Breaking Down the Oscar Nominations

Summary

All Of It – Breaking Down the Oscar Nominations

Podcast: All Of It (WNYC)
Host: Alison Stewart
Guest: Kyle Buchanan, Awards Season Columnist, The New York Times
Aired: January 25, 2024

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into the 2024 Oscar nominations, spotlighting snubs, surprises, shifting standards, and historic nods. Host Alison Stewart welcomes Kyle Buchanan, an expert on the awards season, for an in-depth discussion. They explore changes in Academy representation, new inclusion standards, the landscape of the Best Picture and major acting races, memorable audience feedback, and reflect on the continuing evolution of what it means for a film to be recognized by Hollywood’s most prestigious ceremony.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The New Representation and Inclusion Standards

[03:37]

• The 2024 Oscars are the first to require Best Picture nominees to meet at least two out of four new diversity and inclusion criteria.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  "These guidelines aren't terribly hard to meet ... especially, you know, a robust internship program and that the publicity team is diverse. Those ... tend to be the case on most Hollywood productions. If a movie wasn't going to make these standards, it would really have to be trying hard to avoid them." (03:37)

2. Diversifying the Academy and Its Impact

[04:34]

• The Academy has worked extensively to diversify both its membership and nominee slate.
• The directors’ branch now includes many international auteurs, shifting tastes more towards artsy, non-Hollywood fare.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  "They [the director’s branch] tend to go a little bit more highbrow, a little more artsy, and certainly a lot more international." (04:43)
  "... as the Academy diversifies, the idea of what even is a worthy movie – the location of that is starting to move outside Hollywood." (05:56)

3. Best Picture Category Breakdown

[06:16]

• The frontrunner is “Oppenheimer,” with “The Holdovers” positioned as a possible upset due to the preferential ballot system.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  "It seems like it's Oppenheimer's to lose ... If there's any chance of an upset ... we might see it from a movie like The Holdovers." (06:44)

  • Preferential ballots reward consensus favorites that might not be #1, but appear consistently as the #2 or #3 pick.

4. Spotlight on ‘The Zone of Interest’

[07:50]

• Nominated for Best Picture and Best Director, “The Zone of Interest” impresses with its unique perspective—a German family's life beside Auschwitz.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  "It's an incredible, unnerving work of art about how people can put just blinders on... to horrors happening literally next door." (08:09)

5. Audience Perspectives: Snubs and Overlooked Films

[09:49, 11:02, 12:12]

• Callers mentioned excitement around the international and difficult films recognized (“Zone of Interest”), while also lamenting snubs (“Fallen Leaves”, “Perfect Days”, “All of Us Strangers,” “May December”).
• Kerry (Caller):

  “I'm surprised because [All of Us Strangers] had fantastic notices... maybe not possible for the Oscars yet [to nominate two gay leads].” (12:12)

6. The Best Actor Category & Oscar Tropes

[13:08]

• Three nominees portray real people, reinforcing Oscars’ affinity for biopic performances.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  "There are certain tropes ... the biopic of a great man ... tends to be what people consider to be Oscar bait." (13:36)

  • Subtle, non-flashy performances (e.g., in “All of Us Strangers”) often get overlooked for the more “fact-checkable” portrayals.

7. Best Actress: Historic Nods and the Lily Gladstone vs. Emma Stone Race

[14:43]

• Both actresses have major wins leading up to the Oscars; Lily Gladstone’s win would be historic as the first Indigenous American woman to win.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  “It's probably Lily Gladstone. ... Emma Stone has a disadvantage that anybody else would kill to have, which is that she's already won before... if you're a big fan of [Killers of the Flower Moon], you're probably gonna put your chips on Lily...” (15:15)

8. Best Supporting Actress: Buzzy Momentum for Da'Vine Joy Randolph

[16:44]

• Randolph’s sweep of precursor awards makes her the clear favorite.
• America Ferrera’s nomination was a surprise and a proud moment for Latina representation, as noted by listeners.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  “When you're winning absolutely everything, nobody wants to be the person that's going to halt that momentum.” (16:44)

9. Barbie and the Adapted Screenplay Controversy

[17:48, 18:37]

• Ongoing debate about Barbie’s placement in Adapted vs. Original Screenplay; strategic campaigning and rule ambiguity at play.
  • The decision came down to the fact that Barbie is adapted “from decades of toys,” but the Writers Guild considers it original.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  “If Barbie can pull off that adapted screenplay win, that's pretty significant.” (18:37)

