It’s been a season of drug lords, witches, Russian oligarchs, and questionable medical procedures that promise to keep you young—and we’re not even talking about the awards show after parties yet. This morning, the Academy recruited Bowen Yang and Rachel Sennott to announce the 2025 Academy Awards nominations. As always, there were some snubs and surprises. After what felt like a sleepy start, this has turned into a particularly competitive Oscars season, especially in the acting categories.
But first, the main contenders: cartel musical Emilia Pérez led the pack by cinching 13 nods overall (the all-time record for a single film is 14 nominations, earned only by Titanic, All About Eve, and La La Land). Brady Corbet’s three-and-a-half-hour-long drama The Brutalist and Jon M. Chu’s blockbuster musical Wicked: Part One shared second place, with both films’ leading stars (Adrien Brody, Cynthia Erivo, and Ariana Grande) nominated in the major acting categories. The Demi Moore-starring The Substance, Sean Baker’s Anora, Dune: Part Two, Nickel Boys, and I’m Still Here rounded out the coveted Best Picture category.
Most of those nominations were expected, but surprising additions and glaring omissions otherwise shook up the race. Below, read on for the biggest snubs and surprises of the 2025 Oscar nominations:
Snub: Daniel Craig
007 alum Daniel Craig took a big swing with his leading role in Luca Guadagnino’s adaptation of William S. Burrough’s Queer, but for Oscars voters, it was a risk that ultimately didn’t pay off. He’ll have to settle for his Golden Globes, Critics Choice, and SAG Awards nominations.
Snub: Challengers
Guadagnino’s other film, the sexy Zendaya-starring tennis drama Challengers, received no love at all—not even for Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s moody original score or Justin Kuritzkes’s original screenplay.
Surprise: Nickel Boys
RaMell Ross’s innovative and moving adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s novel has strong support from professional critics but hasn’t received much fanfare elsewhere. Cinching a Best Picture nomination is a pleasant surprise, given that Nickel Boys hasn’t yet made much of a splash at the box office.
Sing Sing, meanwhile, got a bit more fanfare but still not enough to get its expected Best Picture nod (you think it’d be a bit more appealing to Oscars voters, given that the film is a literal celebration of the importance of acting). At least its lead, Colman Domingo, was recognized in the Best Actor category (nothing though for his formerly incarcerated co-star Clarence Maclin, who made his feature film debut playing a younger version of himself).
Snub: Denzel Washington
Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II had its faults, but Denzel Washington’s turn as the charismatic Macrinus wasn’t one of them!
Surprise: Monica Barbaro
It was always expected that Timothée Chalamet would be recognized for his role as Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown biopic (though Mangold’s Best Director nod definitely falls into the ‘surprise’ category). Monica Barbaro was less of a lock, but it turns out the Academy loved her turn as Joan Baez, singing and all, as much as audiences did.
Snub: Selena Gomez
Despite nabbing two Golden Globes nominations this year (for Only Murders in the Building and Emilia Pérez), Gomez was shut out of the Oscars. Her performance in Emilia Pérez—in which she spoke and sang in both English and Spanish—has been polarizing, but the film has been a hit with awards voters all season. Gomez, however, still has the Best Actress award at Cannes, which she shared with her co-stars.
Snub: Nicole Kidman
Like Craig, Nicole Kidman took a risk with Babygirl, director Halina Reijn’s feminist take on the erotic thriller. The film required extreme vulnerability in its depiction of an inappropriate workplace relationship between a CEO (Kidman) and an intern (Harris Dickinson). Kidman’s dedication to the role wasn’t enough for Oscars voters, but to be fair, she was up against a stacked race this year.
Surprise: The Apprentice
When Sebastian Stan shared that he wasn’t able to participate in Variety’s Actors on Actors series because no other thespian wanted to engage with him in a film about our current president, it seemed like The Apprentice was doomed. It turns out Oscars voters didn’t feel the same way, nominating both Stan (who plays Trump) and Succession star Jeremy Strong (Roy Cohn) in the Best Lead and Supporting Actor categories, respectively.
Snub: Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie put her all into portraying opera legend Maria Callas, dedicating seven months to intensive vocal training in order to properly sing in the Pablo Larraín film. Despite that—and biopics generally being catnip for Oscars voters—she was shut out of this year’s awards.
Surprise: Fernanda Torres
Though the Brazilian actress nabbed a surprise win at the Golden Globes, Fernanda Torres was in no way a lock for a Best Actress nod (neither was I’m Still Here for Best Picture, but the drama was nominated for that, too).
Snub: The Last Showgirl (Pamela Anderson and Jamie Lee Curtis)
Gia Coppola’s beautifully shot drama about a failing Las Vegas revue proved to be a career-high for Pamela Anderson, earning her the kind of late-in-life critical acclaim that can only be called a comeback. Despite getting a Golden Globe nod for her role as the earnest, slightly delusional showgirl Salley, Anderson was snubbed by Oscars voters (as was her co-star Jamie Lee Curtis, who recently won for her role in Everything Everywhere All At Once).
Surprise: Karla Sofía Gascón
OK, it’s not really a surprise that Karla Sofía Gascón was nominated for her role as a reformed cartel boss in Emilia Pérez—especially given how much the Academy loved the film overall—but her Best Actress nod is noteworthy for its history-making nature: with it, she becomes the first transgender woman to be nominated in any acting category.
The Oscars ceremony will take place on Sunday, March 2, at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater at 4 pm PT/7 pm ET and airing on ABC. Conan O’Brien will be hosting for the first time.
