Oscars 2026 nominations live updates: 'Sinners' sets new Oscar record with 16 nominations

Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav sent a note to employees about the studio’s impressive haul, including the 30 nominations for Warner Bros films “Sinners” (16) “One Battle After Another” (13) and “Weapons” (1), as well as the HBO documentaries “The Alabama Solution,” “The Devil Is Busy,” and “Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud.”

“This is a truly golden moment for our company and also a powerful validation of our strategy,” Zaslav said, “to believe in movies, to believe in original storytelling, and to believe in the theatrical experience.”

Comedian Conan O’Brien is tapped to host the 98th Academy Awards, which take place at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will air live on ABC on March 15.

Don't worry, we'll be live blogging the show all day, too. The countdown begins.

The Academy Awards are moving to YouTube starting in 2029, marking a new era for Hollywood’s leading awards show and a mainstay of network television for decades.

The deal YouTube and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced in December will start with the 101st Oscars ceremony in 2029 and run through 2033. The telecast has aired live on ABC since the 1970s. Disney owns ABC.

The Oscars moving to streaming on YouTube in 2029 after five decades on broadcast

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“We are thrilled to enter into a multifaceted global partnership with YouTube to be the future home of the Oscars and our year-round Academy programming,” academy CEO Bill Kramer and academy President Lynette Howell Taylor said in a joint statement.

“The Academy is an international organization, and this partnership will allow us to expand access to the work of the Academy to the largest worldwide audience possible — which will be beneficial for our Academy members and the film community,” they said.

Read the full story here.

The "Sentimental Value" star shared a screenshot of her emotional reaction to the nomination during a FaceTime call.

"I can’t catch my breath. I am in absolute shock," she wrote in the Instagram post.

“What an honor to have my first Academy Award nomination be for a film that acknowledges the power of moviemaking and family! My Mom, Grandma, Sister, and Aunt were here with me this morning to scream and hug and cry.”

Buckley told the "TODAY" show that she is "honored" to be nominated in the best actress category.

“I am just so thrilled for everyone whose been part of making this film and so proud to be standing by all these incredible women,” she said, adding that she was calling the hosts from her car where she was feeding her 6-month-old baby.

The actor, who serves as a producer on "Arco," celebrated the nod while promoting the film in an Instagram post.

The film "press tour is in full swing and with the incredible news we are nominated for the Academy Award Best Animated Feature!" she wrote on Instagram, adding that the film begins rolling out in North American theaters this weekend.

After unveiling nominees for the 98th Oscars, the academy shared some interesting tidbits about the contenders on its website. Here are some of the most notable nuggets from its list:

• Steven Spielberg received his 14th nomination as a producer for his work on "Hamnet." The academy said in its release it is "a record for an individual producer (since 1951 when producers were first named as nominees)."
• Singer Diane Warren was nominated for the ninth year in a row, meaning she now has 17 total nominations but zero wins.
• The academy said that though "some nominees are still to be determined, a record 74 women are currently nominated this year. The previous record of 71 was set in 2023."

Here's a list of which actors received nods from the academy for their work for the first time.

• Rose Byrne, for "If I Had Legs I'd Kick You"
• Jacob Elordi, for "Frankenstein"
• Elle Fanning, for "Sentimental Value"
• Michael B. Jordan, for "Sinners"
• Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, for "Sentimental Value"
• Delroy Lindo, for "Sinners"
• Wunmi Mosaku, for "Sinners"
• Wagner Moura, for "The Secret Agent"
• Renate Reinsve, for “Sentimental Value”
• Stellan Skarsgård, for "Sentimental Value"
• Teyana Taylor, for "One Battle After Another"

“The Voice of Hind Rajab,” a Tunisian film that follows the Palestine Red Crescent Society’s failed attempt to save a Palestinian child who was killed in Gaza in 2024, is one of the academy’s nominees for international feature.

The movie, which received a 23-minute standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival in September, was among four films about Palestinians that countries submitted for Oscar consideration this year, and all of them had a difficult time securing mainstream distribution in the U.S.

“The Voice of Hind Rajab,” which has grossed over $4 million worldwide, has made about $242,000 domestically since indie distributor Willa released it in December.

Besides Warner Bros. (which garnered a whopping 30 nods), indie producer Neon was a top nominee, amassing 18 total nominations (thanks in large part to its international slate).

