The Oscar Shortlists 2026 have been unveiled by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences across 12 categories for the 98th Academy Awards, offering the first clear outline of how this year’s Oscar race is shaping up. Determined through preliminary voting by individual Academy branches, the Academy Awards shortlists narrow hundreds of eligible films into focused fields that will now compete for final nominations ahead of voting in January.
This year’s selections reveal a race driven less by traditional awards-season momentum and more by technical precision, global representation, and long-overdue institutional change. Leading the field are Warner Bros.’ Sinners and Universal’s Wicked: For Good, which emerged as the most widely recognised films of the day, each earning eight shortlist mentions across a range of categories.
Ryan Coogler’s Sinners has established itself as one of the season’s most formidable contenders, demonstrating unusual breadth for a film that initially entered the conversation through genre framing. Its shortlist appearances span casting, cinematography, makeup and hairstyling, sound, visual effects, and two original song entries, signalling deep support across multiple Academy branches. The film’s strength lies not in dominance of a single category but in its consistent recognition across craft disciplines, positioning it as a technically ambitious work with serious awards intent and intensifying the Sinners Oscar buzz.
Matching that momentum is Wicked: For Good, which similarly landed eight mentions. The Universal musical secured placements in casting, cinematography, makeup and hairstyling, original score, sound, visual effects, and two original songs by Stephen Schwartz. The film’s technical recognition underscores how successfully it has translated a beloved stage property into cinematic form, particularly in music and production-driven categories where the Academy has historically been selective with musicals, firmly placing it in the Wicked For Good Oscars conversation.
Beyond the headline leaders, this year’s shortlists point to a broader shift in how Oscar campaigns are taking shape. Films such as Netflix’s Frankenstein, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, Sentimental Value, and the international contender Sirât all posted strong multi-category showings, particularly in technical branches. Rather than building awards narratives solely through acting or directing recognition, many of this year’s contenders are establishing credibility through the Oscar craft categories, allowing below-the-line recognition to set the tone of the race.
One of the most significant developments this year is the introduction of the Academy’s newest award: achievement in casting. Making its debut at the 98th Oscars, the category arrives with a shortlist that immediately reflects meaningful progress. Of the 10 shortlisted films, nine feature female casting directors, marking a notable milestone in an industry role that has long shaped performances while remaining largely unrecognised by the Academy. The shortlist blends presumed Best Picture contenders such as Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, Sentimental Value, and Sinners with international selections like Brazil’s The Secret Agent and Spain’s Sirât, alongside genre fare such as Weapons. In its very first year, the casting category has signalled both artistic ambition and an expanded understanding of authorship in filmmaking.
Cinematography, another category undergoing quiet evolution, also stood out this year. For the first time, the branch opted for an expanded shortlist of 16 films before narrowing the field to final nominees. Among those shortlisted are three women cinematographers — Alice Brooks (Wicked: For Good), Autumn Durald Arkapaw (Sinners), and Amy Vincent (Song Sung Blue). While no woman has yet won the Oscar for cinematography, the presence of multiple female DPs on the shortlist reflects a slow but meaningful broadening of the Academy’s visual canon. Alongside them are established names such as Dan Laustsen (Frankenstein), Darius Khondji (Marty Supreme), and Łukasz Żal (Hamnet), reinforcing the category’s blend of legacy and emerging voices.
India on the Global Stage: Homebound Earns International Feature Shortlist
Among the 15 films shortlisted for International Feature Film is India’s Homebound, securing a place on the Oscars International Feature shortlist and marking a significant moment of visibility for Indian cinema on the global awards stage. Selected from a pool of 86 eligible submissions worldwide, the Homebound Oscar shortlist inclusion places the film within one of the Academy’s most competitive and unpredictable categories.
While the shortlist does not guarantee a final nomination, it represents a crucial threshold — one that brings international exposure, industry attention, and long-term cultural value. This year’s international field is notably strong, dominated by distributors with deep awards experience, making Homebound’s presence particularly meaningful. Its selection situates Indian cinema within a diverse lineup that balances established auteurs with emerging voices, reaffirming the Academy’s growing engagement with non-English-language storytelling.
The International Feature category itself reflects a carefully calibrated global spread. Distributor Neon emerged as the dominant force, securing five of the 15 shortlist slots with The Secret Agent, Sirât, It Was Just an Accident, Sentimental Value, and No Other Choice. Switzerland’s Late Shift proved to be one of the category’s few surprises, edging out the United Kingdom’s My Father’s Shadow despite the latter’s recent Gotham Award recognition. Netflix (Left-Handed Girl) and Amazon MGM Studios (Belén) also maintained a competitive presence, while Watermelon Pictures’ dual entries from Jordan and Palestine underscored the category’s continued expansion into underrepresented regions.
In the music categories, the field narrowed considerably. Original Score saw just 135 eligible submissions, the lowest number in a decade, resulting in a tightly curated shortlist. Ludwig Göransson (Sinners), Jonny Greenwood (One Battle After Another), Hildur Guðnadóttir (Hedda), Hans Zimmer (F1), and Alexandre Desplat (Frankenstein) were among the prominent names recognised. Several notable omissions — including Michael Giacchino’s work on Zootopia 2 — highlighted the unpredictability of the branch’s selections this year.
Original Song followed a similar pattern, with only 68 eligible entries. Stephen Schwartz achieved a rare double placement for Wicked: For Good, while Sinners also secured two shortlisted songs. High-profile contributors such as Nine Inch Nails, Miley Cyrus, and Diane Warren shared space with more intimate, indie-driven compositions, reflecting a wide tonal spectrum within a tightly controlled field.
Technical categories continued to showcase diversity in scale and approach. Makeup and hairstyling emerged as one of the most open races, blending blockbuster titles with independent and international fare. Sound balanced spectacle-heavy entries like Avatar: Fire and Ash and F1 with restrained, atmospheric work from films such as Sirât. Visual effects, while anchored by expected heavyweights, also made room for subtler digital craftsmanship, indicating a broader definition of technical excellence.
Short-form categories and documentaries provided quieter but equally telling signals. Three Student Academy Award–winning films from 2025 advanced to the shortlist, while the documentary branches demonstrated openness toward self-distributed and politically engaged works, favouring urgency and perspective over scale.
Read the full list of Oscar Shortlists 2026
Taken together, the 98th Oscar shortlists reveal a season defined by craft, global reach, and gradual institutional change. As final voting approaches — with nominations set to be announced on January 22 and the ceremony scheduled for March 15, hosted by Conan O’Brien — the contours of the race are already clear. As the Oscar Shortlists 2026 move the season forward, this is a year where technical mastery, thoughtful casting, and international storytelling are shaping the path long before the red carpet is rolled out.
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