The Oscar nominations are in and as usual, there are some surprises and snubs! Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas announced the nominations this morning and David Fincher’s “Mank,” a film about the making of “Citizen Kane” led the pack with 10 nods including Best Picture, proving once again that Hollywood loves movies about Hollywood!

BUT, not a whole lot of love for Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods” which failed to earn a Best Picture nod. Same goes for “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” which earned acting nods for Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis but failed to get a Best Picture nomination. The lovely and talented Regina King was snubbed for Best Directing and her “One Night in Miami” failed to get a Best Picture nomination as well.

Poor Aaron Sorkin failed to get a Best Director nod even though his film, “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” received a Best Picture nomination. In Sorkin’s place is “Another Round’s” Thomas Vinterberg, a nice surprise.

The most surprising is the surge of Florian Zeller’s “The Father.” It was slow and steady during the beginning of the award season and then it earned six nods from the Academy including Best Picture!

I’m pleased that for the first time, the Academy honors two female directors including Chloe Zhao for “Nomadland” and Emerald Fennell for “Promising Young Woman.” And Zhao is a woman of color, a first! Quite historic!

Also, I’m happy that “Minari’s” cast is being honored with Steven Yeun getting a historic Best Actor nomination, the first for any Asian-American in this category! Yay! And hurray for Yuh-Jung Young in “Minari” as well. My fave among the nominees in the Best Supporting Actress category.

And for a bit of levity, I can’t tell you how pleased I am for “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.” The satire on the famous European singing contest received a Best Song nomination for “Husavik.” A melodic song that is able to have a line like “where the whales can live ‘cause they’re gentle people” and still make sense.

Here’s the complete nominations list of the 2021 Oscars. The 93^rd Academy Awards will be on Sunday, April 25.

Best Picture

“The Father” David Parfitt, Jean-Louis Livi and Philippe Carcassonne, Producers
“Judas and the Black Messiah” Shaka King, Charles D. King and Ryan Coogler, Producers
“Mank” Ceán Chaffin, Eric Roth and Douglas Urbanski, Producers
“Minari” Christina Oh, Producer
“Nomadland” Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey and Chloé Zhao, Producers
“Promising Young Woman” Ben Browning, Ashley Fox, Emerald Fennell and Josey McNamara, Producers
“Sound of Metal” Bert Hamelinck and Sacha Ben Harroche, Producers
“The Trial of the Chicago 7” Marc Platt and Stuart Besser, Producers

Actor in a Leading Role

Riz Ahmed in “Sound of Metal”
Chadwick Boseman in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Anthony Hopkins in “The Father”
Gary Oldman in “Mank”
Steven Yeun in “Minari”

Actress in a Leading Role

Viola Davis in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Andra Day in “The United States vs. Billie Holiday”
Vanessa Kirby in “Pieces of a Woman”
Frances McDormand in “Nomadland”
Carey Mulligan in “Promising Young Woman”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Sacha Baron Cohen in “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
Daniel Kaluuya in “Judas and the Black Messiah”
Leslie Odom, Jr. in “One Night in Miami…”
Paul Raci in “Sound of Metal”
Lakeith Stanfield in “Judas and the Black Messiah”

Actress in a Supporting Role

Maria Bakalova in “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”
Glenn Close in “Hillbilly Elegy”
Olivia Colman in “The Father”
Amanda Seyfried in “Mank”
Yuh-Jung Youn in “Minari”

Directing

“Another Round” Thomas Vinterberg
“Mank” David Fincher
“Minari” Lee Isaac Chung
“Nomadland” Chloé Zhao
“Promising Young Woman” Emerald Fennell

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Dan Swimer & Peter Baynham & Erica Rivinoja & Dan Mazer & Jena Friedman & Lee Kern; Story by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Dan Swimer & Nina Pedrad
“The Father” Screenplay by Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller
“Nomadland” Written for the screen by Chloé Zhao
“One Night in Miami…” Screenplay by Kemp Powers
“The White Tigers” Written for the screen by Ramin Bahrani

Writing (Original Screenplay)

“Judas and the Black Messiah” Screenplay by Will Berson & Shaka King; Story by Will Berson & Shaka King and Kenny Lucas & Keith Lucas
“Minari” Written by Lee Isaac Chung
“Promising Young Woman” Written by Emerald Fennell
“Sound of Metal” Screenplay by Darius Marder & Abraham Marder; Story by Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance
“The Trial of the Chicago 7” Written by Aaron Sorkin

Costume Design

“Emma” Alexandra Byrne
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” Ann Roth
“Mank” Trish Summerville
“Mulan” Bina Daigeler
“Pinocchio” Massimo Cantini Parrini

Music (Original Score)

“Da 5 Bloods” Terence Blanchard
“Mank” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
“Minari” Emile Mosseri
“News of the World” James Newton Howard
“Soul” Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste

Music (Original Song)

