The 98th Academy Awards delivered several unexpected moments, with notable snubs and surprises across major categories. Films such as Marty Supreme, Bugonia, Train Dreams, and The Secret Agent were shut out entirely despite multiple nominations.
In one of the first surprises, Cassandra Kulukundis won the inaugural Oscar for casting for One Battle After Another, beating favourite Francine Maisler (Sinners). Josh Safdie's Marty Supreme, starring Timothée Chalamet, failed to win any of its nominations including Best Actor, Best Directing, and Best Picture. Chalamet lost the Lead Actor prize to Michael B. Jordan for Sinners.
Mr. Nobody Against Putin won Best Documentary Feature, surprising many who expected The Perfect Neighbor or Come See Me in the Good Light to prevail. The film had gone much of awards season without US distribution before being acquired by Kino Lorber in January.
Presenter Kumail Nanjiani calmly handled a rare tie in the Live Action Short category between The Singers and Two People Exchanging Saliva. This was the seventh tie in Oscars history, the most recent being in 2013 for Sound Editing.
Stellan Skarsgård won Best Supporting Actor for One Battle After Another, beating favourite Sean Penn. Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone's Bugonia failed to win any of its four nominations, while Train Dreams and The Secret Agent also left empty-handed despite multiple nods.
