‘Spider-Man: No Way Home,’ ‘Don’t Look Up’ Aim to Increase Best Picture Chances With Guild Noms

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A tsunami of buzz and Oscar-telling indicators drop on Thursday, with the major guilds announcing award nominations. The Directors Guild of America (DGA), Writers Guild of America (WGA), Producers Guild of America (PGA) and American Cinema Editors (ACE Eddies) all serve as critical barometers for the Academy Awards, especially in the race for best picture.

DGA has averaged four of their five nominees landing in the Oscars’ best director category, including last year with Aaron Sorkin (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”) getting bumped for Thomas Vinterberg (“Another Round”). The first-time directors’ category, with the exception of Jordan Peele for “Get Out” (2017), has gone on to get a nod at the Academy.

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The PGA always provides some big blockbusters and Academy flare, which bodes well for either “No Time to Die” or “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The WGA has a lot of ineligibilities that won’t provide a strong enough indicator for the screenplay categories. And finally, ACE Eddies splits films into drama and comedy/musical categories, which provides a bump to particular contenders.

The final predictions are below for the major guilds, with some noteworthy category switches and ineligibilities in each awards body.

. - Credit: Courtesy of Rob Youngson/Focus Features
. - Credit: Courtesy of Rob Youngson/Focus Features

Courtesy of Rob Youngson/Focus Features

Directors Guild of America

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures

Alternates: Joel Coen (“The Tragedy of Macbeth”), Paul Thomas Anderson (“Licorice Pizza”), Siân Heder (“CODA”), Guillermo del Toro (“Nightmare Alley”), Ryûsuke Hamaguchi (“Drive My Car”)

Outstanding Directorial Achievement of a First-Time Feature Film Director

  • Maggie Gyllenhaal, “The Lost Daughter” (Netflix)

  • Rebecca Hall, “Passing” (Netflix)

  • Lin-Manuel Miranda, “Tick, Tick … Boom!” (Netflix)

  • Jeymes Samuel, “The Harder They Fall” (Netflix)

  • Michael Sarnoski, “Pig” (Neon)

Alternates: Clint Bentley (“Jockey”), Edson Oda (“Nine Days”), Fran Kranz (“Mass”), Halle Berry (“Bruised”), Liesl Tommy (“Respect”)

• • •

Producers Guild of America

Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures

  • “Belfast” (Focus Features)
    Laura Berwick, Kenneth Branagh, Becca Kovacik, Tamar Thomas

  • “CODA” (Apple Original Films)
    Philippe Rousselet, Fabrice Gianfermi, Patrick Wachsberger, Jerôme Seydoux

  • “Don’t Look Up” (Netflix)
    Adam McKay, Kevin Messick, Scott Stuber, Betsy Koch, Todd Schulman

  • “Dune” (Warner Bros)
    Cale Boyter, Joe Caracciolo Jr, Mary Parent, Denis Villeneuve

  • “King Richard” (Warner Bros)
    Tim White, Trevor White, Will Smith

  • “Licorice Pizza” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
    Paul Thomas Anderson, Sara Murphy, JoAnne Sellar, Daniel Lupi

  • “No Time to Die” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
    Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli

  • “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix)
    Emile Sherman, Iain Canning, Roger Frappier, Jane Campion, Tanya Seghatchian

  • “The Tragedy of Macbeth” (Apple Original Films/A24)
    Joel Coen, Robert Graf, Frances McDormand

  • “West Side Story” (20th Century Studios)
    Kristie Macosko Krieger, Kevin McCollum, Steven Spielberg

Alternates: “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (Sony Pictures), “Nightmare Alley” (Searchlight Pictures), “Tick, Tick … Boom!” (Netflix), “House of Gucci” (MGM/United Artists Releasing), “Being the Ricardos” (Amazon Studios)

Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures

  • “Encanto” (Walt Disney Pictures)
    Yvett Merino, Clark Spencer

  • “Luca” (Pixar)
    Andrea Warren

  • “The Mitchells vs. the Machines” (Netflix)
    Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Kurt Albrecht

  • “Raya and the Last Dragon” (Walt Disney Pictures)
    Osnat Shurer, Peter Del Vecho

  • “Sing 2” (Illumination/Universal Pictures)
    Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy

Alternate: “Ron’s Gone Wrong” (20th Century Studios)

