With 16 nominations—two more than Titanic or All About Eve or La La Land—Sinners made Oscars history before the 98th Academy Awards ceremony had even begun. But with all the potential records on the table, the one it ended up setting was one few had expected. With only four wins, it now stands as movie with the most losses—12—in the history of the Oscars.
To be fair, only a handful of Oscars contenders have ever had the opportunity to lose so many times. (The previous record, split five ways, was 11 losses, set by 1948’s Johnny Belinda and tied by 1964’s Becket, 1977’s The Turning Point, 1985’s The Color Purple, and 2021’s The Power of the Dog.) And, at least mathematically, Sinners having more nominations than any movie in history made it more vulnerable, too. But with so much enthusiasm spread across so many of the academy’s branches, it seemed all but assured that widespread support would translate into more wins. Even the movie’s early losses, for supporting actress, costume design, and hair and makeup, had been widely predicted, and didn’t seem like much cause for concern. But when the inaugural Oscar for casting—another first, and part of how Sinners set the new nominations record—went to Sinners’ chief competition, One Battle After Another, things started to look bad. After Sinners triumphed at the Screen Actors Guild’s Actor Awards, the last major precursor, winning both best actor and the top prize for best ensemble, it seemed likely that Oscars night would bring a repeat, especially since actors make up the academy’s largest voting branch. (It couldn’t hurt that Sinners’ casting director, Francine Maisler, is an industry legend, and had given many of those actors jobs.)
-
Trump’s Endless Obsession With Penis Size Has Put His Inner Circle in an Awkward Position
-
Sinners Made Oscars History, but Not the Kind Anyone Expected
But as even some casting directors admit, many of their industry peers don’t really understand what their job entails, and despite an extensive campaign to educate academy voters on the casting process, it seemed possible, even likely, that many would simply vote for their favorite movie—effectively making the casting an early bellwether for Best Picture. Best Editing, which, like casting, is stuck at an end of the process many who work on the set never get to see, has long been seen in the same light, and when it too went to One Battle, Sinners’ fate seemed sealed.
Sinners did notch one historic win, when Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the first woman to win Best Cinematography. But even though he was, after Jordan Peele, only the second Black writer to take home an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, Coogler becoming the first Black winner of Best Director was not to be, nor was the commanding sweep that all those nominations might have foretold. Sinners’ winners made the most of their moments: Coogler coaxed his entire cast to stand for applause, Arkapaw did the same for all the women in the room, and Michael B. Jordan recited, from memory, a list of previous Black Best Actor winners, the “ancestors” whose legacy he was proud to extend. And even though it didn’t win Best Original Song, “I Lied to You” set the stage for what was instantly recognized as one of the most indelible performances in Oscars history. All of which is some consolation, but only makes the movie’s other losses harder to take in.
Sam Adams
He Was the Losingest Filmmaker in Oscars History. To Finally Triumph, He Changed Something.
Read More
The conventional wisdom used to be that the movie with the most nominations was the automatic Best Picture favorite, but in the preferential ballot era, where voters rank all the nominees rather than just picking one, it may be more about the depth of their passions than the breadth of their respect. If the Academy revealed voting totals, there’s a strong chance—a near certainty, even—that Sinners finished a close second in many of the categories it ended up losing. And the film is historic in ways the Oscars can’t begin to capture, not just in terms of its artistry and cultural impact, but for the deal Coogler made to own the film himself, which could revolutionize the industry in ways that are thrilling for creators and, even better, make studio executives extremely nervous. As for that other record? History will have its say on that, too, and whether it says more about the movie or about the Oscars themselves.