10. Technical Craft and the Oscars

[20:42]

• Some audience members question Barbie’s worthiness as Best Picture, but its technical and design achievements are highlighted.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  “Barbie... There is no denying the level of craftsmanship that went into it.” (20:42)

11. Comedy in the Supporting Actor Categories

[22:12]

• This year sees strong comedic performances (Ryan Gosling, Mark Ruffalo, Sterling K. Brown) nominated.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  “The definition of a good supporting actor is a scene stealer ... comedy does tend to do a little bit better in the supporting categories.” (22:17)

  • Robert Downey Jr. (serious in “Oppenheimer”) versus scene-stealers like Gosling stays a suspenseful category.

12. May December and Oscar’s Biases

[23:52]

• “May December” was expected to perform strongly but was shut out—possible reasons include its satirical tone and, as Kyle notes, Oscars’ tendency to overlook young, handsome leading men.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  “I think ... the Oscars have this weird antipathy towards young handsome men. ... They really want men to ... be on the north side of 40 before they'll take you seriously and give you that Oscar recognition.” (24:23)

13. The Host’s Opening Monologue—A Miss at Golden Globes, Hope for the Oscars?

[25:28]

• Brief cut at the Golden Globes’ poorly received monologue; hope is voiced for Jimmy Kimmel’s steadier hand at the Oscars.
• Kyle Buchanan:

  “After Jo Koy's dire monologue at the Golden Globes, there is nowhere to go but up.” (25:40)

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Notable Quotes

• “As the Academy diversifies the idea of what even is a worthy movie, the location of that is starting to move outside Hollywood.”
  — Kyle Buchanan, 05:56

• “If a movie wasn't going to make these [inclusion] standards, it would really have to be trying hard to avoid them.”
  — Kyle Buchanan, 04:09

• “The definition of a good supporting actor is a scene stealer.”
  — Kyle Buchanan, 22:17

• “Barbie... there is no denying the level of craftsmanship that went into it.”
  — Kyle Buchanan, 20:42

• “The Oscars have this weird antipathy towards young handsome men… They really want men to… be on the north side of 40 before they'll take you seriously and give you that Oscar recognition.”
  — Kyle Buchanan, 24:23

• “After Jo Koy's dire monologue at the Golden Globes, there is nowhere to go but up.”
  — Kyle Buchanan, 25:40

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Timestamps for Significant Segments

• 01:30 – Episode introduction and Oscar nomination overview
• 03:37 – Inclusion standards explained
• 04:43 – Changing Academy membership and director’s branch
• 06:44 – Best Picture favorites and ballot mechanics
• 08:09 – “The Zone of Interest” analysis
• 09:49-12:12 – Audience calls: snubs, overlooked films, diversity
• 13:08-14:43 – Best Actor category and Oscar performance tropes
• 15:15 – Best Actress race: Gladstone vs. Stone
• 16:44 – Supporting Actress favorites, America Ferrera surprise nod
• 17:48-18:37 – Barbie and Adapted Screenplay controversy
• 20:42 – Barbie’s technical craftsmanship
• 22:17 – Comedic performances in supporting actor
• 23:52 – Analysis: May December’s Oscar shutout
• 25:40 – Reflections on awards show monologues

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Memorable Moments

• Lively debate among audience about what the Oscars “gets right” and the films/performances overlooked.
• The intersection of craft and commercial success—why some blockbusters make the cut while others do not.
• Insight into Oscar voting “game theory”: how “make good” wins (screenplay, for instance) may be backdoor recognition for snubbed artists.
• The tongue-in-cheek call for “justice for young handsome men” at the Oscars draws a laugh.

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Tone and Language

The conversation is informed, fast-paced and witty, with Kyle Buchanan providing deep industry insight without losing his sense of humor. Alison Stewart’s hosting is warm and observant, encouraging both critical analysis and the enthusiastic participation of the audience.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Show

This episode offers a comprehensive, nuanced, and slightly irreverent breakdown of the Oscar nominations, the evolving culture and politics of the Academy, and rich listener perspective on what truly makes an Oscar-worthy film (and what still gets left out). If you love film and Hollywood intrigue, or just want to understand what’s up with those nominations, this is an essential listen.

Transcript

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[Alison Stewart]

You're listening to all of it on WNYC. I'm Alison Stewart. This week, nominations for the 96th annual Academy Awards were announced. Lily Gladstone made history as the first indigenous American woman nominated for best actress in a leading role for her work in Killers of the Flower Moon. That film's director, Martin Scorsese passed Steven Spielberg to become the most nominated living director of all time, picking up a 10th best director nomination for the first time. Three of the best picture nominees were directed by Wima, but one woman was left off the best directors list and it was a big surprise. Greta Gerwig was not nominated for Bringing Barbie to Life. Nor was the actor who made the plastic doll ooze humanity, Margot Robbie. Same for the other Greta, Greta Lee, who delivered a quiet and powerful performance in Past Lives. However, both Barbie and Past Lives are nominated for best picture. Go figure. The color Purple was largely ignored except for an acting nomination for Danielle Brooks, while the films Oppenheimer, Killers of the Flower Moon, and Poor Things earned then 10 or more nominations each. Here to break it all down for us is friend of the show, Kyle Buchanan, award season columnist for the New York Times. You can check out his recent piece, the Biggest Oscar snubs and surprises 2024 Kyle, I'm so happy to talk to you.

[Kyle Buchanan]

Thanks for having me. Allison.

[Alison Stewart]

Listeners, we want to hear from you. What were your reactions to the Oscar nominations this year? Any things surprise you, delight you, confuse you. What was the best movie or performance of the year that you saw? We welcome all of your Oscar reactions. Our phone lines are. You can join us on air 2124-3396-9221-2433 wnyc. You may call in and talk to us or you can text to us at that number as well. Social media is also available at Olive nyc. So let's do a little bit of the news around the Oscars first. Kyle, this was the first Oscars where film had to meet films had to meet two of four new representation and inclusion standards in order to be nominated for best Picture. Would you remind us what these requirements are?

[Kyle Buchanan]

Yeah, they're basically meant to diversify people who work on the films behind the scenes. Certainly it's clear when you watch a film whether it's diverse or not. And the Academy has taken great pains to diversify itself its voting membership after being criticized for Oscars so white. But these new inclusion figures are meant to sort of prod people who were maybe slower to get on board to meet certain guidelines and standards to be eligible for Best Picture. That might sound like a whole lot, but honestly, these guidelines aren't terribly hard to meet. You just really have to make sure that, you know, the crew is somewhat diverse, but especially, you know, that there are, there's a good robust internship program and that the publicity team is diverse. Those two things tend to be the case on most Hollywood productions. So if a movie wasn't going to make these standards, it would really have to be trying hard to avoid them.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

The Academy has also been making efforts to diversify and expand the membership. How can we see the effects of that work in the nominees this year?

[Kyle Buchanan]

Honestly, I think you can see them most of all in the best director category. And I know people might be surprised by that at first because it seems like, you know, good old fashioned Oscar sexism to not include a director like Greta Gerwig. But what that actually is is that the director's branch, which are the the only part of the Academy that votes on the best director category comprises a little under 600 people, a quarter of whom are women. They're very international. They're also very snobby, but mostly international. They reject Hollywood studio fare all the time. In fact, they did it just last year or just two years ago with Dune, Denis Villeneuve who had directed, you know, the ever loving Heck out of that movie. Uh, it's a movie that got, that won many Oscars, was nominated for many, but he didn't make the best director lineup. They tend to go a little bit more highbrow, a little more artsy, and certainly a lot more international. Because in the Academy's haste to diversify this, this branch mostly, most of all, they really did, you know, invite a whole lot of international auteurs. And you see that this year, Justine Trieth, the sole woman in the category, she directed Anatomy of a Fall, Jonathan Glazer, the Zone of Interest, Yorgos Lanthimos, Poor things. These are directors who live and work primarily in Europe. So we're seeing that as the Academy diversifies the idea of what even is a worthy movie, the location of that is starting to move outside Hollywood.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

We've got a text. It's so hard to choose, but I'm so glad Past Lives was nominated. I loved that film. So this brings us to our best picture category. American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, Barbie, the Holdovers, Killers of the Flower Moon, Maestro Oppenheimer, Past Lives, Poor Things, the Zone of interest. Okay, let's start with conventional wisdom. What is the conventional wisdom as to what film will likely take this category?