• • •

Writers Guild of America

Adapted Screenplay

  • “CODA” (Apple Original Films) – Siân Heder

  • “Dune” (Warner Bros) – Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve, Eric Roth

  • “The Harder They Fall” (Netflix) – Jeymes Samuel, Boaz Yakin

  • “Nightmare Alley” (Searchlight Pictures) – Guillermo del Toro, Kim Morgan

  • “Tick, Tick … Boom!” (Netflix) – Steven Levenson

Alternates: “The Green Knight” (A24), “House of Gucci” (MGM/United Artists Releasing), “No Time to Die” (MGM/United Artists Releasing), “The Tender Bar” (Amazon Studios), “The Tragedy of Macbeth” (Apple Original Films)

Not eligible: “Benedetta” (IFC Films), “Cyrano” (MGM/United Artists Releasing), “Drive My Car” (Janus Films/Sideshow), “The Lost Daughter” (Netflix), “Passing” (Netflix), “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix), “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (Sony Pictures), “Zola” (A24)

Note: “The Harder They Fall” is competing in this category for WGA, but the Academy has declared it an original screenplay.

Original Screenplay

  • “Being the Ricardos” (Amazon Studios) – Aaron Sorkin

  • “C’mon C’mon” (A24) – Mike Mills

  • “Don’t Look Up” (Netflix) – Adam McKay, David Sirota

  • “King Richard” (Warner Bros) – Zach Baylin

  • “Licorice Pizza” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) – Paul Thomas Anderson

Alternates: “The Card Counter” (Focus Features), “The French Dispatch” (Searchlight Pictures), “Red Rocket” (A24), “Spencer” (Neon/Topic Studios), “Stillwater” (Focus Features)

Not eligible: “Annette” (Amazon Studios), “Belfast” (Focus Features), “The Hand of God” (Netflix), “A Hero” (Amazon Studios), “Mass” (Bleecker Street), “Parallel Mothers” (Sony Pictures), “Pig” (Neon), “Titane” (Neon), “The Worst Person in the World” (Neon)

• • •

American Cinema Editors

Best Edited Feature Film – Dramatic

  • “Belfast” (Focus Features) – Úna Ní Dhonghaíle

  • “Dune” (Warner Bros) – Joe Walker

  • “King Richard” (Warner Bros) – Pamela Martin

  • “No Time to Die” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) – Tom Cross, Elliot Graham

  • “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) – Peter Sciberras

Alternate: “CODA” (Geraud Brisson)

Best Edited Feature Film – Comedy or Musical

  • “Don’t Look Up” (Netflix) – Hank Corwin

  • “The French Dispatch” (Searchlight Pictures) – Andrew Weisblum

  • “Licorice Pizza” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) – Andy Jurgensen

  • “Tick, Tick … Boom!” (Netflix) – Myron Kerstein, Andrew Weisblum

  • “West Side Story” (20th Century Studios) – Sarah Broshar, Michael Kahn

Alternate: “Red Rocket” (Sean Baker)

Best Edited Animated Feature Film

  • “Encanto” (Walt Disney Pictures) – Jeremy Milton

  • “Luca” (Pixar) – Catherine Apple, Jason Hudak

  • “The Mitchells vs. the Machines” (Netflix) – Greg Levitan

  • “Raya and the Last Dragon” (Walt Disney Pictures) – Fabienne Rawley, Shannon Stein

  • “Sing 2” (Illumination/Universal Pictures) – Gregory Perler

Alternate: “Vivo” (Erika Dapkewicz)

Best Edited Documentary – Feature

  • “Flee” (Neon) – Janus Billeskov Jansen

  • “My Name is Pauli Murray” (Amazon Studios) – Cinque Northern

  • “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)” (Searchlight Pictures) – Joshua L. Pearson

  • “Val” (Amazon Studios) – Leo Scott, Ting Poo

  • “The Velvet Underground” (Apple Original Films) –
    Affonso Gonçalves, Adam Kurnitz

Alternate: “In the Same Breath” (Michael Shade, Nanfu Wang)

Note: “Cyrano” (Valerio Bonelli), “In the Heights” (Myron Kerstein) and “The Harder They Fall” (Tom Eagles) were submitted as dramas. “Flee” (Janus Billeskov Jansen) can only submit in one category and it is submitted in documentary)

2022 Academy Awards Predictions

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