's final moments.
Nolan could take home an Oscar for Best Director and Oppenheimer could win the Best Picture Oscar, effectively ending his losing streak that started in 2002 with a Best Original Screenplay nomination for Memento.
Florence Pugh's Jean Tatlock grabs Cillian Murphy's Oppenheimer by the coat in Oppenheimer
The Frontrunner for Best Director
Nolan is the frontrunner for Best Director against other strong candidates like Martin Scorcese and Greta Gerwig. While this Oscar may be a lock for Nolan, especially after his win at the Golden Globes, it can be harder to pin down a clear Best Picture winner in the lead-up to the Academy Awards.
Matt Damon as Leslie Groves in a scene from Oppenheimer.
There are many different ways to predict frontrunners in the awards race, including other awards nominations and wins. The recently released 2024 Screen Actors Guild Award nominations are a good sign for Nolan and Oppenheimer’s Oscars chances.
Robert Downey Jr as Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer.
The Battle for Best Picture
Oppenheimer has remained in strong talks for Best Picture contention, further fueled by a win for Best Film: Drama at the Golden Globes and the SAG nominations. The other movies nominated in the cast performance category are American Fiction, Barbie, The Color Purple, and Killers of the Flower Moon.
An image of Jason Clarke looking serious in Oppenheimer
Notably absent are The Holdovers and Poors Things, which picked up some other acting nominations and have been in talks for the Best Picture win as well. This, along with Barbie’s Oscar hopes being essentially dashed by the Golden Globes, have helped shrink the pool of true contenders against Oppenheimer.
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