Film

All The Ways The 2021 Oscars Nominations Made History

A huge year for women and people of colour.

by Merryana Salem  16 March 2021
Oscars 2021 nominations

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The 2021 Oscar nominations have been announced, and brought historic firsts for women and people of colour.

A full list of the nominations can be found here, but let’s deep dive into 2021’s historic Oscars nominations and what implications they may have.

Historic Acknowledgement of Asian Talent

Minari, Nomadland and The Sound of Metal have accrued historic nominations for communities of Asian descent.

Minari is the first Asian-American produced and directed film starring a predominately Asian cast to be nominated for Best Picture. Minari star, Steven Yeun, is also nominated as Best Actor, the first Asian American actor to get the nod.

Alongside Yeun for Best Actor is Riz Ahmed. Ahmed is both the first Muslim to be nominated and the first of Pakistani descent. His sharing the category with  Yeun is also the first time two men of Asian descent have shared the category.

Sharing recognition with Minari in the best director and best film categories is Chloe Zhao for Nomadland. Zhao is the first woman of colour to be nominated for best director. Nomadland’s nomination for Best Picture alongside Minari is the first time two movies directed by people of Asian descent are in the same category.

Viola Davis Makes History For Black Women

Viola Davis made awards show history before when she became the first Black American woman to win the “Triple Crown of Acting” aka, a Tony, Emmy, and Oscar. Now, she’s made Awards history again.

Viola Davis received a nomination for Best Actress in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, her fourth Oscar nomination. Davis is now the most nominated Black woman in Oscars’ history, officially surpassing Octavia Spencer’s three nominations, and Whoopi Goldberg’s two.

Women Directors Rise!

For the first time in history, two women are nominated in the Oscars for Best Director. ChloĂ© Zhao’s for Nomadland and Emerald Fennell for Promising Young Woman marks the first time two women have shared the category.

Women have only been nominated in the Best Director category five times. The only woman to win was Kathryn Bigelow in 2009 for The Hurt Locker. Nomadland and Promising Young Woman also share nominations for Best Picture.

Not Above Critique

The Oscars may not look so white this year, but the Academy does not get praised uncritically after over nine decades of racism. Even among the nominees, the Academy’s embedded racial biases can still be felt.

While honoured, Davis herself pointed out, “If me, going back to the Oscars four times in 2021, makes me the most nominated Black actress in history, that’s a testament to the sheer lack of material there has been out there for artists of colour.”

A fourth nomination puts her on par with white actresses half her age such as Saoirse Ronan, and Jennifer Lawrence.  If Davis wins, she will only be the second Black woman in history to win the category. The first and last time a Black woman won was Halle Berry in 2002.

These racialised gaps are not much improved for nominees of Asian descent. Yeun, the first Asian American to be nominated in almost 100 years, is a testament to the Academy’s anti-Asian sentiments being especially strong towards its own American diaspora. Prior to Yuen, all the Asian nominees were international.

In a 12 month period that has seen significant rises in anti-Black racism as well as anti-Asian racism, these nominations may feel like a welcome reprieve. However, they are also a reminder that a symbol of progress is not always the endpoint of progress.

Merryana Salem is a proud Wonnarua and Lebanese–Australian writer, critic, teacher, researcher and podcaster on most social media as @akajustmerry. If you want, check out her podcast, GayV Club where she gushes about LGBT rep in media with her best friend. Either way, she hopes you ate something nice today.