“Fight For You” from “Judas and the Black Messiah”
Music by H.E.R. and Dernst Emile II; Lyric by H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas
“Hear My Voice” from “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
Music by Daniel Pemberton; Lyric by Daniel Pemberton and Celeste Waite
“Husavik” from “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga”
Music and Lyric by Savan Kotecha, Fat Max Gsus and Rickard Göransson
“Io Sì (Seen)” from “The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se)”
Music by Diane Warren; Lyric by Diane Warren and Laura Pausini
“Speak Now” from “One Night in Miami…”
Music and Lyric by Leslie Odom, Jr. and Sam Ashworth

Documentary Feature

“Collective” Alexander Nanau and Bianca Oana
“Crip Camp” Nicole Newnham, Jim LeBrecht and Sara Bolder
“The Mole Agent” Maite Alberdi and Marcela Santibáñez
“My Octopus Teacher” Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster
“Time” Garrett Bradley, Lauren Domino and Kellen Quinn

Documentary Short Subject

“Colette” Anthony Giacchino and Alice Doyard
“A Concerto Is a Conversation” Ben Proudfoot and Kris Bowers
“Do Not Split” Anders Hammer and Charlotte Cook
“Hunger Ward” Skye Fitzgerald and Michael Scheuerman
“A Love Song for Latasha” Sophia Nahli Allison and Janice Duncan

Animated Feature Film

“Onward” Dan Scanlon and Kori Rae
“Over the Moon” Glen Keane, Gennie Rim and Peilin Chou
“A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon” Richard Phelan, Will Becher and Paul Kewley
“Soul” Pete Docter and Dana Murray
“Wolfwalkers” Tomm Moore, Ross Stewart, Paul Young and Stéphan Roelants

Animated Short Film

“Burrow” Madeline Sharafian and Michael Capbarat
“Genius Loci” Adrien Mérigeau and Amaury Ovise
“If Anything Happens I Love You” Will McCormack and Michael Govier
“Opera” Erick Oh
“Yes-People” Gísli Darri Halldórsson and Arnar Gunnarsson

Live Action Short Film

“Feeling Through” Doug Roland and Susan Ruzenski
“The Letter Room” Elvira Lind and Sofia Sondervan
“The Present” Farah Nabulsi
“Two Distant Strangers” Travon Free and Martin Desmond Roe
“White Eye” Tomer Shushan and Shira Hochman

International Feature Film

“Another Round” Denmark
“Better Days” Hong Kong
“Collective” Romania
“The Man Who Sold His Skin” Tunisia
“Quo Vadis, Aida?” Bosnia and Herzegovina

Cinematography

“Judas and the Black Messiah” Sean Bobbitt
“Mank” Erik Messerschmidt
“News of the World” Dariusz Wolski
“Nomadland” Joshua James Richards
“The Trial of the Chicago 7” Phedon Papamichael

Film Editing

“The Father” Yorgos Lamprinos
“Nomadland” Chloé Zhao
“Promising Young Woman” Frédéric Thoraval
“Sound of Metal” Mikkel E. G. Nielsen
“The Trial of the Chicago 7” Alan Baumgarten

Production Design

“The Father” Production Design: Peter Francis; Set Decoration: Cathy Featherstone
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” Production Design: Mark Ricker; Set Decoration: Karen O’Hara and Diana Stoughton
“Mank” Production Design: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Jan Pascale
“News of the World” Production Design: David Crank; Set Decoration: Elizabeth Keenan
“Tenet” Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Kathy Lucas

Makeup and Hairstyling

“Emma” Marese Langan, Laura Allen and Claudia Stolze
“Hillbilly Elegy” Eryn Krueger Mekash, Matthew Mungle and Patricia Dehaney
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal and Jamika Wilson
“Mank” Gigi Williams, Kimberley Spiteri and Colleen LaBaff
“Pinocchio” Mark Coulier, Dalia Colli and Francesco Pegoretti

Sound

“Greyhound” Warren Shaw, Michael Minkler, Beau Borders and David Wyman
“Mank” Ren Klyce, Jeremy Molod, David Parker, Nathan Nance and Drew Kunin
“News of the World” Oliver Tarney, Mike Prestwood Smith, William Miller and John Pritchett
“Soul” Ren Klyce, Coya Elliott and David Parker
“Sound of Metal” Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés and Phillip Bladh

Visual Effects

“Love and Monsters” Matt Sloan, Genevieve Camilleri, Matt Everitt and Brian Cox
“The Midnight Sky” Matthew Kasmir, Christopher Lawrence, Max Solomon and David Watkins
“Mulan” Sean Faden, Anders Langlands, Seth Maury and Steve Ingram
“The One and Only Ivan” Nick Davis, Greg Fisher, Ben Jones and Santiago Colomo Martinez
“Tenet” Andrew Jackson, David Lee, Andrew Lockley and Scott Fisher

Complete Oscars 2021 Nominations — Snubs and Surprises Aplenty!