Academy Awards 2026 / Why the First Ever Casting Award Matters

This Sunday 15th March, for the first time in the history of the Academy Awards, casting will finally be recognised as its own category. Beginning in 2026 for films released in 2025, the industry will award an Oscar for Best Casting. It might sound like a small change, but for the hard-working teams who build the ensembles that bring stories to life, this moment is long overdue.

The nominees are:
• Hamnet (Nina Gold)
• Marty Supreme (Jennifer Venditti)
• One Battle after Another (Cassandra Kulukundis)
• The Secret Agent (Gabriel Domingues)
• Sinners (Francine Maisler)

Casting Is the Foundation of Every Performance
Roles you see on screen begin long before the camera rolls. They often start with a casting director asking questions such as:

• Who is the right actor for this role?

• Who brings the unexpected?

• Who elevates the story?

Casting directors shape the emotional core of a project. They discover talent, build ensembles, and often take risks on actors who aren’t yet household names.

Think about some of of your favourite screen performances. Behind them, there is often a casting team that saw something before the world did. For actors, that relationship is fundamental, and a casting director is often the first advocate for your work.

Recognition That Has Been Decades in the Making
The push for casting recognition has been led for years by organisations like the Casting Society and the Casting Directors Guild. Their argument has always been simple. Casting is not administrative. It is creative authorship. The decision by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to add a casting Oscar signals a broader shift in how the industry understands storytelling. Assembling and encouraging performances that move an audience is a craft.

What This Means for Actors
For actors, this recognition also matters. It acknowledges that the casting process itself is a creative collaboration. It highlights the professionals who champion new voices and diverse talent. And it brings visibility to the work of casting teams who have always been central to the industry, even if they weren’t always celebrated publicly. For emerging actors, it also reinforces something many already know: casting directors are your partners, not gatekeepers. When casting is valued, actors benefit.

Why This Moment Matters Now
Film and television are becoming more global than ever. Productions increasingly look beyond traditional talent hubs and into thriving creative communities, including Ireland. Recognising casting at the highest level encourages thoughtful, ambitious casting decisions. It encourages discovery, and that discovery is where many careers begin.

A Win for the Entire Creative Ecosystem
Ultimately, the introduction of a casting award acknowledges that performances don’t happen in isolation. They emerge from a network of creative collaborators - directors, writers, producers, and the casting professionals who bring the right actors into the room. For actors, that recognition feels personal. Because every great performance starts with someone saying: “Let’s bring them in.”
 

Academy Award Nominations 2026

Actor in a Leading Role
• Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme)
• Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle after Another)
• Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon)
• Michael B. Jordan (Sinners)
• Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent)

Actor in a Supporting Role
• Benicio Del Toro (One Battle after Another)
• Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein)
• Delroy Lindo (Sinners)
• Sean Penn (One Battle after Another)
• Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value)

Actress in a Leading Role
• Jessie Buckley (Hamnet)
• Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I'd Kick You)
• Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue)
• Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value)
• Emma Stone (Bugonia)

Actress in a Supporting Role
• Elle Fanning (Sentimental Value)
• Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value)
• Amy Madigan (Weapons)
• Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners)
• Teyana Taylor (One Battle after Another)

Animated Feature Film
• Arco (Ugo Bienvenu, Félix de Givry, Sophie Mas and Natalie Portman)
• Elio (Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina and Mary Alice Drumm)
• KPop Demon Hunters (Maggie Kang, Chris Appelhans and Michelle L.M. Wong)
• Little Amélie or the Character of Rain (Maïlys Vallade, Liane-Cho Han, Nidia Santiago and Henri Magalon)
• Zootopia 2 (Jared Bush, Byron Howard and Yvett Merino)

Animated Short Film
• Butterfly (Florence Miailhe and Ron Dyens)
• Forevergreen (Nathan Engelhardt and Jeremy Spears)
• The Girl Who Cried Pearls (Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski)
• Retirement Plan (John Kelly and Andrew Freedman)
• The Three Sisters (Konstantin Bronzit)

Casting
• Hamnet (Nina Gold)
• Marty Supreme (Jennifer Venditti)
• One Battle after Another (Cassandra Kulukundis)
• The Secret Agent (Gabriel Domingues)
• Sinners (Francine Maisler)

Cinematography
• Frankenstein (Dan Laustsen)
• Marty Supreme (Darius Khondji)
• One Battle after Another (Michael Bauman)
• Sinners (Autumn Durald Arkapaw)
• Train Dreams (Adolpho Veloso)

Costume Design
• Avatar: Fire and Ash (Deborah L. Scott)
• Frankenstein (Kate Hawley)
• Hamnet (Malgosia Turzanska)
• Marty Supreme (Miyako Bellizzi)
• Sinners (Ruth E. Carter)

Directing
• Hamnet (Chloé Zhao)
• Marty Supreme (Josh Safdie)
• One Battle after Another (Paul Thomas Anderson)
• Sentimental Value (Joachim Trier)
• Sinners (Ryan Coogler)

Documentary Feature Film
• The Alabama Solution (Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman)
• Come See Me in the Good Light (Ryan White, Jessica Hargrave, Tig Notaro and Stef Willen)
• Cutting through Rocks (Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni)
• Mr. Nobody against Putin (David Borenstein, Pavel Talankin, Helle Faber and Alžb?ta Karásková)
• The Perfect Neighbor (Geeta Gandbhir, Alisa Payne, Nikon Kwantu and Sam Bisbee)

