Oscar shortlists unveiled across 12 categories, with ‘Sinners’ and ‘Wicked: For Good’ on top

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has revealed shortlists across 12 categories, with Warner Bros' "Sinners" and Universal's "Wicked: For Good" emerging as the day's biggest winners, securing eight mentions apiece.

Academy members from multiple branches cast votes in preliminary rounds covering animated short film, documentary feature, documentary short, international feature, live action short, makeup and hairstyling, original score, original song, sound and visual effects. This year introduced two new shortlist categories: achievement in casting and best cinematography.

Ryan Coogler's "Sinners" proved to be one of the standout performers, earning spots in seven categories including casting, cinematography, makeup and hairstyling, sound, visual effects, plus two original song placements.

"Wicked: For Good" matched that performance with shortlist appearances in casting, cinematography, makeup and hairstyling, original score, sound, visual effects and two Stephen Schwartz original songs. The cinematography recognition marked a significant milestone for Alice Brooks, an accomplished cinematographer still awaiting her first Oscar nomination.

Netflix's "Frankenstein" also delivered a robust showing with six mentions spanning casting, cinematography, makeup and hairstyling, original score, sound and visual effects.

The international feature category yielded few shocks, though distributor Neon achieved a record five placements among the 15 available positions. Switzerland's "Late Shift" unexpectedly claimed a spot over the United Kingdom's "My Father's Shadow," despite the latter's recent Gotham Award triumph for lead actor Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù.

The Academy's first-ever casting category shortlist features nine films with female casting directors, marking meaningful progress for industry representation.

Additional multi-category standouts included "Marty Supreme", "One Battle After Another", "Sentimental Value", and international contender "Sirât", each showcasing technical excellence across multiple disciplines.

Female directors achieved notable representation in this year's selections: seven of the 15 international feature films are directed by women, while 10 of the 15 documentary feature contenders have female filmmakers at the helm.

Final nominations for the shortlisted categories will be determined in the coming weeks. Oscar voting begins on January 12 and concludes on January 16, 2026. Nominations will be revealed on January 22, 2026.

Comedian Conan O'Brien will host the 98th Academy Awards, scheduled for March 15, 2026.

Casting

"Frankenstein" (Netflix) — Robin D. Cook

"Hamnet" (Focus Features) — Nina Gold

"Marty Supreme" (A24) — Jennifer Venditti

"One Battle after Another" (Warner Bros) — Cassandra Kulukundis

"The Secret Agent" (Neon) — Gabriel Domingues

"Sentimental Value" (Neon) — Yngvill Kolset Haga and Avy Kaufman

"Sinners" (Warner Bros) — Francine Maisler

"Sirât" (Neon) — Nadia Acimi, Luis Bertolo and Erika Boulic

"Weapons" (Warner Bros) — Allison Jones

"Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures) — Tiffany Little Canfield and Bernard Telsey

Cinematography

"Ballad of a Small Player" (Netflix) — James Friend

"Bugonia" (Focus Features) — Robbie Ryan

"Die My Love" (Mubi) — Seamus McGarvey

"F1" (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros) — Claudio Miranda

"Frankenstein" (Netflix) — Dan Laustsen

"Hamnet" (Focus Features) — Łukasz Żal

"Marty Supreme" (A24) — Darius Khondji

"Nouvelle Vague" (Netflix) — David Chambille

"One Battle after Another" (Warner Bros) — Michael Bauman

"Sentimental Value" (Neon) — Kasper Tuxen

"Sinners" (Warner Bros) — Autumn Durald Arkapaw

"Sirât" (Neon) — Mauro Herce

"Song Sung Blue" (Focus Features) — Amy Vincent

"Sound of Falling" (Mubi) — Fabian Gamper

"Train Dreams" (Netflix) — Adolpho Veloso

"Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures) — Alice Brooks

Documentary feature

"The Alabama Solution" (HBO Documentary Films)

"Apocalypse in the Tropics" (Netflix)

"Coexistence, My Ass!" (mTuckman Media)

"Come See Me in the Good Light" (Apple Original Films)

"Cover-Up" (Netflix)

"Cutting through Rocks" (Madman Entertainment)

"Folktales" (Magnolia Pictures)

"Holding Liat" (Self-Distributed)

"Mr. Nobody against Putin" (Bantam Film)

"Mistress Dispeller" (Oscilloscope Laboratories)

"My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 – Last Air in Moscow" (Argot Pictures)

"The Perfect Neighbor" (Netflix)

"Seeds" (Interior Films)

"2000 Meters to Andriivka" (PBS)

"Yanuni" (Self-Distributed)

Documentary short film

"All the Empty Rooms" (Netflix) — dir. Joshua Seftel

"All the Walls Came Down" (Interloper Films) — dir. Ondi Timoner

"Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud" (HBO Documentary Films) — dir. Brent Renaud and Craig Renaud

"Bad Hostage" (The Film Fund) — dir. Mimi Wilcox

"Cashing Out" (The New Yorker Magazine) — dir. Matt Nadel

"Chasing Time" (Exposure Labs) — dir Sarah Keo and Jeff Orlowski-Yang

"Children No More: Were and Are Gone" (U.S. Distributor TBD) — dir Hilla Medalia

"Classroom 4" (Eden Wurmfeld Films) — dir Eden Wurmfeld

"The Devil is Busy" (HBO Documentary Films) — dir. Geeta Gand

"Heartbeat" (Pine House Film)

"Last Days on Lake Trinity"

"On Healing Land, Birds Perch"

"Perfectly a Strangeness"

"Rovina's Choice"

"We Were the Scenery"

International feature

Argentina, "Belén" (Amazon MGM Studios)

Brazil, "The Secret Agent" (Neon)

France, "It Was Just an Accident" (Neon)

Germany, "Sound of Falling" (Mubi)

India, "Homebound" (U.S. Distribution TBD)

Iraq, "The President's Cake" (Sony Pictures Classics)

Japan, "Kokuho" (Toho)

Jordan, "All That's Left of You" (Watermelon Pictures)

Norway, "Sentimental Value" (Neon)

Palestine, "Palestine 36" (Watermelon Pictures)

South Korea, "No Other Choice" (Neon)

Spain, "Sirât" (Neon)

Switzerland, "Late Shift" (Music Box Films)

Taiwan, "Left-Handed Girl" (Netflix)

Tunisia, "The Voice of Hind Rajab" (Willa)

Makeup and hairstyling

"The Alto Knights" (Warner Bros)

"Frankenstein" (Netflix)

"Kokuho" (Toho)

"Marty Supreme" (A24)

"Nuremberg" (Sony Pictures Classics)

"One Battle after Another" (Warner Bros)

"Sinners" (Warner Bros)

"The Smashing Machine" (A24)

"The Ugly Stepsister" (IFC)

"Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures)

Original score

"Avatar: Fire and Ash" (20th Century Studios) — Simon Franglen

"Bugonia" (Focus Features) — Jerskin Fendrix

"Captain America: Brave New World" (Marvel Studios) — Laura Karpman

"Diane Warren: Relentless" (Greenwich Entertainment) — Lesley Barber

"F1" (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros) — Hans Zimmer

"Frankenstein" (Netflix) — Alexandre Desplat

"Hamnet" (Focus Features) — Max Richter

"Hedda" (Amazon MGM Studios) — Hildur Guðnadóttir

"A House of Dynamite" (Netflix) — Volker Bertelmann

"Jay Kelly" (Netflix) — Nicholas Britell

"Marty Supreme" (A24) — Daniel Lopatin

"Nuremberg" (Sony Pictures Classics) — Brian Tyler

"One Battle after Another" (Warner Bros) — Jonny Greenwood

"Sinners" (Warner Bros) — Ludwig Göransson

"Sirât" (Neon) — Kangding Ray

"Train Dreams" (Netflix) — Bryce Dessner

"Tron: Ares" (20th Century Studios) — Nine Inch Nails

"Truth and Treason" (Angel) — Aaron Zigman

"Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery" (Netflix) — Nathan Johnson

"Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures) — John Powell and Stephen Schwartz

Original song 

"As Alive As You Need Me To Be" from "Tron: Ares" (20th Century Studios) — Nine Inch Nails

"Dear Me" from "Diane Warren: Relentless" (Greenwich Entertainment) — Diane Warren

"Dream As One" from "Avatar: Fire and Ash" — Miley Cyrus, Simon Franglen, Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt

"Drive" from "F1" (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros) — John Mayer, Ed Sheeran and Blake Slatkin

