Oscars 2026: Shortlists announced for 98th Academy Awards

Take a look at the 2026 Oscars shortlists so you know what to expect when nominations are announced for the 98th Academy Awards.

With just over one month to go until Oscar nominations, The Academy has narrowed down the list of potential nominees for certain categories.

Preliminary voting for certain categories was held Dec. 8-12 by various branches of The Academy. This voting helped whittle down some of the 24 Academy Awards categories to shortlists, which were announced Tuesday. 

Nominations voting begins on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, and concludes on Friday, Jan. 16, 2025. 

Take a look below so you know what to expect come Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026, when nominations are announced for the 98th Academy Awards. Stay tuned to The Gold Knight for full coverage.

Best Animated Feature
While not a shortlist, the Academy announced the 35 films eligible for consideration in November, so we wanted to share that list here. Some of the films still needed their required qualifying release at the time, along with complying with all the category’s other qualifying rules to advance in the voting process.

To determine the five nominees, members of the Animation Branch are automatically eligible to vote in the category. Academy members outside of the Animation Branch are invited to opt in to participate and must meet a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category. 

The films eligible are:

• "All Operators Are Currently Unavailable"
• "Arco"
• "The Bad Guys 2"
• "Black Butterflies"
• "Boys Go to Jupiter"
• "Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc"
• "ChaO"
• "Colorful Stage! The Movie: A Miku Who Can't Sing"
• "David"
• "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle"
• "Dog Man"
• "Dog of God"
• "Dragon Heart – Adventures Beyond This World"
• "Elio"
• "Endless Cookie"
• "Fixed"
• "Gabby's Dollhouse: The Movie"
• "In Your Dreams"
• "KPop Demon Hunters"
• "The Legend of Hei 2"
• "Light of the World"
• "Little Amélie or the Character of Rain"
• "Lost in Starlight"
• "A Magnificent Life"
• "Mahavatar Narsimha"
• "Night of the Zoopocalypse"
• "Olivia & las Nubes"
• "100 Meters"
• "Out of the Nest"
• "Scarlet"
• "Slide"
• "The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants"
• "Stitch Head"
• "The Twits"
• "Zootopia 2"

Best Casting (New Category)
Ten films advanced in the Casting category. This is the first year for this category and the shortlist. Members of the Casting Directors Branch determined the shortlist and Academy members will be invited to view excerpts from the shortlisted films and pre-recorded interviews with their casting directors on Friday, Jan. 9, in Los Angeles and London, and in New York on Saturday, Jan 10. Branch members vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Frankenstein”
• “Hamnet”
• “Marty Supreme”
• “One Battle after Another”
• “The Secret Agent”
• “Sentimental Value”
• “Sinners”
• “Sirât”
• “Weapons”
• “Wicked: For Good”

Best Cinematography (New Shortlist)
Sixteen films advanced in the Cinematography category. This is the first year for the shortlist. Members of the Cinematographers Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. Per the awards rules for the 98th Academy Awards, the preliminary round of voting will determine a shortlist of between 10 and 20 films.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Ballad of a Small Player”
• “Bugonia”
• “Die My Love”
• “F1”
• “Frankenstein”
• “Hamnet”
• “Marty Supreme”
• “Nouvelle Vague”
• “One Battle after Another”
• “Sentimental Value”
• “Sinners”
• “Sirât”
• “Song Sung Blue”
• “Sound of Falling”
• “Train Dreams”
• “Wicked: For Good”

Best Documentary Feature
Fifteen films advanced in the Documentary Feature category, out of 201 films submitted (up from 169 last year, 167 two years ago, 144 three years ago, and 138 four years ago). Documentary features that have won a qualifying film festival award or have been submitted in the International Feature Film category as their country’s official selection are also eligible in the category. Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “The Alabama Solution”
• “Apocalypse in the Tropics”
• “Coexistence, My Ass!”
• “Come See Me in the Good Light”
• “Cover-Up”
• “Cutting through Rocks”
• “Folktales”
• “Holding Liat”
• “Mr. Nobody against Putin”
• “Mistress Dispeller”
• “My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 – Last Air in Moscow”
• “The Perfect Neighbor”
• “Seeds”
• “2000 Meters to Andriivka”
• “Yanuni” 

Best Documentary Short Subject
Fifteen films advanced in the Documentary Short Subject category (up from 10 advancing five years ago), out of 117 films that qualified (up from 104 last year, from 114 two years ago and from 98 three years ago). Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “All the Empty Rooms”
• “All the Walls Came Down”
• “Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud”
• “Bad Hostage”
• “Cashing Out”
• “Chasing Time”
• “Children No More: “Were and Are Gone”” 
• “Classroom 4”
• “The Devil Is Busy”
• “Heartbeat”
• “Last Days on Lake Trinity”
• “On Healing Land, Birds Perch”
• “Perfectly a Strangeness”
• “Rovina’s Choice”
• “We Were the Scenery”

Best International Feature Film
Fifteen films advanced to the next round of voting in the International Feature Film category, from 86 countries and regions (up from 85 last year, but down from 88 two years ago and 92 three years ago).

An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (more than 40 minutes) produced outside the United States with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track.

As part of a rule change in 2020, all eligible Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting for this category and had to meet a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category. In previous years, the number of films on the shortlist was 10 and was augmented by the Academy’s International Feature Film Award Executive Committee.

