Guillermo del Toro snubbed from Oscars’ directing nomination for ‘Frankenstein’

Guillermo del Toro’s gothic horror film “Frankenstein” received nine nominations for the Oscars, but not in the best director category. 

Besides the best picture and supporting actor nominations for the film, it was also nominated for cinematography, costume design, adapted screenplay, makeup and hairstyling, original score, production design and sound.

Del Toro has said adapting Frankenstein has been one of his dreams since he was a child. The theme of parental neglect and abandonment and grief resonated with the Mexican director, who touched on his own personal memories of his father to work on the adaptation. 

"Sinners," Ryan Coogler's vampire tale set in the Jim Crow South with Michael B. Jordan playing twin criminal brothers, made Oscar history Thursday, scoring a record 16 Academy Award nominations. The previous record for most Oscar nominations was 14 -- by "La La Land" in 2016, "Titanic" in 1997 and "All About Eve" in 1950. Of those older films, only "La La Land" failed to capture the best picture award.

Also nominated Thursday for best picture were  "One Battle After Another," "Frankenstein,” "Marty Supreme," "Sentimental Value," "Hamnet," "Bugonia," "F1," "The Secret Agent" and "Train Dreams."

For best actor, nominations went to Jordan in "Sinners"; Timothée Chalamet in "Marty Supreme"; Leonardo DiCaprio in "One Battle After Another"; Ethan Hawke for "Blue Moon"; and Wagner Moura for "The Secret Agent."

The Brazilian film "The Secret Agent" was also nominated for Best International Feature Film, along with "It Was Just an Accident" (France), "Sentimental Value" (Norway), "Sirat" (Spain) and "The Voice of Hind Rajab" (Tunisia).

Earlier this year, the Critics' Choice Awards received backlash for awarding the Best Foreign Film category on the red carpet to Kleber Mendonça Filho, director of “The Secret Agent.” They didn’t even give him a chance to deliver a speech. Then, at the Golden Globes, he was cut off by the music while giving his speech for winning the foreign film category. We’ll see if the Oscars award the statue to the Brazilian film. 

For best director, Coogler captured a nomination for "Sinners," joining Chloé Zhao for "Hamnet"; Josh Safdie for "Marty Supreme"; Paul Thomas Anderson for "One Battle after Another"; and Joachim Trier for "Sentimental Value."

Oscar nods for best supporting actor went to Benicio Del Toro and Sean Penn in "One Battle After Another"; Jacob Elordi in "Frankenstein"; Delroy Lindo in "Sinners"; and Stellan Skarsgard in "Sentimental Value."

For best supporting actress, nominees were Elle Fanning and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas in "Sentimental Value"; Amy Madigan in "Weapons"; Wunmi Mosaku in "Sinners"; and Teyana Taylor in "One Battle After Another."

Besides the best picture, director, actor and supporting actor/actress nominations for "Sinners," the film's haul Thursday included nods for casting (a new category this year), cinematography, costume design, film editing, makeup and hairstyling, original score, original song, production design, sound, visual effects and original screenplay.

"One Battle After Another" -- Anderson's dark-comic tale about a group of one-time revolutionaries -- also captured nominations for casting, cinematography, film editing, original score, production design, sound and adapted screenplay.

Notable snubs Thursday included Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande for reprising their "Wicked" roles in 2025's "Wicked: For Good." Both had been nominated in the first iteration of that franchise.

Paul Mescal was another notable absentee from Thursday's nominations for his turn as William Shakespeare in "Hamnet." 

A total of 317 feature films are eligible for consideration for the 98th Academy Awards, including 201 that met the criteria for consideration for best picture, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced.

To be eligible for consideration in the general entry categories, feature films must open in a commercial motion picture theater in at least one of six U.S. metropolitan areas -- Los Angeles County; the city of New York; the San Francisco Bay Area; Chicago, Illinois; Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas; and Atlanta, Georgia, between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31 of 2025, and run for at least seven consecutive days in the same venue. The films must be more than 40 minutes long.

Qualifying for the best picture category, films must be eligible for the general categories and producers must submit an Academy Representation and Inclusion Standards form. They also must complete an expanded theatrical release standard, including a run of at least seven days in 10 of the top 50 U.S. markets, no later than 45 days after their initial release in 2025.

The 98th Academy Awards will take place on March 15 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, seen on local ABC TV stations and streaming on Hulu. The complete list of the nominations is available on the Academy website. 

Additional reporting by City News Service.