“Oppenheimer” will look to build more awards season momentum Sunday evening when the 29th annual Critics Choice Awards are presented in Santa Monica, but it’s summer box-office rival “Barbie” is the leading contender with 18 nominations heading into the event.
“Oppenheimer” and the fantasy “Poor Things” both have 13 nominations. Those films both earned prizes during last weekend’s Golden Globe Awards, with “Oppenheimer” winning best drama film and “Poor Things” named best musical/comedy film.
Competing for the Critics Choice Award for best picture will be “Barbie,” “Oppenheimer,” “Poor Things,” “American Fiction,” “The Color Purple,” “The Holdovers,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Maestro,” “Past Lives” and “Saltburn.”
Margot Robbie is up for best actress for her portrayal of the leading doll in “Barbie.” Also nominated are Lily Gladstone for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Sandra Huller for “Anatomy of a Fall,” Greta Lee for “Past Lives,” Carey Mulligan for “Maestro” and Emma Stone for “Poor Things.” Gladstone and Stone both won the Golden Globes for best actress for drama and musical/comedy films, respectively.
Cillian Murphy is nominated for best actor for “Oppenheimer,” along with Bradley Cooper for “Maestro,” Leonardo DiCaprio for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Colman Domingo for “Rustin,” Paul Giamatti for “The Holdovers” and Jeffrey Wright for “American Fiction.” Murphy and Giamatti both took home Golden Globe Awards last weekend.
In the supporting categories, Ryan Gosling is nominated for his work as Ken opposite Robbie’s “Barbie.” He will compete for the honor with Sterling K. Brown of “American Fiction” Robert De Niro for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Robert Downey Jr. for “Oppenheimer,” Charles Melton of “May December” and Mark Ruffalo of “Poor Things.”
Vying for best supporting actress are Emily Blunt of “Oppenheimer,” Danielle Brooks of “The Color Purple,” America Ferrera of “Barbie,” Jodie Foster of “Nyad,” Julianne Moore of “May December: and Da’Vine Joy Randolph of “The Holdovers.”
“Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” are also nominated for best acting ensemble in a film, along with “Air,” “The Color Purple,” “The Holdovers” and “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
Gerwig is nominated for best director for “Barbie,” as is Christopher Nolan for “Oppenheimer.” The heavyweight category also includes Bradley Cooper for “Maestro,” Yorgos Lanthimos for “Poor Things,” Alexander Payne for “The Holdovers” and Martin Scorsese for “Killer of the Flower Moon.”
On the television side of the awards, Apple TV+’s “The Morning Show” leads all nominees with six, while HBO’s “Succession” has five.
Both programs are nominated for best drama series, along with Netflix’s “The Crown” and “The Diplomat”; HBO’s “The Last of Us” and “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty”; Disney+’s “Loki”; and Paramount+’s “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.”
“The Morning Show” has best drama series actress nods for its two leading ladies — Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. They will compete with Aunjanue Ellis of FX’s “Justified: City Primeval,” Bella Ramsey of “The Last of Us,” Keri Russell of “The Diplomat,” and Sarah Snook of “Succession.”
Kieran Culkin and Jeremy Strong are both nominated for best drama series actor for “Succession,” along with Tom Hiddleston of “Loki,” Timothy Olyphant of “Justified: City Primeval,” Pedro Pascal for “The Last of Us” and Ramón RodrÃguez for ABC’s “Will Trent.”
Competing for best comedy series will be ABC’s “Abbott Elementary; HBO’s “Barry”; FX’s “The Bear,” “Reservation Dogs” and “What We Do in the Shadows”; Prime Video’s “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”; Peacock’s “Poker Face” and Apple TV+’s “Shrinking.”
Rachel Brosnahan is nominated for best comedy actress for “Mrs. Maisel,” while Quinta Brunson scored a nod for “Abbott Elementary.” Also competing for the prize will be Ayo Edebiri for “The Bear,” Bridge Everett for HBO’s “Somebody Somewhere,” Devery Jacobs for “Reservation Dogs” and Natasha Lyonne for “Poker Face.”
Nominated for best actor in a comedy series are Bill Hader for “Barry,” Steve Martin for Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building,” Kayvan Novak for “What We Do in the Shadows,” Drew Tarver for HBO’s “The Other Two,” Jeremy Allen White for “The Bear” and D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai for “Rerservation Dogs.”
During the ceremony, America Ferrera will be presented with the eighth annual SeeHer Award, which honors a woman “who advocates for gender equality, portrays characters with authenticity, defies stereotypes and pushes boundaries.” The award is presented by the Critics Choice Association in conjunction with the SeeHer movement for accurate portrayals of women and girls in media.
Ferrera will be presented with the award by Margot Robbie.
Harrison Ford, meanwhile, will receive a Career Achievement Award, honoring a career best known for his work in the “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” franchises. He will receive the award from James Mangold, who directed Jones in last year’s “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.”
The Critics Choice Awards ceremony will be hosted by Chelsea Handler.