Surprising Best Picture Nominees with Just One Other Oscar Nod!

If a film is nominated for the Best Picture category at the Academy Awards, it often earns numerous other significant nominations in various Oscar categories. This year, for instance, “The Brutalist,” “Wicked,” and “Emilia Pérez” each received over 10 nominations, including their Best Picture nods. Generally, films that win the Best Picture Oscar also garner nominations in multiple categories. However, it’s interesting to consider movies that are only recognized in the Best Picture category and not across other areas – these are the titles that receive most of their recognition solely for the Best Picture nomination.

As a film enthusiast, I’ve noticed an interesting trend over the years: Before 2009, when the Best Picture category was limited to five nominations, it was rare for a movie to only receive one other Oscar nod apart from Best Picture. In fact, no Best Picture contender in the 21st century fit that description before 2009! However, once the number of nominees expanded beyond five, the landscape changed dramatically. Over the last 15 years, numerous Best Picture nominees have only managed to secure one other Oscar nomination.

For instance, this year’s Nickel Boys, while it received recognition in the Best Adapted Screenplay category as well as a Best Picture nod, is not alone among recent Best Picture nominees with a peculiar profile. As you can see from the list below, there have been quite a few oddities in this modern era of filmmaking.

A Serious Man

In the first year the Academy increased the number of Best Picture nominees beyond five, the ceremony saw two films receive only a single Oscar nomination apart from Best Picture. One of these films was Joel and Ethan Coen’s dark comedy “A Serious Man.” Despite Michael Stuhlbarg generating buzz throughout the 2009-2010 award season, the film appeared in just one other category: Best Original Screenplay. This pattern seems to be common for Best Picture nominees that receive recognition in only one other place; it’s crucial for them to excel in either the screenplay or acting categories. A movie with a strong script can often overcome being overlooked elsewhere during the Oscars.

The Blind Side

It was no exaggeration to say that “The Blind Side” was unexpectedly nominated for Best Picture. Despite its massive success at the box office, it garnered mixed reviews from critics right from its release. The film’s divisive reception might explain why it only received an Oscar nomination in one other category. Sandra Bullock received a Best Actress Oscar nod (and ultimately won) for her role, but the movie failed to secure recognition in other Oscar categories. To have any chance of being nominated for Best Picture, a film needs a strong screenplay nomination or a high-profile acting nod like the one Bullock provided. This was evident in “The Blind Side,” directed by John Lee Hancock.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

It’s not surprising that Stephen Daldry’s 2011 film, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close,” received a Best Picture nomination at the 84th Academy Awards because his previous three movies had garnered either Best Director or Best Picture Oscar nods. Interestingly, films like “The Hours” and “The Reader” earned Daldry multiple Oscar nominations in various categories. However, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” only managed one additional Oscar nomination, which was for Best Supporting Actor, despite being a legendary actor Max von Sydor’s second ever nomination (his first being Best Actor for 1989’s “Pelle the Conqueror”).

Selma

In simpler terms, the film “Selma,” directed by Ava DuVernay and released in 2014, was an unusual case among contemporary Best Picture Oscar nominees that only received one additional nomination – for Best Original Song. Other films with a similar number of nominations typically earned recognition in acting or screenplay categories. However, “Selma” was only nominated in the category for Best Original Song, despite being recognized in key categories like Best Director, Best Actor, Best Cinematography, and Best Supporting Actress at other award ceremonies such as the Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, and Independent Spirit Awards. The film’s lack of recognition in numerous Oscar categories sparked a lot of controversy, even inspiring a sketch on “Saturday Night Live” by Kenan Thompson portraying Martin Luther King Jr., where he referenced the snubbing in January 2015.

The Post

During the 2017-2018 award season, it was widely expected that “The Post,” a film directed by Steven Spielberg with Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks in lead roles, would sweep the awards due to its pedigree. However, despite being nominated for Best Picture, “The Post” only won in one category other than Best Picture: Best Actress, with Meryl Streep receiving her customary Oscar nomination. Interestingly, this also meant that Spielberg was not nominated for Best Director, a category that had previously excluded his Best Picture-nominated films such as “Jaws,” “War Horse,” and “The Color Purple.

Women Talking

Between 2015 and 2023, no Oscar ceremony had a Best Picture nominee with only one additional nomination, except for the one that featured The Post. This unique streak ended in 2023 with Sarah Polley’s film Women Talking, which was only recognized in the Best Adapted Screenplay category. Despite boasting powerful performances from Claire Foy, Rooney Mara, and Jessie Buckley, who could have been nominated for acting awards, the film only received recognition in two Oscar categories. Interestingly, Women Talking went on to win the Best Adapted Screenplay award at the Oscars, yet it failed to secure nominations in more categories, suggesting a strong emotional impact behind the film but perhaps not enough widespread acclaim to secure additional nominations.

Past Lives

In a remarkable career move, Celine Song stepped into directing full-length films with her 2023 directorial debut, “Past Lives“. This film made waves at the Sundance Film Festival that year and was highly anticipated for the Oscars. Despite not receiving any nominations for its lead actors Greta Lee and Teo Yoo, it did secure a spot in the Best Picture category. However, it only garnered additional Oscar recognition in the Best Original Screenplay category. This recognition, nonetheless, established Celine Song as an Oscar-nominated screenwriter for her outstanding work on “Past Lives“.

Nickel Boys

At the 97th Academy Awards, it’s notable that for the third year in a row, a film nominated for Best Picture has been appreciated in only one other category. This year’s exception is “Nickel Boys,” directed by RaMell Ross and based on Colson Whitehead’s 2019 novel. The movie had potential to excel in numerous other Oscar categories. Particularly surprising was its omission from the Best Cinematography category, given Jomo Fray’s innovative visuals that could have received recognition at this year’s ceremony. Furthermore, both Ethan Herisse and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor delivered performances that seemed worthy of nominations. In the end, “Nickel Boys” was only recognized for Best Adapted Screenplay (awarded to Ross and Joslyn Barnes), in addition to its Best Picture nomination.

Past Lives is now streaming on Hulu, Nickel Boys is now playing in theaters everywhere.

2025-01-24 20:40