Netflix, which is pushing ahead with a high-stakes bid for Warner Bros. Discovery’s studios and streaming assets, tied with Neon with 18 nominations. That includes nods for "Train Dreams," "Frankenstein" and "KPop Demon Hunters."

Focus Features, which released "Bugonia," "Hamnet" and "Song Sung Blue," garnered 13 nominations. (The film’s distributor is Focus Features, a unit of NBC News’ parent corporation, Comcast.)

Rounding out the top five was A24, which scored 11 nominations, thanks in large part to "Marty Supreme."

The popularity of Netflix’s “KPop Demon Hunters” has soared into awards season.

HUNTR/X, the fictional group from Netflix’s animated film, became global superstars after the film’s release last summer.

“Golden,” a track from the film, topped Billboard charts, won a Golden Globe and is a Grammy contender.

At the Oscars, the film (and its very catchy soundtrack) is likely to continue to see success after scoring nods in the best animated feature and original song categories.

Iranian director Jafar Panahi puts a lot on the line for his work. Authorities could again arrest him for speaking out against the country’s hard-line regime. They could send him back to the notoriously cruel Evin Prison in Tehran, which houses many of Iran’s political dissidents. He could again be placed on house arrest and barred from making films.

And in December, just as the U.S. press tour for Panahi’s Golden Globe-nominated film “It Was Just an Accident” had wrapped up, Iran sentenced Panahi to prison. The country also again banned him from traveling, citing “propaganda activities.”

A scene from "It Was Just an Accident."   Jafar Panahi Productions

For much of his career, Panahi, now 65, has largely ignored these attempts at silencing him, instead focusing on doing what he loves most: making films about his homeland.

“You have to find a way around the system,” Panahi said in an interview with NBC News conducted in Farsi at a hotel in Santa Monica, California, and translated into English last fall.

The dissident filmmaker recently said that he plans to return to Iran after the March awards show, even though he faces jail time and another ban. The film is nominated for two Oscars.

Read the full story here.

Ryan Coogler’s unorthodox deal with Warner Bros. for “Sinners” means that he will own the supernatural Southern Gothic film he wrote and directed outright in 2050.

The movie, which has grossed $368 million worldwide, just got a lot more valuable after collecting a record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations.

The Oscar record comes after Coogler’s hard-line negotiating — and skeptical reporting around it, including a Vulture story headlined, “Hollywood Execs Fear Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ Deal Could End the Studio System” — sparked some heated debate. At the time, even Ben Stiller dove into the discourse to defend Coogler’s success.

Ethan Hawke is one of this year’s five nominees for best lead actor for his performance as lyricist Lorenz Hart in Richard Linklater’s “Blue Moon.” Hawke is no stranger to the Academy Awards, having been nominated for his supporting work as a police rookie in “Training Day” and a divorced dad in “Boyhood.”

So, is this the year Hawke finally takes home the Oscar?

Hawke faces stiff competition from Timothée Chalamet, nominated for his role as a narcissistic table tennis player in Josh Safdie’s “Marty Supreme,” and Leonardo DiCaprio, up for his performance as a burned-out leftist revolutionary in Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another.”

Chalamet has momentum right now, fresh off his win at the Golden Globes. But academy voters tend to shy away from honoring actors in the early chapter of their careers; Chalamet is 30. DiCaprio stars in this year’s best picture front-runner, but he’s already won best actor, for “The Revenant.”

If the voters feel like going in another direction, Hawke is waiting in the wings.

• "Sinners": 16
• "One Battle After Another": 13
• "Frankenstein": 9
• "Marty Supreme": 9
• "Sentimental Value": 9
• "Hamnet": 8
• "Bugonia": 4
• "F1": 4
• "The Secret Agent": 4
• "Train Dreams": 4
• "Avatar: Fire and Ash": 2
• "Blue Moon": 2
• "It Was Just an Accident": 2
• "KPop Demon Hunters": 2
• "Sirāt": 2

The academy typically doesn’t like to honor horror films, but this year is a huge exception.

Ryan Coogler’s vampire saga “Sinners” not only led the way with the most nominations this year, but it also set an all-time nomination record with 16.

Combine that with “Marty Supreme” — IYKYK — and you have movies with vampiric themes pulling a total 25 nominations. (“Marty Supreme,” is, of course, not a horror movie.)