Documentary Short Film
• All the Empty Rooms (Joshua Seftel and Conall Jones)
• Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud (Craig Renaud and Juan Arredondo)
• Children No More: "Were and Are Gone" (Hilla Medalia and Sheila Nevins)
• The Devil Is Busy (Christalyn Hampton and Geeta Gandbhir)
• Perfectly a Strangeness (Alison McAlpine)

Film Editing
• F1 (Stephen Mirrione)
• Marty Supreme (Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie)
• One Battle after Another (Andy Jurgensen)
• Sentimental Value (Olivier Bugge Coutté)
• Sinners (Michael P. Shawver)

International Feature Film
• Brazil - The Secret Agent
• France - It Was Just an Accident
• Norway - Sentimental Value
• Spain - Sir?t
• Tunisia - The Voice of Hind Rajab

Live Action Short Film
• Butcher's Stain (Meyer Levinson-Blount and Oron Caspi)
• A Friend of Dorothy (Lee Knight and James Dean)
• Jane Austen's Period Drama (Julia Aks and Steve Pinder)
• The Singers (Sam A. Davis and Jack Piatt)
• Two People Exchanging Saliva (Alexandre Singh and Natalie Musteata)

Makeup and Hairstyling
• Frankenstein (Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel and Cliona Furey)
• Kokuho (Kyoko Toyokawa, Naomi Hibino and Tadashi Nishimatsu)
• Sinners (Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine and Shunika Terry)
• The Smashing Machine (Kazu Hiro, Glen Griffin and Bjoern Rehbein)
• The Ugly Stepsister (Thomas Foldberg and Anne Cathrine Sauerberg)

Music (Original Score)
• Bugonia (Jerskin Fendrix)
• Frankenstein (Alexandre Desplat)
• Hamnet (Max Richter)
• One Battle after Another (Jonny Greenwood)
• Sinners (Ludwig Goransson)

Music (Original Song)
• Dear Me (from Diane Warren: Relentless; Music and Lyric by Diane Warren)
• Golden (from KPop Demon Hunters; Music and Lyric by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seo and Teddy Park)
• I Lied To You (from Sinners; Music and Lyric by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig Goransson)
• Sweet Dreams Of Joy (from Viva Verdi!; Music and Lyric by Nicholas Pike)
• Train Dreams (from Train Dreams; Music by Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner; Lyric by Nick Cave)

Best Picture
• Bugonia (Ed Guiney & Andrew Lowe, Yorgos Lanthimos, Emma Stone and Lars Knudsen, Producers)
• F1 (Chad Oman, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Joseph Kosinski and Jerry Bruckheimer, Producers)
• Frankenstein (Guillermo del Toro, J. Miles Dale and Scott Stuber, Producers)
• Hamnet (Liza Marshall, Pippa Harris, Nicolas Gonda, Steven Spielberg and Sam Mendes, Producers)
• Marty Supreme (Eli Bush, Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie, Anthony Katagas and Timothée Chalamet, Producers)
• One Battle after Another (Adam Somner, Sara Murphy and Paul Thomas Anderson, Producers)
• The Secret Agent (Emilie Lesclaux, Producer)
• Sentimental Value (Maria Ekerhovd and Andrea Berentsen Ottmar, Producers)
• Sinners (Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian and Ryan Coogler, Producers)
• Train Dreams (Marissa McMahon, Teddy Schwarzman, Will Janowitz, Ashley Schlaifer and Michael Heimler, Producers)

Production Design
• Frankenstein (Production Design: Tamara Deverell; Set Decoration: Shane Vieau)
• Hamnet (Production Design: Fiona Crombie; Set Decoration: Alice Felton)
• Marty Supreme (Production Design: Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Adam Willis)
• One Battle after Another (Production Design: Florencia Martin; Set Decoration: Anthony Carlino)
• Sinners (Production Design: Hannah Beachler; Set Decoration: Monique Champagne)

Sound
• F1 (Gareth John, Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A. Rizzo and Juan Peralta)
• Frankenstein (Greg Chapman, Nathan Robitaille, Nelson Ferreira, Christian Cooke and Brad Zoern)
• One Battle after Another (José Antonio García, Christopher Scarabosio and Tony Villaflor)
• Sinners (Chris Welcker, Benjamin A. Burtt, Felipe Pacheco, Brandon Proctor and Steve Boeddeker)
• Sir?t (Amanda Villavieja, Laia Casanovas and Yasmina Praderas)

Visual Effects
• Avatar: Fire and Ash (Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon and Daniel Barrett)
• F1 (Ryan Tudhope, Nicolas Chevallier, Robert Harrington and Keith Dawson)
• Jurassic World Rebirth (David Vickery, Stephen Aplin, Charmaine Chan and Neil Corbould)
• The Lost Bus (Charlie Noble, David Zaretti, Russell Bowen and Brandon K. McLaughlin)
• Sinners (Michael Ralla, Espen Nordahl, Guido Wolter and Donnie Dean)

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
• Bugonia (Screenplay by Will Tracy)
• Frankenstein (Written for the Screen by Guillermo del Toro)
• Hamnet (Screenplay by Chloé Zhao & Maggie O'Farrell)
• One Battle after Another (Written by Paul Thomas Anderson)
• Train Dreams (Screenplay by Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar)

Writing (Original Screenplay)
• Blue Moon (Written by Robert Kaplow)
• It Was Just an Accident (Written by Jafar Panahi; Script collaborators - Nader Saïvar, Shadmehr Rastin, Mehdi Mahmoudian)
• Marty Supreme (Written by Ronald Bronstein & Josh Safdie)
• Sentimental Value (Written by Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier)
• Sinners (Written by Ryan Coogler)