In the nominations round, Academy members from ALL branches are invited to opt-in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films in order to cast a ballot.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

• Argentina, “Belén” 
• Brazil, “The Secret Agent” 
• France, “It Was Just an Accident” 
• Germany, “Sound of Falling” 
• India, “Homebound” 
• Iraq, “The President’s Cake” 
• Japan, “Kokuho” 
• Jordan, “All That’s Left of You”
• Norway, “Sentimental Value”
• Palestine, “Palestine 36” 
• South Korea, “No Other Choice”
• Spain, “Sirât” 
• Switzerland, “Late Shift”
• Taiwan, “Left-Handed Girl”
• Tunisia, “The Voice of Hind Rajab” 

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Ten films advanced in the Makeup and Hairstyling category. Members of the Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.  Academy members will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, Jan. 10.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “The Alto Knights”
• “Frankenstein”
• “Kokuho”
• “Marty Supreme”
• “Nuremberg”
• “One Battle after Another”
• “Sinners”
• “The Smashing Machine”
• “The Ugly Stepsister”
• “Wicked: For Good”

Best Music – Original Score
Twenty scores advanced in the Original Score category, out of 132 eligible (down from 145 last year). Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

As part of a rule change for the 2025 Oscars, the shortlist increased from 15 to 20 titles.

The scores, listed in alphabetical order by film title, are:

• “Avatar: Fire and Ash” 
• “Bugonia” 
• “Captain America: Brave New World” 
• “Diane Warren: Relentless” 
• “F1”
• “Frankenstein”
• “Hamnet”
• “Hedda”
• “A House of Dynamite”
• “Jay Kelly”
• “Marty Supreme”
• “Nuremberg”
• “One Battle after Another”
• “Sinners”
• “Sirât” 
• “Train Dreams” 
• “Tron: Ares”
• “Truth and Treason”
• “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery”
• “Wicked: For Good”

Best Music – Original Song
Fifteen songs advanced in the Original Song category, out of 65 eligible songs (down from 88 last year, 94 two years ago and 81 three years ago). Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The original songs, along with the motion picture in which each song is featured, are listed below in alphabetical order by film title and song title:

• “As Alive As You Need Me To Be” from “Tron: Ares”
• “Dear Me” from “Diane Warren: Relentless”
• “Dream As One” from “Avatar: Fire and Ash”
• “Drive” from “F1”
• “Dying To Live” from “Billy Idol Should Be Dead”
• “The Girl In The Bubble” from “Wicked: For Good”
• “Golden” from “KPop Demon Hunters” 
• “Highest 2 Lowest” from “Highest 2 Lowest” 
• “I Lied To You” from “Sinners”
• “Last Time (I Seen The Sun)” from “Sinners”
• “No Place Like Home” from “Wicked: For Good”
• “Our Love” from “The Ballad of Wallis Island” 
• “Salt Then Sour Then Sweet” from “Come See Me in the Good Light”
• “Sweet Dreams Of Joy” from “Viva Verdi!” 
• “Train Dreams” from “Train Dreams” 

Best Short Film – Animated
Fifteen films advanced in the Animated Short Film category (up from 10 three years ago), out of 113 films that qualified (way up from 88 last year, 93 two years ago and 82 three years ago). Academy members from the Animation Branch and Short Films Branch were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.

In the nominations round, Academy members from ALL branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Autokar”
• “Butterfly”
• “Cardboard”
• “Éiru”
• “Forevergreen”
• “The Girl Who Cried Pearls”
• “Hurikán”
• “I Died in Irpin”
• “The Night Boots”
• “Playing God”
• “The Quinta's Ghost”
• “Retirement Plan”
• “The Shyness of Trees”
• “Snow Bear”
• “The Three Sisters”

Best Short Film – Live Action
Fifteen films advanced in the Live Action Short Film category (up from 10 four years ago), out of 207 films that qualified (up from 180 last year, 187 two years ago and 200 three years ago). Academy members from ALL branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.

In the nominations round, Academy members from ALL branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Ado”
• “Amarela”
• “Beyond Silence”
• “The Boy with White Skin”
• “Butcher’s Stain”
• “Butterfly on a Wheel”
• “Dad’s Not Home”
• “Extremist” 
• “A Friend of Dorothy”
• “Jane Austen’s Period Drama”
• “Pantyhose”
• “The Pearl Comb”
• “Rock, Paper, Scissors”
• “The Singers”
• “Two People Exchanging Saliva”

Best Sound
Ten films advanced in the Sound category. This is the fifth year for the shortlist. Members of the Sound Branch determined the shortlist. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts from each of the shortlisted films beginning Thursday, Jan. 10, in the San Francisco Bay area, followed by London, Los Angeles and New York on Sunday, Jan. 11. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Avatar: Fire and Ash”
• “F1”
• “Frankenstein”
• “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning”
• “One Battle after Another”
• “Sinners”
• “Sirât” 
• “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere”
• “Superman”
• “Wicked: For Good” 

Best Visual Effects
Ten films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category. The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, Jan. 10.  Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Avatar: Fire and Ash”
• “The Electric State”
• “F1” 
• “Frankenstein”
• “Jurassic World Rebirth”
• “The Lost Bus” 
• “Sinners”
• “Superman”
• “Tron: Ares”
• “Wicked: For Good”

Nominations voting begins on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, and concludes on Friday, Jan. 16, 2025. Nominations for the 98th Academy Awards will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026.

The 98th Academy Awards, for outstanding film achievements of 2025, will be presented on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood, and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide.