HollyWeird: Some Hollywood Firsts in Oscar Nominations

Editor’s Note: Whether on screen or off, Hollywood can always be counted on to keep us entertained. This is especially true when it comes to politics. Join us each week as we shine the spotlight on Tinseltown’s A-listers and their whacky and sometimes inspiring takes on today’s current events.

 2022 Oscar Nominations

The Oscar nominations for the 94th Academy Awards were announced on Feb. 8. This year is a return to normal, at least as far as having an actual host, and a leap into a new way of choosing the best and greatest stars of the silver screen.

Kristen Stewart (Twilight) and Kirsten Dunst (Spiderman) received first-time nominations. But we also see some familiar names on the list, including Steven Spielberg, and some who were upset not to be nominated, such as Lada Gaga.

Best Picture

This year has a full list of ten Best Picture nominees. The top dog (pun intended) in nominations was the film The Power of the Dog with 12 nominations. Dune, which has had bad reviews from fans, received ten.

Apple TV+ has only been in business for two years but still received a best picture nomination for CODA.

Best Picture Nominations

• Belfast

• CODA

• Don’t Look Up

• Drive My Car

• Dune

• King Richard

• Licorice Pizza

• Nightmare Alley

• The Power of the Dog

• West Side Story

 Best Director

Thanks to West Side Story, Spielberg is now the first person to be nominated best director in six different decades. The others include Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), E.T. (1982), Schindler’s List (1994), Saving Private Ryan (1998), Munich (2005), and Lincoln (2012). Spielberg is now tied as the third best director with Billy Wilder, and, among living directors, he is second only to Martin Scorsese.

Jane Campion’s nomination for The Power of the Dog makes her the first woman to earn a second best director nomination. Her first was for The Piano (1993).

Best Director Nominations

• Kenneth Branagh: Belfast

• Ryusuke Hamaguchi: Drive My Car

• Paul Thomas Anderson: Licorice Pizza

• Jane Campion: The Power of the Dog

• Steven Spielberg: West Side Story

 Best Actor

This is the first time since 1981 that there is not a first-time nominee in the best actor category. Instead, Javier Bardem received his fourth; Benedict Cumberbatch and Andrew Garfield each got a second; Will Smith received his third, and Denzel Washington earned his ninth.

Best Actor Nominations

• Javier Bardem: Being the Ricardos

• Benedict Cumberbatch: The Power of the Dog

• Andrew Garfield: tick, tick…BOOM!

• Will Smith: King Richard

• Denzel Washington: The Tragedy of Macbeth

Best Actress

None of the best actress nominees are from the best picture nominations. This hasn’t happened since 2006, when Reese Witherspoon won for Walk the Line.

Best Actress Nominations

• Jessica Chastain: The Eyes of Tammy Faye

• Olivia Colman: The Lost Daughter

• Penelope Cruz: Parallel Mothers

• Nicole Kidman: Being the Ricardos

• Kirsten Stewart: Spencer

Best Supporting Actress

Judi Dench earned her eighth acting nomination, which is more than any other non-American actress has received. She is also the fourth most nominated actress of any nationality, tied with Glenn Close and Geraldine Page. The top actresses in this field are Meryl Streep (21), Katharine Hepburn (12), and Bette Davis (10).

Best Supporting Actress Nominations

• Jessie Buckley: The Lost Daughter

• Ariana DeBose: West Side Story

• Judi Dench: Belfast

• Kirstin Dunst: The Power of the Dog

• Aunjanue Ellis: King Richard

Best Original Song

Diane Warren has earned her 13th Oscar nomination for “Somehow You Do You,” featured in Four Good Days, making her the most nominated songwriter to never win the Oscar so far. This is her fifth consecutive nomination and seventh in the last eight years.

Best Original Song Nominations

• “Be Alive”: King Richard

• “Dos Oruguitas”: Encanto

• “Down to Joy”: Belfast

• “No Time to Die”: No Time to Die

• “Somehow You Do You”: Four Good Days

Best Cinematography

Ari Wegner became only the second woman ever to be nominated in this category for The Power of the Dog. Rachel Morrison was nominated for Mudbound in 2018.

Best Cinematography Nominations

• Dune

• Nightmare Alley

• The Power of the Dog

• The Tragedy of Macbeth

• West Side Story

 Cheers And Jeers

Sometimes, HollyWeird players make headlines for silly or bizarre happenings, so here is a collection of newsworthy doings — honorable and dishonorable — by the tenants of Tinseltown.

 Rudy Giuliani Causes a Stir on The Masked Singer

Former New York City mayor and attorney for Donald Trump Rudy Giuliani has had his fair share of the spotlight, and not all of it good. Now, it is being reported that he made an appearance on The Masked Singer, and when he was “unmasked,” the judges were not too happy.

Robin Thicke and Ken Jeong walked offstage when they found out Giuliani would appear in the American version of the show. However, fellow judges Jenny McCarthy and Nicole Scherzinger stayed and chatted with the former mayor for a bit.

The Seventh Season is titled “The Good, The Bad and The Cuddly,” and Giuliani’s episode will air in March.

Tune in next week to see what else Tinseltown has planned.

~ Read more from Kelli Ballard.