It’s time for the directors and leading film actors to prepare for the Academy Awards of 2024. Netflix has managed to snag a staggering 18 nominations across these ten films. Not only are some of them possibly poised to win in their categories thanks to their fantastic reception by audiences, but without further ado, here are the 10 Netflix movies that have been nominated for an Oscar in 2024:
1. Maestro (2023)
Bradley Cooper’s Maestro is nominated for seven categories: Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Cinematography, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Picture.
Bradley Cooper starred in the epic love story and co-wrote and directed it. Telling the story of legendary composer and conductor starring as Leonard Bernstein and his wife, actor Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan), Cooper strives to tell their tale, one of lifelong relationship, music, and the heartfelt story of life.
With so many nominations and a performance that brought many critics to tears, if any Netflix movie on this list is likely to win an Oscar in 2024, it would be Maestro.
2. NYAD (2023)
The chilling true tale of Diana Nyad is up for two categories: Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress. Directors Elizabeth Chai Vaserhelyi and Jimmy Chin work alongside writers Julia Cox and Diana Nyad to bring the tale of the real-life swimmer who embarked on an attempt to finish a challenge of a lifetime: a 110-mile swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage.
While that seems terrifying, NYAD is about how Diana Nyad’s friends rallied around her. It’s no wonder the friendship portrayed on screen by Annette Bening (as Diana Nyad) and Jodie Foster (as Bonnie Stoll) in this Netflix movie is up for 2024 Oscar nominations.
3. Society of the Snow (2024)
Nominated in two categories: Best Makeup and Hairstyling and Best International Feature Film, Society of the Snow is directed by The Impossible’s J.A. Bayona and stars Agustín Pardella, Enzo Vogrincic, and Matías Recalt.
Society of the Snow tells the true story known as the Miracle of the Andes, about a Uruguayan rugby team stranded in the heart of the Andes following a plane crash. Surrounded by snowy mountains and the wreck of their own plane, the team must find a way to survive the winter until they can be rescued.
4. American Symphony (2023)
Netflix’s biographical content about composers is hitting it off this year as another biography film comes to our screens. This time, it’s a documentary taking centre stage after being nominated for Best Original Song (“It Never Went Away”).
Directed by Matthew Heineman, American Symphony tells the heartfelt story of Grammy- and Oscar-winning composer Jon Batiste and his life partner, Suleika Jaouad. As it takes a peek into the life of a man known for his award-winning musical compositions and his role as Late Show bandleader, the documentary highlights a pivotal moment as he prepares for a one-night-only performance at Carnegie Hall.
While it highlights Jon Batiste’s life, the documentary focuses more on the story of the couple’s relationship and creative partnership, especially with Suleika Jaouad battling Leukemia and the obstacles that the creative couple have had to face.
“Some people are hardwired to create. We get energy from writing and performing, creating, and gathering people into a community. We also get energy from being together, the two of us, or being alone.” – Jon Batiste.
5. El Conde (2023)
With a cinematographer like Edward Lachman (Carol) behind the camera, it should be no surprise that El Conde is up for Best Cinematography. Written and directed by Pablo Larraín with the help of writer Guillermo Calderón, El Conde takes dark comedy to an entirely new level as it tells the fictional story of the supernatural life of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet.
In this dark comedy, director Pablo Larraín recasts Augusto Pinochet as a 250-year-old vampire ready to retire. Life, or rather after-life, takes a bit of a turn when his children arrive looking for money, a young French Accountant (Paula Luchsinger) arrives to audit the count, and everything devolves into a beautiful cacophony of chaos as his carefully constructed retirement comes crashing down around him.
6. May December (2023)
May December is a dark romantic comedy nominated in the Best Original Screenplay category for its excellent screenplay by Samy Burch, based on a story by Burch and Alex Mechanik.
The dark film tells the story of actress Elizabeth Berry (played by Natalie Portman) who delves into the story behind a new role in which she is set to star. Her role is based on a notorious tabloid story describing the relationship and marriage of Gracie Atherton (Julianne Moor) and Joe Yoo (Charles Melton). Before Elizabeth starts diving into the story for her own research purposes, it is discovered that Gracie and Joe started a relationship when Joe was just 13 years old, but Gracie was already in her thirties. When their relationship was discovered, Gracie ended up serving time in prison because of the nature of their relationship.