The Oscars also got pretty witchy with Amy Madigan’s best supporting actress nomination for horror-comedy “Weapons.”

“Frankenstein” — Dracula’s oldest Hollywood frenemy — scored nine nominations of its own. It was a passion project from Guillermo Del Toro, although the previous Oscar winner was surprisingly left off the best director slate. The competition this year was just too scary.

NEON, an independent distribution company founded only eight years ago, dominated the list of international feature film nominees this morning.

The company took four of the five slots in that category, earning nominations for Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just an Accident,” Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value,” Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “The Secret Agent” and Oliver Laxe’s “Sirāt.”

Notably, a fifth NEON release — Park Chan Wook’s bloody corporate satire “No Other Choice” — got shut out altogether.

NEON has made a name for itself as a savvy curator of art-house and foreign-language cinema. It acquired and released the six most recent winners of the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. It’s a list that features “It Was Just an Accident” — as well as Oscar victors “Anora” and “Parasite.”

In the indie film world, NEON is typically seen as a peer of labels such as A24, Sony Pictures Classics and Focus Features. (Focus is owned by NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News.)

Warner Bros, the studio at the center of a pitched battle over the future of Hollywood between buyers Netflix and Paramount, collected a massive 30 Oscar nominations.

That includes 16 for “Sinners,” 13 for “One Battle After Another" and one for “Weapons.” (If the studio counted “F1," the Apple movie that WB released theatrically to the tune of $631 million, they could have added four more.)

The studio thanked the academy in a post on X "for recognizing our cast and crew."

While "Sinners" and "One Battle After Another" were always expected to dominate the nominations list, we were surprised that some movies that had gained traction during awards season were left out of the race completely.

Surprises:

Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes in, “F1 The Movie."  Courtesy of Warner Bros. Picture

"F1," Apple's film based on the popular racing sport, landed a spot in the coveted best picture category, after going unrecognized at awards shows such as the Globes.

Delroy Lindo, 73, received his first Oscar nomination for his role in "Sinners."

Kate Hudson was nominated in the best actress category for her role in "Song Sung Blue," a musical that follows two performers who form a Neil Diamond tribute band.

With "Marty Supreme," only Timothée Chalamet snagged an acting nomination for his role as the titular character and table tennis player. Neither Gwyneth Paltrow nor Odessa A’zion made the cut in the supporting actress category.

Snubs:

Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba in "Wicked: For Good" in 2025.  Universal Pictures / Everett Collection

"The Testament of Ann Lee," Mona Fastvold’s historical musical drama that follows the rise of religious leader Lee (Amanda Seyfried) and the Shakers, was completely shut out.

So was "Wicked: For Good," part two of the stage-to-screen musical, which also received zero recognition from the academy, despite buzz around stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, as well as new original songs that were made just for the film.

And while Netflix's "Train Dreams" received love from the academy in several categories, including best picture, its star Joel Edgerton did not receive an acting nod.

Also skipped over in the acting categories: "OBAA" breakout star Chase Infiniti and "Hamnet" star Paul Mescal.

The surprise nomination of veteran British actor Delroy Lindo has triggered an outpouring of celebration on social media.

It's the 73-year-old actor's first nod.

The beloved star, nominated for his role in "Blue Moon," sat down with the "TODAY" show this month to reflect on his 40-year acting career.

Ethan Hawke talks ‘Blue Moon,’ reflects on 40-year acting career

06:39

Watch the clip above.

Earlier this week, Netflix held an earnings call in which it confirmed that it has amended its bid for Warner Bros. and HBO to an all-cash offer. Meanwhile, rival Paramount Skydance continues to press for its own bid for the entirety of Warner Bros. Discovery.

The war has continued to hover over the awards season, thus far a big success for WBD, which released both “One Battle After Another” and “Sinners."

From left, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison and Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos. JC Olivera / Kyle Grillot / Getty Images

Last year, NBC News' Rebecca Keegan spoke with voters in Hollywood — including producers, marketers and former studio executives — who said the looming media merger will shape their votes for coming awards shows.

“This deal is an emotional piece of news for a lot of people,” “Silence of the Lambs” producer Edward Saxon, a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, said in December. “There’s worry about consolidation and about the future of theatrical. The feeling is, I don’t get a vote on so much of what’s happening in the industry right now. If I do have a vote on something, I’m going to vote against consolidation.”

"Bugonia"

"F1"

"Frankenstein"

"Hamnet"

"Marty Supreme"

"One Battle After Another"

"The Secret Agent"

"Sentimental Value"

“Sinners”

"Train Dreams"

Chloe Zhao, "Hamnet"

Josh Safdie, "Marty Supreme"

Paul Thomas Anderson, "One Battle After Another"

Joachim Trier, "Sentimental Value"

Ryan Coogler, "Sinners"

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"

Timothee Chalamet, "Marty Supreme"

Leonardo DiCaprio, "One Battle After Another"

Ethan Hawke, "Blue Moon"

Michael B. Jordan, "Sinners"

Wagner Moura, "The Secret Agent"

"Frankenstein"

"Marty Supreme"

"One Battle After Another"

"Sinners"

"Train Dreams"

"Avatar: Fire and Ash"

"F1"

"Jurassic World: Rebirth"

"The Lost Bus"

"Sinners"

"F1"

"Frankenstein"

"One Battle After Another"

"Sinners"

"Sirât"

"Frankenstein"

"Hamnet"

"Marty Supreme"

"One Battle After Another"

"Sinners"

"F1"

"Marty Supreme"

"One Battle After Another"

"Sentimental Value"

"Sinners"

"The Secret Agent" (Brazil)

"It Was Just an Accident" (France)

"Sentimental value" (Norway)

"Sirât" (Spain)

"The Voice of Hind Rajab" (Tunisia)

"Arco"

"Elio"

"KPop Demon Hunters"

"Little Amélie or the Character of Rain"

"Zootopia 2"

"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"

"The Alabama Solution"

"Come See Me In the Good Light"

"Cutting Through Rocks"

"Mr Nobody Against Putin"

"The Perfect Neighbor"

"Diane Warren: Relentless"

"KPop Demon Hunters"

"Sinners"

"Viva Verdi!"

"Train Drerams"

"Avatar: Fire and Ash"

"Frankenstein"

"Hamnet"

"Marty Supreme"

"Sinners"

"Hamnet"

"Marty Supreme"

"One Battle After Another"

"The Secret Agent"

"Sinners"

Benicio Del Toro, "One Battle After Another"

Jacob Elordi, "Frankenstein"

Delroy Lindo, "Sinners"

Sean Penn, "One Battle After Another"

Stellan Skarsgard, "Sentimental Value"

"Blue Moon"

"It Was Just an Accident"

"Marty Supreme"

"Sentimental Value"

"Sinners"

"Bugonia"

"Frankenstein"

"Hamnet"

"One Battle After Another"

"Train Dreams"

"Butterfly"

"Forevergreen"

"The Girl Who Cried Pearls"

"Retirement Plan"

"The Three Sisters"

"Butcher's Stain"

"A Friend of Dorothy"

"Jane Austen's Period Drama"

"The Singers"

"Two People Exchanging Saliva"

"Bugonia"

"Frankenstein"

"Hamnet"

"One Battle After Another"

"Sinners"

"Frankenstein"

"Kokuho"

"Sinners"

"The Smashing Machine"

"The Ugly Stepsister"

Elle Fanning, "Sentimental Value"

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, "Sentimental Value"

Amy Madigan, "Weapons"

Wunmi Mosaku, "Sinners"

Teyana Taylor, "One Battle After Another"

Stay tuned for live coverage, reaction and analysis.

Online fandoms are already showing up on the academy’s YouTube channel ready to root on their Oscar faves, with Brazilian fans of “The Secret Agent” and its star Wagner Moura bringing the most energy to the chat and blanketing the space with Brazilian flags.

The South American country has a history of taking the Oscars to heart: Last year, its extremely online fans helped propel Brazil’s “I’m Still Here” and star Fernanda Torres to international recognition.

“K-Pop Demon Hunters” followers, also typically a busy group online, have far less of a presence in this space, at least. And shoutout to the lone “Sorry, Baby!” stan. We and Julia Roberts salute you.

Haven’t seen all of the buzziest films from this awards season? There are still two months until the Oscars, so you have time!

NBC News compiled a list of a dozen of the top movie contenders this year — and how you can watch them.

Read the full story here.