[Kyle Buchanan]

I mean, the conventional wisdom is very strong in this race. It seems like it's Oppenheimer's to lose. You know, it was an incredible year for that movie for Barbie as well. But Oppenheimer has sort of pulled ahead when it comes to awards. It was nominated for 13 Oscars. It feels like it's Christopher Nolan's moment. I mean, Nolan is almost certain to take director if there's any chance of an upset in best picture, and it's an awfully slim one, I think we might see it from a movie like the Holdovers. That's with Paul Giamatti. It's, you know, this very warm, well liked comedy. And because the Oscars use what's called a preferential ballot to determine the ultimate best picture winner, which is basically you rank them from one to 10 films that appear in that number two and number three spot on almost every ballot, have a shot at toppling the front runner. We've seen it happen before with Coda and the Power of the Dog. And I wonder if Oppenheimer, certainly a very well respected film, might be slightly vulnerable to a film that just a lot of people love more.

[Alison Stewart]

The film with a lot of critical acclaim, but maybe not as much attention as the others, is the Zone of Interest from Jonathan Glazer's up for best director and the film is nominated for best picture. Wow. This movie. Tell us a little bit about this movie and why you think it got a best picture nomination.

[Kyle Buchanan]

This is a very challenging Holocaust drama and that's a genre that's already pretty challenging. But this is told from the point of view of the German family who basically lives just right over the wall from Auschwitz. And it's an incredible, unnerving work of art about how people can put just blinders on to turn, you know, essentially a blind eye to horrors happening literally next door. It's not the sort of movie that you're likely to forget. I can already tell Allison it had a real impact on you. And I think the same is true of the Academy. You know, it's a very strong, very artsy, but one of a kind film. And it comes from a very unique visionary director, Jonathan Glaser, who also did Sexy Beast and Birth and the really similarly unnerving Scarlett Johansson sci fi drama under the Skin.

[Alison Stewart]

We are talking about the Oscar nominations with Kyle Buchanan, award season columnist for the New York Times. We've got a whole bunch of people lined up on the phone who want to weigh in. We'll do that right after a quick break. This is all of it. You're listening to ALL of IT on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. We are discussing the Oscar nominations with Kyle Buchanan, awards season columnist for the New York Times. We're also asking you to join the conversation. Let's take some calls. Travis is calling from Ridgewood. Hi, Travis, you are on the air.

[Travis (Caller)]

Yeah, hi. How's it going?

[Alison Stewart]

Going great.

[Travis (Caller)]

I guess. The one comment that I was kind of chatting with some friends about recently is how diverse and your guest mentioned that already how diverse some of the nominations look, which is pretty exciting to see. And my theory, which is maybe a little bit of a conspiracy theory, is that I feel like it's we're almost seeing like a post explosion of letterbox world, which is just a fantastic social media based app for similar to Goodreads for people to share films they're seeing post pithy reviews and ratings. And it's kind of made going to the theater or seeing these movies more of a conversation for maybe a younger generation. And it's getting people to see these more difficult films, such a zone of interest, which I thought was just fantastic. And I was actually surprised to see on the Oscars, which I haven't held in high regard in a long time to see it nominated in so many categories.

[Alison Stewart]

Travis thank you for calling in. Let's talk to Phyllis from Manhattan. Hi, Phyllis, thanks for calling in.

[Nordstrom Rack Ad Voice]

Yes, hi. Thank you for taking my call. I'm getting more and more disillusioned with the Academy because they overlook extraordinary films. And one favorite film of mine was Fallen Leaves and that I thought was a brilliant film and the acting was extraordinary. And that was completely overlooked. It wasn't even in the foreign international category. And another film, perfect Days, which was extraordinary, as was the acting that was nominated in the international category. But the actor, the lead actor in that film was overlooked. And I thought both of those films were masterpieces. I saw the Zone of interest. I mean, a lot of these films came out of the New York Film Society, the New York Film Festival this year. So, yeah, they were wonderful films and I'm glad they were nominated. But some of these others that were overlooked work is sinful in my opinion.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Phyllis, thanks for calling in. Jane from Montclair is someone else who wanted to shout out Perfect Days. And now let's check in with Carrie from Greenwich Village. Hi, Kerry.

