Oscar nominees react to their latest honors

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The 2026 nominations for the Academy Awards have been announced, with Ryan Coogler’s vampire epic “Sinners” leading the pack with a record-breaking 16 nominations.

Check out the reactions from this year’s Oscar nominees sent to Spectrum News in statements, which have been shortened for clarity and easy read.

‘Sinners’

Wunmi Mosaku received her first Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Annie.

“This nomination means more to me than I can possibly put into words. ‘Sinners’ was made with such care, courage, and love, and to see the entire film recognized in this way is profoundly moving,” she said in a statement to Spectrum News. “Ryan’s fearless vision, the breathtaking work of every department behind the camera, and the generosity and brilliance of my fellow actors made this experience truly unforgettable. I’m endlessly grateful to Ryan, to my castmates, and to every single person who poured their talent into telling this story. Thank you to the Academy for honouring our work.”

Francine Maisler was nominated for Best Casting.

“Thank you to the Academy for this incredible recognition. This is a historic moment for the casting community,” she said in a statement to Spectrum News. “I am honored to be a part of it and humbled to share it with my fellow nominees whose work I deeply admire.”

‘One Battle After Another’

Teyana Taylor, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actress, told Spectrum News in a statement that on Wednesday night, she fell asleep watching “Pretty Woman” while thinking about happy endings and how impossible they sometimes feel.

“I woke up realizing I’ve been living in one that God has been preparing me for my own fairytale ending,” she said. “To be an Academy Award nominee is beyond anything I ever allowed myself to fully believe was possible. I am so deeply emotional, so humbled, and so grateful for every person who has walked this road with me & honored to be nominated alongside these amazing women in my category. […] As always and forever.. to Paul ‘Let Him Cook’ Thomas Anderson, thank you for your vision, your trust, and your brilliance. My gratitude is endless.”

‘The Secret Agent’

Kleber Mendonça Filho wrote and directed the film, which was nominated for Best Picture, Best International Film, Best Casting and Best Actor. His wife, Emilie Lesclaux, who was a producer on the film, also received a nomination.

“Today is clearly a great day with these four nominations. One year ago, I was beginning post-production on ‘The Secret Agent.’ That’s one hell of a full circle,” said Filho. “My heartfelt thanks go to our extraordinary cast and crew, to my partner and producer Emilie Lesclaux, and to my dear friend Wagner Moura, with whom I am sharing this intense journey. I would also like to thank NEON and everyone working so passionately on this campaign.”

“This is a very happy day for us and for Brazilian cinema. I am incredibly happy for Wagner, for the entire cast and crew across four countries, for Gabriel Domingues, our casting director, and for Kleber, who poured his heart and energy into this film over so many years,” said Emilie Lesclaux. “I would also like to thank Vitrine, our Brazilian distributor, and everyone who supported us throughout this intense journey.”

‘Bugonia’

Making her own history, Emma Stone became the youngest woman in Oscars history to receive seven nominations. She previously won for “Poor Things” and “La La Land.”

“Thank you to the Academy for these nominations and to everyone who poured their hearts into ‘Bugonia,’” she said in a statement to Spectrum News. “None of this exists without our director, Yorgos. I am forever grateful for our creative partnership and friendship. I share this recognition with the beyond brilliant Jesse Plemons and our remarkable cast, crew and producers. To be in the company of all of these incredible nominees is a true honor, and I’m deeply thankful.”

Stone, who is also a producer on the film, was also nominated alongside Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Yorgos Lanthimos and Lars Knudsen for Best Picture.

“Thank you to the Academy voters for this recognition, and to the teams at Element, Square Peg, CJ ENM, Fremantle and Focus who were with us every step of the way,” the team said in a statement.

Jerskin Fendrix, who was nominated for Original Score, said in a statement, “I love Yorgos and I love my colleagues. Thank you to the Academy, the London Contemporary Orchestra, Air Studios, Alex Putman, Will Carkeet & Graeme Stewart.”

In a statement to Spectrum News, Will Tracy, who was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay, said:

“I’m feeling very honored right now to be nominated for this award, especially amongst such sterling company. Working on the film with my friends was a hugely happy experience, and that’s all down to the trust and support of Yorgos Lanthimos, Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Ari Aster, Lars Knudsen, all the fine folks at Focus Features and the Academy. I raise my mug to them.”

‘Frankenstein’

Guillermo del Toro’s Mary Shelley’s film adaptation received nine nominations, including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay.

“Frankenstein has been a companion – a guardian angel- to me since childhood. It taught me to see tenderness in darkness and humanity in all those cast aside. To have this film recognized with nine nominations is deeply emotional and personal,” he said in a statement. “This honor belongs to all the artists who gave themselves completely to this work, in front and behind the camera and to the prodigious heart and mind of one Mary Shelley, a teenager whose story has always reminded the world that in the absence of love, compassion or responsibility monsters are born or absolved. Thank you all for embracing our film so generously.”

Jacob Elordi received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

“I have been enamored by actors and this craft of acting for as long as I can remember, remembering. It’s a great pleasure to share a stage with all of my heroes past and present. I must thank my dear friend Guillermo del Toro and my partners, Oscar and Mia, and our whole creative team. I love this creature and I love the movies,” he said in a statement.

Alexandre Desplat, who is a two-time Oscar-winning composer, was nominated for his work on “Frankenstein” for Best Original Score.

“Ì thank my peers at the music branch of the Academy for this nomination which goes straight to my heart. And I thank Guillermo del Toro. for taking me and his artistic team through his operatic masterpiece,” he said.

‘Train Dreams’

Adolpho Veloso received a nomination for Best Cinematography.

“It’s a dream come true. One of those dreams that feels so distant it almost lives in utopia. I still can’t believe it. I’m incredibly happy and deeply honored,” he said in a statement to Spectrum News. “This nomination belongs to the entire crew who brought this film to life, and to my family and friends for their endless support. I’m so proud to represent Brazil in such a special moment for our cinema. Vai Brasil, vai Corinthians!”

Marissa McMahon, Teddy Schwarzman, Will Janowitz, Ashley Schlaifer and Michael Heimler were nominated for Best Picture.

“Bringing Denis Johnson’s beloved novella to the screen has been a labor of love for all of us. ‘Train Dreams’ is the story of an ordinary man confronting a rapidly changing world, and to see its relevance resonate with the Academy on this level is a testament to Clint Bentley’s vision and everyone involved, particularly a wonderful cast led by the great Joel Edgerton,” the team said in a statement.

Greg Kwedar, who is a co-writer on “Train Dreams,” received a nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.

“It’s been a beautiful and surreal morning to see our work on Train Dreams recognized by the Academy. And to join some of our writing heroes across Oscars history by returning for a second year in a row is very humbling and breathtaking,” said Kwedar.  “[…] to my best friend and filmmaking partner, Clint, who directed with such vision and grace, to Joel, who led our cast with such a towering yet intimately profound performance, and to our producers and fellow artisans… we share this with you.”

Bryce Dessner was nominated for Best Original Song “Train Dreams.”

“It’s a huge honor to be nominated for an Oscar this year with the incredible Nick Cave for our song ‘Train Dreams’ from Clint Bentley’s beautiful film.  It was an honor to collaborate with Nick on this song who is one of our longtime musical heroes and whose deep humanity and empathy as a songwriter are a close relative to the heart and soul of this film,” said Dessner in a statement.

‘Hamnet’

Jessie Buckley was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

“It’s an absolute honour to be recognised by the Academy. I am so proud to be standing beside all these extraordinary artists and fellow nominees whose work has inspired me and moved me!” she said in a statement. “Chloé Zhao you cracked my heart wide open when you asked me to step into Maggie O’Farrell’s world and create our Agnes beside you. Paul, there is no Agnes without you. I’m so grateful to have been part of this story with the incredible village of artists I shared it with.”

As producers of “Hamnet,” Liza Marshall, Pippa Harris, Nicolas Gonda, Steven Spielberg and Sam Mendes earned a Best Picture nomination.

“Producing Hamnet was an honor, and today’s recognition by the Academy is exciting, emotional, rewarding, and deeply humbling,” the teams said in a statement. “From the beginning, this film was guided by a belief that storytelling can help us see one another more clearly. To feel this film embraced in this way is a reminder of cinema’s rare ability to bring people together and to leave us feeling more connected than when we began. We are deeply grateful to everyone who helped bring this story to life.” 

Maggie O’Farrell, who is the author of “Hamnet,” received an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.

“What astonishing and joyous news. I’m so grateful to the Academy for these nominations, which recognise and celebrate the work of so many talented individuals who worked on ‘Hamnet,’” she said in a statement to Spectrum News. “When I was writing the novel, it never occurred to me that such a turn of events would be possible: I’m having to pinch myself at regular intervals because it all seems like a dream. I had a wonderful time on set, and being able to co-write the script with Chloé was a fascinating experience.”

Max Richter was nominated for Best Original Score.

“I feel incredibly fortunate to have been part of Hamnet and collaborated with Chloé, whose thoughtful vision guided this film at every step. I’m deeply honored by this nomination and grateful to the Academy for recognizing our work, and for the opportunity to help bring this beautiful story to life,” he said in a statement.

Nina Gold was nominated for Best Casting, the newest Oscar category in over 20 years.

“This first ever Casting Oscar nomination is a total and utter thrill.  Hamnet is a beautiful example of the true power of artistic collaboration, and it was a privilege to make it with all my incredible colleagues. And I’m also claiming this nomination for the previous 97 years of brilliant casting directors before us, and sharing my joy with them,” said Gold in a statement.

‘Song Sung Blue’

It has been 25 years since Kate Hudson received her first Oscar nomination for “Almost Famous,” and now she’s been nominated for Best Actress – making her and her mother – Goldie Hawn – the third daughter-mother duo to each have multiple nominations.

 “What an incredible feeling and moment to have been nominated! My heart is filled with gratitude and joy. I’m so thrilled to celebrate with all the amazing women in this category. Being in ‘Song Sung Blue’ has been one of the great honors of my life,” Hudson told Spectrum News in a statement.

‘Blue Moon’

Ethan Hawke received a Best Actor nomination Thursday morning. It’s his firth career nomination and his first in the leading actor category.

“Playing Larry Hart was the greatest challenge of my 40-year acting career. To make this film alongside one of my best friends, the incomparable Richard Linklater, was an honor in itself,” he told Spectrum News in a statement. “Today I’m thinking back to the first time I read Robert Kaplow’s brilliant, now Oscar-nominated script, which so vividly captures the dangers and the joy in pursuing an artistic life. Thank you to The Academy for recognizing our work, and with it the work of our cast, crew, and the entire company of artists who came together in Ireland to realize ‘Blue Moon.’”

The 98th Academy Awards will take place March 15 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles and will be televised live on ABC and Hulu. YouTube’s new deal to exclusively air won’t take effect until 2029. This year, Conan O’Brien will return as host.