The Directors Guild of America unveiled its nominees for the DGA Awards, delivering a slate that reflects the season’s dominant contenders, and a number of conspicuous omissions that have been rippling through the Oscar race.
The five filmmakers competing for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film are the following:
Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film
- Paul Thomas Anderson, “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.)
- Ryan Coogler, “Sinners” (Warner Bros.)
- Guillermo Del Toro, “Frankenstein” (Netflix)
- Josh Safdie, “Marty Supreme” (A24)
- Chloé Zhao, “Hamnet” (Focus Features)
The lineup solidifies what has increasingly felt like a two-studio race at the top, with Warner Bros. landing two of the five directing slots, while Netflix, A24 and Focus Features each secure one apiece.
Coogler’s nomination carries historic weight. He becomes only the fifth Black director ever recognized by the DGA, and the first since Spike Lee for “BlacKkKlansman” (2018). Previous Black nominees include Jordan Peele (“Get Out”), Barry Jenkins (“Moonlight”) and Lee Daniels (“Precious”). Notably, no Black filmmaker has ever won the DGA’s top directing prize.
Zhao, meanwhile, continues to make history of her own. The Oscar winner for “Nomadland” (2020) became the third woman — and the first Asian woman — to win the DGA Award and now joins Jane Campion, Kathryn Bigelow and Greta Gerwig as the only women to earn multiple DGA nominations. In total, just 12 women have ever been nominated in the category. Zhao is also the first female POC to be nominated a second time.
This marks only the second time in DGA history that a majority of the top category’s nominees come from filmmakers representing underrepresented communities. The first occurred in 2017, when Guillermo Del Toro (“The Shape of Water”), Greta Gerwig (“Lady Bird”), Jordan Peele (“Get Out”) and Martin McDonagh (“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”) made up the majority of the lineup. Del Toro, notably, is part of that history once again, earning his second career DGA nomination for his gothic adaptation of “Frankenstein.”
Josh Safdie’s “Dream Big” slogan for his high-octane comedy “Marty Supreme” also appears to be paying off. The nomination marks his first career DGA nod and his second solo directorial effort — a significant boost in what remains a highly competitive best director race.
Despite what many have called a banner year for international and non-English-language cinema, all the acclaimed auteurs were left outside the DGA circle, mimicking The Actor Awards’ rejection earlier this week. Among the most striking snubs: Joachim Trier for the Norwegian family drama “Sentimental Value,” Park Chan-wook for the South Korean black comedy “No Other Choice,” Oliver Laxe for the Spanish rave thriller “Sirât,” and Kleber Mendonça Filho for the Brazilian political drama “The Secret Agent.” Also missing were Clint Bentley’s elegiac period piece “Train Dreams” and both of Richard Linklater’s 2025 efforts, “Blue Moon” and “Nouvelle Vague.”
The DGA also announced nominees for the Michael Apted Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in First-Time Theatrical Feature Film, highlighting a strong and eclectic class of emerging filmmakers:
First-Time Theatrical Feature Film
- Hasan Hadi, “The President’s Cake” (Sony Pictures Classics)
- Harry Lighton, “Pillion” (A24)
- Alex Russell, “Lurker” (Mubi)
- Charlie Polinger, “The Plague” (IFC)
- Eva Victor, “Sorry, Baby” (A24)
Instituted in 2015 — beginning with Alex Garland for “Ex Machina” — the category has increasingly signaled emerging Oscar traction. Last year’s winner, RaMell Ross for “Nickel Boys,” went on to earn a best picture nomination, underscoring the award’s growing significance.
In a statement accompanying the announcement, DGA President Christopher Nolan praised the nominees’ artistry and commitment to the craft. “We could not be prouder to recognize the incredible work of this year’s nominees for their dedication to the art of filmmaking,” Nolan said, adding that the guild looks forward to celebrating the honorees at the ceremony.
Historically, the DGA remains one of the Academy Awards’ most reliable bellwethers. Since the award’s inception, only eight DGA winners have failed to convert their victory into an Oscar win for best director: Anthony Harvey (“The Lion in Winter”), Francis Ford Coppola (“The Godfather”), Steven Spielberg (“The Color Purple”), Ron Howard (“Apollo 13”), Ang Lee (“Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”), Rob Marshall (“Chicago”), Ben Affleck (“Argo”) and Sam Mendes (“1917”).
The correlation is even stronger when it comes to best picture. Only two films — “Driving Miss Daisy” (1989) and “CODA” (2022) — have ever won the Academy Award for best picture without receiving a DGA nomination for directing. By contrast, six films have managed to win best picture without even an Oscar nomination for directing: “Wings,” “Grand Hotel,” “Driving Miss Daisy,” “Argo,” “Green Book” and “CODA.”
The winners will be announced at the 78th Annual DGA Awards on Saturday, Feb. 7.