[Kerry (Caller)]

Thanks for having me. Yeah, I'm go along with Phyllis. But I also always think of Julian Barnes saying of the Booker prizes that they're posh. Bingo. So it's sort of, you know, one shouldn't get too upset. But I admit to being quite upset about all of us strangers being shut out, which I, you know, I'm surprised because it's had fantastic notices and the two main actors are incredible. And, you know, Andrew Scott, who I felt should have got best actor nomination, I have to think that because Colman Domingo was nominated, you know, that would be two out of five who were playing gay men. Maybe not possible for the Oscars yet. So. But I guess I'm disappointed that in the various snubs pieces that there hasn't been that much coverage of all of us strangers.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Carrie, thank you for pointing that out. Let's get to the best actor category. These performances, you know, something I noticed, Kyle is three are based on real people. Cillian Murphy's playing Oppenheimer, Bradley Cooper, Leonard Bernstein, Colman Domingo, Bayard Rustin, and then Paul Giamatti and Jeffrey Wray are both playing Ken Tinker as professors. So it was so interesting. The roles are similar. I mean, is there any. Should I be reading anything into that? Is that just a coincidence?

[Kyle Buchanan]

Yeah, sometimes it's just some fateful synchronicity. But you might be onto something in that there are certain tropes in all of these categories that Oscar voters are maybe more partial to certainly, you know, we're familiar with the biopic of a great man. And there's so many in contention this year, from Maestro to Rustin to Oppenheimer. That tends to be what people consider to be Oscar bait. But, you know, as one of your listeners was just saying, there's this really wonderful, delicate film, all of us strangers. Andrew Scott, the lead of that is really tremendous. He's doing very subtle work, not the sort of showy biographical work that tends to get recognized in this category. So even though I think almost everything that made it through this year was incredibly strong because it was such a strong year for movies, I do hope, like your listener, that maybe Oscar voters can make more room for things that aren't as loud, that aren't, you know, the sort of performances that can be fact checked against a real thing. Performances that are just simple, intimate and moving.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Here are the nominees for best actress in a leading role. Annette Bening for nyad. Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon. Sandra Huller for Anatomy of a Fall. Carey Mulligan for Maestro. Maestro. And Emma Stone for Poor Things. You know, the race is coming down to Lily Gl for Killers of the Flower Moon and Emma Stone for Poor Things. On the surface, it looks like that way they both won Golden Globes, both were up for SAG awards. Stone beat Gladstone for that. For the critics Choice Award, I should say.

[Kerry (Caller)]

Ooh.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Who do you think has a slight edge here?

[Kyle Buchanan]

I think it's probably Lily Gladstone. I mean, we'll see how this all shakes out. But I think she's got a couple advantages and maybe Emma Stone has one, you know, one disadvantage that anybody else would kill to have, which is that she's already won before. The Oscars can be a little parsimonious when it comes to delivering your second statuette. It really has to be the right role at the right time, especially if you have somebody like Lily Gladstone in the mix whose win would be utterly historic. And also, she's probably that film's best shot at a win. That is a film where, you know, if you're a big fan of it, you're probably gonna put your chips on Lily to make sure that Scorsese's film does not go home empty handed.

[Alison Stewart]

If you'd like to join our conversation about the Oscar nominations, our phone lines are open to you. 212-433-969-2212, wnyc. You may call in and join us on air. You can also text to us at that number if you want to Shout out a performance or someone you wish had been nominated or someone you're very excited that was nominated. 212433, WNYC. Let's talk about actress in a supporting role. We have Emily Blunt for Amedheimer, Danielle Brooks for the Color Purple, America Ferra, Jodie Foster for nyad, and Divine Joy Randolph for the Holdovers. Divine Joy Randolph goes into this with a bunch of wins. Golden Globe, Critics Choice Award, New York Films, Critics Circle Award. Are those particular award shows indicators for Oscars?

[Kyle Buchanan]

They're indicators of momentum. You know, whether they're small or large, it never hurts to be seen winning. And especially in the case of Divine Joy Randolph, when you're winning absolutely everything, nobody wants to be the person that's going to halt that momentum. Now, obviously, every category is susceptible to a surprise. In fact, America Ferreira getting into this category was a bit of a surprise because she hadn't really been showing up at the award shows prior to this. But, yeah, I think that if there's a. If there's any of these categories, any of these four acting races that is almost utterly locked and loaded, it's this one.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Someone has texted to us. So excited for America Ferrar. Loved her, since real women have curves. And as a fellow Latina and movie buff, I'm so proud and know she'd give the best speech of the night. That's Juliana from Montclair. I'm wondering, and this might just me being a weirdo, I couldn't think of a better word right now. Kyle is. I wonder if the non Margot Robbie nod could somehow benefit America Ferrara.

