The number 13, associated with bad luck in many cultures, has become a symbol of success in the history of the Oscar Awards. A total of twelve films have achieved this number of Best Picture nominations, and in 2025, the French musical Emilia Perez has earned a privileged place on this select list.
Directed by Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez becomes the most nominated foreign film in the history of the Oscars, surpassing the records of Roma ( Alfonso Cuarón) and The Tiger and the Dragon (Ang Lee), both with ten nominations.
The most nominated films of the year
Audiard’s film leads with thirteen nominations, followed by Wicked and The Brutalist, with ten each. In third place, with eight nominations, are A Complete Unknown and Conclave, while Anora has six.
Denis Villeneuve’s highly anticipated sequel, Dune: Part 2, along with the horror thriller The Substance, have each received five nominations, while Nickel Boys and I’m Still Here have garnered two and three nominations, respectively.
However, some of the most anticipated films of the year, such as Nosferatu, Civil War, Jury Number 2, The Next Room, Queer and The Lives of Sing Sing, were left out of the main category despite their success at the box office and festivals.
Number 13 in the history of the Oscars
In the nearly 100 years of the Oscar Awards, only three films have surpassed the 13 nominations barrier, reaching a record 14:
- Naked Eve (1959)
- Titanic (1997)
- La La Land (2016)
However, their fates were very different. While Titanic swept the board with 11 statuettes, including Best Picture and Best Director, Naked Eve and La La Land took home six awards each, with Damien Chazelle’s film winning the top prize.
Among the list of films with 13 nominations, titles such as Gone with the Wind (10 awards), Forrest Gump (6), Shakespeare in Love (7), Chicago (6), Oppenheimer (7) and The Shape of Water (4) stand out.
The most outstanding nominations of 2025
Broken down by category, the main contenders for the 93rd Oscar Awards, to be held on March 2, 2025, are as follows:
Favorites in the Best Picture category:
Emilia Perez (Jacques Audiard).- Wicked (Jon M. Chu)
- The Brutalist (Brady Corbet).
- A Complete Unknown (James Mangold).
- Conclave (Edward Berger).
- Anora (Sean Baker).
- Dune: Part 2 (Denis Villeneuve).
- Nickel Boys (RaMell Ross).
- The substance (Coralie Fargeat).
- I’m Still Here (Walter Salles)
Top nominations by film:
- Emilia Pérez (13): Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Karla Sofía Gascón), Best Supporting Actress (Zoe Saldaña), Best International Film, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Soundtrack, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Sound and two nominations for Best Original Song(Mi Camino and El Mal).
‘The Brutalist’ is up for Oscars in ten categories, including Best Director, Brady Corbet (pictured right) and Lead Actor, Adrien Brody (l). - The Brutalist (10): Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Adrien Brody), Best Supporting Actor (Guy Pearce), Best Supporting Actress (Felicity Jones), Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Soundtrack, Best Editing and Best Production Design.
- Wicked (10): Best Picture, Best Actress (Cynthia Erivo), Best Supporting Actress (Ariana Grande), Best Editing, Best Soundtrack, Best Production Design, Best Costumes, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Sound and Best Visual Effects.
- A Complete Unknown (8): Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Timothée Chalamet), Best Supporting Actor (Edward Norton), Best Supporting Actress (Monica Barbaro), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Costumes and Best Sound.
- Conclave (8): Best Picture, Best Actor (Ralph Fiennes), Best Supporting Actress (Isabella Rossellini), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Score, Best Production Design and Best Costumes.
- Anora (6): Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress (Mikey Madison), Best Supporting Actor (Yuriy Borisov), Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing.
- Dune: Part 2 (5): Best Picture, Best Sound, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design and Best Visual Effects.
- The Substance (5): Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Demi Moore), Best Original Screenplay and Best Makeup and Hairstyling.
- Aún estoy aquí (3): Best Film, Best Actress (Fernanda Torres) and Best International Film.
- Nickel Boys (2): Best Film and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Controversies at the Oscars 2025
The road to the Oscars gala has not been free of controversy. Among the most commented aspects of this edition, the following stand out:
- The use of artificial intelligence in The Brutalist: Its director, David Jancsó, admitted to employing voice synthesis software to improve the authenticity of Hungarian dialogue.
- Karla Sofía Gascón’s social media posts: The Emilia Pérez star generated controversy for messages with a racist tone on X (Twitter), which has caused debates about her Oscar nomination.
- The competition between two musical films: Emilia Perez and Wicked compete in the same category, an unusual showdown at the Academy Awards.
A year of high stakes and records at the Oscars
With Emilia Perez making history, the race for the 2025 Oscars is more hotly contested and exciting than ever. With just a few weeks to go until the March 2 ceremony, the big question remains: will it be able to match Titanic’ s success or will it join the list of films with many nominations but few victories?
