Beyoncé, Billie Eilish among Oscars 2022 shortlist

It's Moira Rose's favorite season — Awards. And the big kahuna of them all, the Oscars, are just around the corner. This morning, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the shortlists for 10 categories including Documentary Feature, International Feature Film, and Original Song.

Being a shortlist and all, there's no guarantee these will translate into nominations, but they're oh-so-close. Each of the 10 categories has 10-15 films that will advance to member branches who will then vote for the ultimate five nominees. Think of these as the pre-Oscar nominations.

Among the notable standouts, Billie Eilish's doc The World's a Little Blurry and her titular theme song from the Bond film No Time to Die are shortlisted for Documentary and Original Song, respectively.

Questlove's ode to the summer of '69, Summer of Soul is also, unsurprisingly, shortlisted for Doc Feature, along with the animated Flee, and Todd Haynes' The Velvet Underground.

Flee is also shortlisted for International Feature, along with Japan's Drive My Car, which was recently honored with the top prize by both the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and the New York Film Critics Circle.

In the most star-studded category so far, Beyoncé's anthem from King Richard, "Be Alive," is listed among the 15 potential Original Song nominees. Will this finally be Queen Bey's year to clinch that ever elusive nomination?

Beyoncé, Billie Eilish
Beyoncé, Billie Eilish

Kevin Winter/Getty Images; Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

Well, she's got stiff competition from Eilish, as the Academy loves a Bond song, rock legend Brian Wilson for "Right Where I Belong" from his doc Long Promised Road, inevitable EGOT'er Lin-Manuel Miranda for "Dos Oruguitas" from Encanto, rapper Young Buck's "Guns Go Bang" from The Harder They Fall," U2's "Your Song Saved My Life" from Sing 2, and Jennifer Hudson and Carole King's collaboration from Respect, "Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)."

Nomination voting begins Jan. 27 and lasts until Feb. 1 with the final nominations announced Feb. 8, 2022. The 94th Oscars will then take place on Mar. 27.

For a complete list of shortlists for the 10 categories announced, head to the Oscars website.

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