[Kyle Buchanan]

I think that all of the furor over the snubs, whether it was Margo in Best Actress or Greta in Best Director, could benefit Barbie in some way. I don't know if it benefits America so much. It could somewhat benefit Ryan Gosling in Supporting Actor. I think the category where you're likeliest to see some sort of movement is in Best Adapted Screenplay, where Barbie is nominated against a whole lot of heavy hitters, including American Fiction and also the likely Best Picture winner, Oppenheimer. Usually, to get to Best Picture, you've got to win a screenplay award first. But I wonder if Academy voters might be tempted to give this to Greta Gerwig and her co writer Noah Baumbach as sort of a make good for that big director snub.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

What is the controversy around Barbie being placed in the adapted screenplay category?

[Kyle Buchanan]

Well, you know, a lot of this comes down to strategy, and there's a lot of highly paid publicists who Thought it would be a lot easier for Barbie to win in the best original Screenplay. And to some extent, they have a point. The rules governing this can be kind of murky. You know, there's plenty of films that are nominated for best Original Screenplay that are based on, you know, real people that are essentially adaptations of real life. I guess the distinction made here is that you go into adapted screenplay if you're literally adapted from a piece of material, whether that's a magazine article, a book, or in the case of Barbie, Decades of Toys. It's a little complicated. The Writers Guild decided that Barbie is an original screenplay, which is in line with what that campaign wanted. But we'll see. You know, if Barbie can pull off that adapted screenplay win, that's pretty significant.

[Alison Stewart]

Let's talk to Judy from Neurochell. Hi, Judy. Thanks for calling in.

[Nordstrom Rack Ad Voice]

Hi. Thank you for having me. I am disappointed that in the animated category, the film Leo, the Adam Sandler film, which I have now watched three times with my grandchildren and love it more and more each time that it wasn't included in the nominations.

[Alison Stewart]

Thank you for calling in, Judy. This is interesting. I usually try to separate my. This is a text. My personal favorite movies and performances from what should win or will win. The most entertaining performance came from Mark Ruffalo in Poor Things, but I think Robert Downey Jr. Will win. I loved Past Lives, but can make a case for every film on the list to win best Picture, except possibly Barbie, which was a cultural phenomenon, but not the most expertly crafted film. Another one from Mark Ruffalo. One of my very favorite performances this year, Mark Ruffalo. He was hilarious without being a caricature. We're talking about the best supporting actor category. Sterling K. Brown for American Fiction, Robert De Niro, Killers of a Flower moon, Robert Downey Jr. Oppenheimer, Ryan Gosling for Barbie, and Mark Ruffalo for Poor Things. Any surprises in that list for you?

[Kyle Buchanan]

Well, let me push back first of all on the idea that Barbie is not well crafted, because I do think that some of the Oscars that Barbie has a shot at winning are in the crafts categories. You know, the costumes are incredible, the production design. Wow. You know, there were even some categories where I would have thought it could be nominated, like cinematography, because it conjures up a look that is really specific. You know, in my line of work, I always hear it from people where they're saying, well, how come, you know, my favorite movie of the year? Something like, say, spider man, no Way Home. Why wasn't that nominated for Best Picture. You know, do the Oscars hate blockbuster movies and. No, I think the Oscars love blockbuster movies if they're made at a certain level of craft. Barbie is. Last year, Top Gun, Maverick was. So was Avatar, the Way of Water. You know, then this year, in addition to Barbie, we also have the very expensive Oppenheimer. These are films made by people at the top of their game. They look that way. I mean, I definitely know that people, you know, some people might push back on the idea of Barbie as an Oscar worthy film, but there is no denying the level of craftsmanship that went into it.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

The supporting actor category. And thank you for addressing that. The supporting actor category.

[Alison Stewart]

You know, a lot of these roles are funny roles.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

I mean, they're comedic roles greatly. Ryan Gosling, Mark Ruffalo, Sterling K. Brown. You know, historically the academy not necessarily good at recognizing comedic performances.

