Oscar nominations are coming. What to know about the new casting award
- - Oscar nominations are coming. What to know about the new casting award
Brian Truitt, USA TODAYJanuary 22, 2026 at 12:15 AM
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Oscar nominations are coming this week for a ceremony with all the usual bells and whistles but also something special: a new category.
The 98th Academy Awards will feature the inaugural honor for best achievement in casting. It's the first Oscar to be added since best animated feature in 2001 but it won't be the last: At the 100th Oscars in 2028, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will bestow its first award for achievement in stunt design. (Another new category, outstanding achievement in popular film, was announced in 2018 and was shelved a month later amid severe backlash.)
Here's what movie fans about the latest Oscar honor:
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Is the casting Oscar an award for best cast?
Smoke (Michael B. Jordan, center), flanked by brother Stack (also Jordan) and pal Cornbread (Omar Miller), is wary of uninvited guests in the period horror film "Sinners."
No. Unlike the Screen Actors Guild's honor for best ensemble at the Actor Awards, the new Oscar will go to the casting directors (up to two) for the winning film. The award honors the art of casting, whether collaborating with a film's director to select stars or sifting through Polaroids to match supporting actors with the right characters.
The Critics Choice Awards also debuted its first best casting and ensemble category this year, an honor won by "Sinners" casting director Francine Maisler.
Who's up for the casting Academy Award?
The casting directors' branch of the Academy, which has about 200 members, is tasked with determining not only a shortlist of 10 movies but also the five nominees being announced Jan. 22. All 11,000 Academy members will vote to determine the winner of the casting Oscar.
The shortlist heading into Oscar nominations morning includes:
“Frankenstein”
“Hamnet”
“Marty Supreme”
“One Battle after Another”
“The Secret Agent”
“Sentimental Value”
“Sinners”
“Sirât”
“Weapons”
“Wicked: For Good”
How much overlap is there between best casting and best picture?
Probably a lot – most if not all of the five best casting Oscar nominees will wind up in the 10-movie best picture race. The shortlist includes Golden Globe winners ("Hamnet" and "One Battle After Another"), strong Oscar contenders ("Frankenstein" and "Marty Supreme"), populist fare ("Sinners," "Weapons" and "Wicked: For Good") and acclaimed international movies ("The Secret Agent," "Sentimental Value" and "Sirât").
And while it isn't technically a best cast award, all five nominees up for the Actor Awards' top honor – "Frankenstein," "Hamnet," "Marty Supreme," "One Battle After Another" and "Sinners" – are also on the casting shortlist. It's quite likely that the casting Oscar nominations will match the SAG's category, given the depth and breadth of all five acting ensembles.
When are this year's Oscars?
Again hosted by Conan O'Brien, the 98th Academy Awards will be held March 15 at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre and will air live on ABC and Hulu (7 p.m. ET/4 PT).
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: The Oscars are adding best casting. Here's what to know.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