"Dying To Live" from "Billy Idol Should Be Dead" (Fremantle) — Tommy English, Billy Idol, Joe Janiak, J. Ralph and Steve Stevens

"The Girl In The Bubble" from "Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures) — Stephen Schwartz

"Golden" from "KPop Demon Hunters" (Netflix) — EJAE and Mark Sonnenblick

"Highest 2 Lowest" from "Highest 2 Lowest" (A24/Apple Original Films) — Aiyana Lee Anderson and Nicole Daciana Anderson

"I Lied To You" from "Sinners" (Warner Bros) — Ludwig Göransson and Raphael Saadiq

"Last Time (I Seen the Sun)" from "Sinners" (Warner Bros) — Miles Caton, Ludwig Göransson and Alice Smith

"No Place Like Home" from "Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures) — Stephen Schwartz

"Our Love" from "The Ballad of Wallis Island" (Focus Features) — Tom Basdan

"Salt Then Sour Then Sweet" from "Come See Me in the Good Light" (Apple Original Films) — Sara Bareilles, Brandi Carlile and Andrea Gibson

"Sweet Dreams Of Joy" from "Viva Verdi!" (U.S. Distribution TBD) — Nicholas Pike

"Train Dreams" from "Train Dreams" (Netflix) — Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner

Animated short film

"Autokar" (Miyu Distribution) — dir Sylwia Szkiladz

"Butterfly" (Sacrebleu Productions) — dir. Florence Miailhe

"Cardboard" (Locksmith Animation) — dir. J.P. Vine

"Éiru" (GKids) — dir. Giovanna Ferrari

"Forevergreen" (U.S. Distributor TBD) — Nathan Engelhardt and Jeremy Spears

"The Girl Who Cried Pearls" (National Film Board of Canada) — dir. Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski

"Hurikán" (AEON Production) — dir. Jan Saska

"I Died in Irpin" (MAUR Film) — dir. Anastasia Falileieva

"The Night Boots" (Am Stram Gram) — dir. Pierre-Luc Granjon

"Playing God" (Autour de Minuit Productions) — dir. Matteo Burani

"The Quinta's Ghost" (Illusorium Films) — dir. James A. Castillo

"Retirement Plan" (Antidote Films) — dir. John Kelly

"The Shyness of Trees" (Gobelins, l'Ecole de l'Image) — dir. Sofiia Chuikovska, Loïck Du Plessis D'Argentré, Lina Han, Simin He, Jiaxin Huang, Maud Le Bras, Bingqing Shu

"Snow Bear" (Aaron Blaise Studios) — dir. Aaron Blaise

"The Three Sisters" (U.S. Distributor TBD) — dir. Timur Kognov

Live action short film 

"Ado" (US Distribution TBD)

"Amarela" (MyMama Entertainment)

"Beyond Silence" (PRPL)

"The Boy with White Skin" (Manifest)

"Butcher's Stain" (US Distribution TBD)

"Butterfly on a Wheel" (Snow Dance Entertainment)

"Dad's Not Home" (Szkoła Filmowa)

"Extremist" (The New Yorker)

"A Friend of Dorothy" (Filthy Gorgeous Productions)

"Jane Austen's Period Drama" (US Distribution TBD)

"Pantyhose" (Harmony Concepts)

"The Pearl Comb" (Dunninger Films)

"Rock, Paper, Scissors" (National Film and Television School)

"The Singers" (Highway West Entertainment)

"Two People Exchanging Saliva" (The New Yorker)

Sound

"Avatar: Fire and Ash" (20th Century Studios)

"F1" (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros)

"Frankenstein" (Netflix)

"Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning" (Paramount Pictures)

"One Battle after Another" (Warner Bros)

"Sinners" (Warner Bros)

"Sirât" (Neon)

"Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere" (20th Century Studios)

"Superman" (Warner Bros.)

"Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures)

Visual effects

"Avatar: Fire and Ash" (20th Century Studios)

"The Electric State" (Netflix)

"F1" (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros)

"Frankenstein" (Netflix)

"Jurassic World Rebirth" (Universal Pictures)

"The Lost Bus" (Apple Original Films)

"Sinners" (Warner Bros)

"Superman" (DC Studios)

"Tron: Ares" (20th Century Studios)

"Wicked: For Good" (Universal Pictures)