[Alison Stewart]

Why do you think so many funny.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Supporting actor nominations this year?

[Kyle Buchanan]

I think they have a lot of trouble recognizing comedy when it comes to best picture and the lead performances. But the definition of a good supporting actor is a scene stealer. Right? It's somebody where you're excited to see them show up. Maybe they're giving a different energy than other people in that cast. And I think that's why comedy does tend to do a little bit better in the supporting categories. I mean, you know, one of the most iconic wins of all time, Marisa Tomei, best supporting Actress, she was up against a whole lot of British grand dames and period films, and she delivered such a funny performance in that movie. Felt like a breath of fresh air, not just in the movie, but in the category. So I'll be interested to see, you know, Robert Downey Jr. Who is historically a very funny actor, delivering a very serious performance in Oppenheimer. Is it possible that Ryan Gosling, you know, the scene stealing Ken from Barbie could beat him?

[Alison Stewart]

Let's talk to Pamela from Westchester Online4 who has been reading my mind. Hi, Pamela, thanks for calling in.

[Nordstrom Rack Ad Voice]

Hey, Allison, thank you so much for taking the call. Yes. So I guess we're similarly minded when we are shocked that Todd Haynes got overlooked for Best director or best Supporting Actor at the very least.

[Alison Stewart]

So this May December, it came out hot. Initially, Kyle, everyone was talking about Charles Melton for best supporting Actor. He did just such a tremendous job. Why do you think that May December, starring Julianne Moore, Natalie Portman, didn't come up with much, with anything.

[Kyle Buchanan]

This one wounds me, Allison. This really wounds me. This was one of my favorite films last year and I thought it Was going to be a breakthrough for the director, Todd Haynes. His film Carol came very close to being a major breakthrough for him. Was nominated for many Oscars, just not the big ones. And I thought that this one was connecting with the mainstream in a way that I have not seen his films do. I wonder if, because it's sort of wickedly satirical about self involved actors, the actors branch couldn't take that joke. Certainly Natalie Portman I think is doing some of the very best work of her career. Thought Julianne Moore at least had a strong shot, Charles Melton. It's a terrific breakthrough performance for this actor who was, you know, previously best known for Riverdale. The only thing that I think was holding Charles Melton back, besides, you know, there's the. Just the general inability of the film to catch on in the way they wanted, is that the Oscars have this weird antipathy towards young handsome men. They really want men to be a little more grizzled, to have paid their dues more, to honestly be on the north side of 40 before they'll take you seriously and give you that Oscar recognition. I mean, just even looking at who's nominated, you know, from, from the men this year, you know, they're all over 40, whereas so many of the women, in fact, most of the women nominated across the lead and supporting categories are 40 and under. They don't have that problem when it comes to young ingenues. But they sure do have it when it comes to young men.

[Alison Stewart]

Last moments. You were at the Golden Globes for the host's opening monologue which seemed to go very poorly.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Was it true? It was that bad?

[Alison Stewart]

Okay, yes.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Moving on then.

[Alison Stewart]

Jimmy Kimmel.

[Kyle Buchanan]

That was terrible. I mean, Jimmy Kimmel has already done this job a couple times hosting the Oscars. But after Jo Koy's dire monologue at the Golden Globes, there is nowhere to go but up.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

Someone just texted justice for young handsome men.

[Kyle Buchanan]

Yeah, yeah. You know, society is so cruel to young handsome men. They deserve a little bit of justice. Now the Oscars are maybe the only place where they don't succeed. But hey, listen, we gotta inspire the other young handsome men out there. And who are they to look to if not Oscar nominees?

[Alison Stewart]

Kyle Buchanan is the awards season columnist for the New York Times. As always, thanks for the time. Kyle, nice to talk to you.

[Kyle Buchanan]

Thanks for having me.

[Alison Stewart]

And that is all of it for today. Tomorrow on the show, it is our listening party live with future islands. They rocked the WNYC green space. You'll get to hear the live performance.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

As well as our chat with all.

[Alison Stewart]

Four members of the band that is happening tomorrow.

[Co-host/Interviewer]

I'm Alison Stewart. I appreciate you listening, and I do appreciate you. And I'll meet you back here next.

[Alison Stewart]

Time with Future Islands.

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[Kyle Buchanan]

All right, unc.

[Alison Stewart]

Welcome to McDonald's. Can I take your order, miss?

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