Oscar voters got some extra homework this awards season. An email obtained by NBC News in November shows that Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences members must confirm that they have watched all the movies nominated in each category to be allowed to vote.

The email provided guidance about what steps the more than 10,000 voting academy members need to take ahead of the final Oscar ballot deadline, March 5.

A screenshot from the email sent to academy members Oct. 30.  Obtained by NBC News

The academy has long required members who vote in certain preliminary rounds, such as those who determine the short list for international films, to confirm that they have watched a group of assigned movies. In April, it revised that policy to note that academy members must watch every Oscar-nominated film in order to vote.

To be eligible to vote, members must watch all five films in each Oscar category and all 10 in the best picture category, the academy said.

Read the full story here.

Fourteen is the magic number to beat if any of today's contenders want to tie the all-time record for most Oscar nominations for a single film.

Just three movies have managed to achieve that feat: "All About Eve" in 1951, "Titanic" in 1998 and "La La Land" in 2017.

Ryan Coogler's "Sinners," which was released by Warner Bros. Studios in April, is the most likely of the batch of viable films today to surpass 14 ... if, of course, it manages to garner nominations in several key categories (including the new casting one).

Some Oscars forecasters have estimated the film could notch at least 13 nominations, including in the best picture, director and original screenplay categories. Whether that inches up to 14, to tie with the other three films, or 15, to break their records, remains to be seen.

For the first time, the Oscars will honor achievements in casting. There hasn't been a new category since 2001, when best animated feature was introduced.

The award will be given to up to two casting directors from the winning film. It’s recognition that many in the industry consider long overdue.

As of today, Gold Derby, an awards prediction site, has ranked "One Battle After Another" as the top contender in the category. "Sinners," another Warner Bros. Discovery film, and Focus Features' "Hamnet" were also high on their list.

At the Critics Choice Awards this month, “Sinners” casting director Francine Maisler took home the award for best casting and ensemble.

“Sinners,” a critical and commercial smash directed by Ryan Coogler (“Black Panther”) starring Michael B. Jordan in a dual role as twin brothers who face off against vampires, could lead the pack of nominees. If the film picks up 14 nominations, it will tie the record for most Oscar nods, a feat achieved by "All About Eve" in 1951, "Titanic" in 1998 and "La La Land" in 2017.

Jessie Buckley in "Hamnet"; Timothée Chalamet in "Marty Supreme"; Michael B. Jordan in "Sinners"; Teyana Taylor in "One Battle After Another."  NBC News; Universal / A24 / WB

But Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another,” a seriocomic portrait of faded political revolutionaries, is going into nominations day with the most momentum. The film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, took home four Golden Globes and won the top prize at the Critics’ Choice Awards this month.

In the best picture field, other possible nominees are: Chloé Zhao’s “Hamnet,” Guillermo del Toro's “Frankenstein,” " Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value,” Josh Safdie’s “Marty Supreme” and Brazilian political thriller "The Secret Agent." "Train Dreams” and “Bugonia,” which have flown more under the awards radar, could also get in the mix.

What's more unclear, however, is whether box office favorites “Wicked: For Good” and “Avatar: Fire and Ash” will make the cut in the competitive top category. The two big-budget films, which were also well-received by critics, are likely to pick up nods in other categories (including original song, sound and visual effects, which they were already shortlisted in by the Academy).

As for actors: Jessie Buckley, who plays William Shakespeare's wife, Agnes, in "Hamnet," is a shoo-in in the best actress category, and Timothée Chalamet is also well-positioned to be nominated for “Marty Supreme," for which he'll likely be pitted against DiCaprio, whom he considers one of his acting heroes and mentors.

The two actors, who we hope are as caffeinated as we are this morning, will announce who picked up nominations in each of the categories.

Pullman starred alongside Amanda Seyfried in Mona Fastvold's buzzy Oscars contender "The Testament of Ann Lee," a historical musical drama that follows the rise of religious leader Lee and the Shakers.

Brooks was a 2024 Oscar nominee for her role as Sofia in the adaptation of "The Color Purple."

This year's nominations will be streamed live on Oscar.com and Oscars.org and across the academy's TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook pages.

They will also air on ABC’s "Good Morning America" and stream on ABC News Live, Disney+ and Hulu.

The NBC News team of live bloggers also be updating NBC News readers with analysis, reaction and more.