Nominations for the 94th annual Academy Awards were revealed on Tuesday.
Tracee Ellis Ross and Leslie Jordan announced the nominees and projects via live stream across the Oscar’s official YouTube, Twitter, and website. While the hosts for the nominations reveal brought their signature comedic flair to the virtual stage, there’s still no word yet on who could potentially host this year’s awards ceremony next month.
Despite that, this year’s nominees were nothing short of surprising (and I mean that both positively and negatively. We’ll get into it later). And because y’all know how we like to get down over this way—let’s get into the Blackity-black Oscar nominees!
Leading the pack was King Richard, which walked away with six nominations including: Will Smith for Best Performance by an Actor in a Lead Role, Aunjanue Ellis for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role, Original Screenplay, Film Editing, Original Song for “Be Alive” by Beyoncé, and Best Picture.
The Tragedy of Macbeth followed close behind, earning nominations in the categories of: Best Performance by a Lead Actor (Denzel Washington), Cinematography, and Production Design.
On the documentary front, Questlove’s Summer of Soul (...Or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) was nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Congratulations are also due to the Shaquille O’Neal executive-produced project, The Queen of Basketball, which earned the nomination for Best Documentary Short Subject, as well.
Additionally, congrats are in order for West Side Story’s Ariana DeBose, who earned a nom for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Coming 2 America, which was nominated for Best Makeup and Hairstyling as well.
But wait—there’s more!
Remember how I told you I was positively and negatively surprised at this list? Well, you know I couldn’t wrap this list without explaining why.
There are snubs out the wazoo and it’s upsetting to me and my ancestors! Firstly, let’s get into the fact that neither Tessa Thompson nor Ruth Negga were recognized for either Best Actress or Best Supporting Actress for their phenomenal work in Passing. Secondly, let’s also get into the fact that Mahershala “Give Him All the Things” Ali didn’t get a nom for Best Actor in a Lead Role for his dual-role in Swan Song. The man played two different, distinct versions of himself and it was his first lead role. Are you kidding me??!
Thirdly (and finally), I have a really hard time believing that over 100 voting members of The Academy saw The Harder They Fall (and its STACKED AF cast) and thought: ‘We’re going to pay it dust.’ But that’s exactly what they did. I’m gonna go drink my sorrows away in the spittoon while I process this all because these snubs are perplexing, to say the least.
At any rate, be sure to set your DVRs for the 94th annual Academy Awards, airing live from the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland on Sunday, March 27 at 8p.m. ET only on ABC.
For the full list of nominees, head on over to oscars.org.