Now out of prison, Gracie and Joe have continued their relationship, are married with three children, and seem to have a perfect little life. As their children get older and get ready for their high school graduation, Elizabeth’s prodding and investigating starts to reveal some holes.
7. Nimona (2023)
While it is the only animation that has made it onto the list, Nimona is up for a nomination in the Best Animated Feature Film category. Described by critics and creators Nick Bruno and Troy Quane as a subversive fairy tale, Nimona is an entirely different take on the fairy tales that we know and love, giving us an animated antiheroine rather than a hero.
Nimona (voiced by Chloë Grace Moretz) is a spunky hero who can shape-shift. Suddenly, she is caught in a devious plot to frame one of the bravest knights in the land, Sir Ballister Boldheart (voiced by Riz Ahmed). Finding themselves embroiled in this plot together, the two go on the run and fight for their lives in their quest to find the truth and clear their names. Can this unlikely alliance turn into a friendship?
Having been written by Lloyd Taylor, Pamela Ribon, and Robert L. Baird, the latter writer shared with Netflix that “there’s a surprise at every turn with this story. Not only does it have deeply resonant themes, but Nimona is also an incredibly unique character and this very untraditional antihero.”
8. Rustin (2023)
This historical drama is a biography of activist Bayard Rustin. It is up for nomination in the Best Actor category for Colman Domingo’s role as the leading man, his first leading role in a feature-length film.
Director George C. Wolfe and writers Julian Breece and Dustin Lance Black worked together to realise the life of Bayard Rustin, a gay Black Civil Rights leader who led the charge on planning the 1963 March on Washington, and his story of dealing with not only racism but also homophobia.
Starring other brilliant names and faces like Aml Ameen as Martin Luther King, Jr., Chris Rock as Roy Wilkins, Glynn Turman as A. Philip Randolph, and Johnny Ramey as Elias Taylor, these actors tell the brilliant story of coordinating a freedom march with more than 100,000 participants to the White House to fight for what is right.
9. The After (2023)
As a short film, The After is up for nomination in the category of Best Live-Action Short Film. Written and directed by Misan Harriman with the help of writer John Julius Schwabach, actor David Oyelowo stars as Dayo, a rideshare driver grieving after witnessing a violent crime. As fate would have it, a pickup and a ride with a passenger forces Dayo to face his grief head-on and deal with it.
Dealing with something as deep and touching as grief and mourning in a short is an almost monumental task, but one that Oyelowo was excited to take on after just reading the script. Oyelowo informed The Hollywood Reporter, “It both scared me and [drew me] like a moth to a flame.”
10. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023)
Genius director Wes Anderson strikes again, bringing yet another Roald Dahl story to life for the big (and small) screen with The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. The short film is up for nomination in the category of Best Live-Action Short Film.
Starring Ralph Ben Kingsley as Imdad Khan, Benedict Cumberbatch as Henry Sugar, Dev Patel as Dr Chatterjee, Fiennes as Roald Dahl (narrating), and Richard Ayoade as Dr Marshall, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is a dazzling take on the story, with scenes that almost seem to fold in on themselves, hilarious moments that seem like breaking the fourth wall, and so much more.
Henry Sugar is an independent and wealthy man who loves to gamble, and his discovery of an incredible ability allows him to do so with greater efficiency. His journey teaches him the skills of a circus performer, “The Man Who Sees Without Using His Eyes.” As a short film, if there is any Netflix movie on the list that you should watch before the Academy Awards in March, it’s definitely this one for a start.
The 96th Academy Awards show is set to be streamed on ABC starting at 4 pm PT/7 pm ET on Sunday, the 10th of March. Tune in to see which of Netflix’s ten movies wins an Oscar!
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Which of these Oscar-nominated movies will you be streaming on Netflix before the 2024 Academy Awards?
