Barbie leads the nominations for the 29th annual Critics Choice Awards with 18, far outdistancing every other film, as the Warner Bros. living doll dominates the list with mentions for Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, and five acting mentions including stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling who received two each.
On the heels of its stellar showing at Monday’s Golden Globe nominations where it received a record nine nominations, the Mattel phenomenon doubled the total with the Critics Choice Association and left all the other contenders in the dust. Still, the other half of the “Barbenheimer” dynamic summer duo, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer grabbed an impressive 13 nominations, the same number given to Searchlight’s Poor Things, with both solidly in the race for Best Picture honors from the group that has shown an uncanny ability in past years to be a strong predictor of Oscar glory. Just one step behind was Martin Scorsese’s Killers Of The Flower Moon which racked up 12 noms, continuing its impressive showing on the critics awards circuit this season.
Oppenheimer
Universal/Sue Gordon
In addition to the above four films, other Best Picture nominees are American Fiction, The Color Purple, The Holdovers, Maestro, Past Lives, and Saltburn. Acting nominees largely mirrored those found on the Globes list which divides contenders into drama and comedy/musical categories. As the season gains hurricane force it appears the same group of films are rising to the top and showing strength as all signs point to Oscar. In other words there is a lot of agreement.
The Holdovers
Focus Features /Courtesy Everett Collection
The CCA’s however did give a boost to The Color Purple with five overall nominations, and Amazon’s Saltburn, neither making the Globes cut in their Best Picture categories. In a bit of a surprise, critical and Cannes darlings Anatomy Of A Fall and The Zone Of Interest , both competing in the Globes’ Best Picture Drama and Foreign Film races were relegated by CCA to just the Best Foreign Language Film category, nailing only four nominations between them. Focus Features’ The Holdovers had a particularly strong showing with nominations in key acting categories, Director, Screenplay, and Picture in securing eight mentions on the list.
Killers of the Flower Moon
Paramount Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection
“We are so excited to celebrate this year’s remarkable projects, performances, and the people who made it all possible at the 29th Annual Critics Choice Awards,” said CCA CEO Joey Berlin. “This year saw an incredible number of blockbuster hits and beautiful stories brought to life in these exceptional films.”
The 29th annual Critics Choice Awards will air live Sunday January 14, 2024 on The CW from 7-10 pm ET (delayed PT, check local listings). Chelsea Handler will return for the second consecutive year as host for the awards which are bestowed annually to honor the finest in cinematic and television achievement. As previously announced, The Morning Show leads the television contenders with six nominations including Best Drama Series. The Critics Choice Awards show will be executive-produced by Bob Bain Productions and Berlin Entertainment.
Here are the Film Nominations:
BEST PICTURE
American Fiction
Barbie
The Color Purple
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Past Lives
Poor Things
Saltburn
BEST ACTOR
Bradley Cooper – Maestro
Leonardo DiCaprio – Killers of the Flower Moon
Colman Domingo – Rustin
Paul Giamatti – The Holdovers
Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer
Jeffrey Wright – American Fiction
BEST ACTRESS
Lily Gladstone – Killers of the Flower Moon
Sandra Hüller – Anatomy of a Fall
Greta Lee – Past Lives
Carey Mulligan – Maestro
Margot Robbie – Barbie
Emma Stone – Poor Things
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Sterling K. Brown – American Fiction
Robert De Niro – Killers of the Flower Moon
Robert Downey Jr. – Oppenheimer
Ryan Gosling – Barbie
Charles Melton – May December
Mark Ruffalo – Poor Things
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Emily Blunt – Oppenheimer
Danielle Brooks – The Color Purple
America Ferrera – Barbie
Jodie Foster – Nyad
Julianne Moore – May December
Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers
BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Abby Ryder Fortson – Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Ariana Greenblatt – Barbie
Calah Lane – Wonka
Milo Machado Graner – Anatomy of a Fall
Dominic Sessa – The Holdovers
Madeleine Yuna Voyles – The Creator
BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
Air
Barbie
The Color Purple
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer
BEST DIRECTOR
Bradley Cooper – Maestro
Greta Gerwig – Barbie
Yorgos Lanthimos – Poor Things
Christopher Nolan – Oppenheimer
Alexander Payne – The Holdovers
Martin Scorsese – Killers of the Flower Moon
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Samy Burch – May December
Alex Convery – Air
Bradley Cooper & Josh Singer – Maestro
Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach – Barbie
David Hemingson – The Holdovers
Celine Song – Past Lives
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Kelly Fremon Craig – Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Andrew Haigh – All of Us Strangers
Cord Jefferson – American Fiction
Tony McNamara – Poor Things
Christopher Nolan – Oppenheimer
Eric Roth & Martin Scorsese – Killers of the Flower Moon
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Matthew Libatique – Maestro
Rodrigo Prieto – Barbie
Rodrigo Prieto – Killers of the Flower Moon
Robbie Ryan – Poor Things
Linus Sandgren – Saltburn
Hoyte van Hoytema – Oppenheimer
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Suzie Davies, Charlotte Dirickx – Saltburn
Ruth De Jong, Claire Kaufman – Oppenheimer
Jack Fisk, Adam Willis – Killers of the Flower Moon
Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer – Barbie
James Price, Shona Heath, Szusza Mihalek – Poor Things
Adam Stockhausen, Kris Moran – Asteroid City
BEST EDITING
William Goldenberg – Air
Nick Houy – Barbie
Jennifer Lame – Oppenheimer
Yorgos Mavropsaridis – Poor Things
Thelma Schoonmaker – Killers of the Flower Moon
Michelle Tesoro – Maestro
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Jacqueline Durran – Barbie
Lindy Hemming – Wonka
Francine Jamison-Tanchuck – The Color Purple
Holly Waddington – Poor Things
Jacqueline West – Killers of the Flower Moon
Janty Yates, David Crossman – Napoleon
BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP
Barbie
The Color Purple
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Priscilla
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Creator
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
BEST COMEDY
American Fiction
Barbie
Bottoms
The Holdovers
No Hard Feelings
Poor Things
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Boy and the Heron
Elemental
Nimona
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
Wish
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Anatomy of a Fall
Godzilla Minus One
Perfect Days
Society of the Snow
The Taste of Things
The Zone of Interest
BEST SONG
“Dance the Night” – Barbie
“I’m Just Ken” – Barbie
“Peaches” – The Super Mario Bros. Movie
“Road to Freedom” – Rustin
“This Wish” – Wish
“What Was I Made For” – Barbie
BEST SCORE
Jerskin Fendrix – Poor Things
Michael Giacchino – Society of the Snow
Ludwig Göransson – Oppenheimer
Daniel Pemberton – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Robbie Robertson – Killers of the Flower Moon
Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt – Barbie
FULL DISCLOSURE: I am a voting member of the Critics Choice Association and serve as Film Branch President.