Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) nominations: ‘Promising Young Woman,’ ‘One Night in Miami’ and ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ lead

The Hollywood Critics Association announced its nominations for the 4th Annual HCA Film Awards on Tuesday where Promising Young Woman, One Night in Miami and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom topped the lists. The virtual awards ceremony will stream on the official HCA Facebook page and YouTube channel on Friday, March 5, 2021, beginning at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET. 

Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman topped the list with a total of nine nominations. The film, which received rave reviews after its premiere at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, was nominated for Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Female Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best First Feature, Best Cast Ensemble, Best Hair & Makeup, and Best Film Editing. 

Regina King’s One Night in Miami, which was picked up by Amazon Studios before its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, earned a total of eight nominations. Netflix’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and Mank tied with a total of seven nominations each. Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland scored a total of six nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Female Director. Cathy Yan’s Birds of Prey, Darius Marder’s Sound of Metal, and Lee Isaac Chung’s Minari all scored six nominations each. 

“2020 was a challenging year for the film industry. As movie theaters worldwide were forced to close due to a global pandemic, studios began to explore new ways to release their films to audiences. As critics, we missed the experience of watching movies on the big screen, but like the studios, we embraced the new normal as we consumed films through various streaming links, apps, and virtual screening platforms,” notes HCA Chairman Scott Menzel.

Keeping up with tradition, the Hollywood Critics Association members continue to embrace and support a wide array of films each year. Among the nominations are several indie titles such as Miss Juneteenth, Black Bear, Class Action Park, First Cow, The Forty-Year-Old Version, and The Personal History of David Copperfield. Also making multiple appearances on the nomination list are Cathy Yan’s Birds of Prey, Max Barbakow’s Palm Springs, and Leigh Whannell’s The Invisible Man. 

“Even though cinemas were closed for most of the year, 2020 was a groundbreaking year for film in many ways. Streaming became the norm and prompted many studios to shift their focus to creating content for their digital platforms. Also, a good portion of the films released in 2020 were directed by women or people of color. We, as an organization, hope this continues to happen as we move into the future. We are looking forward to seeing more inclusivity on-screen, hopefully not just in awards films, but in movies in general,” noted HCA Co-Chair Ashley Menzel.

Previously announced special award honorees were:

Timeless Award: Dante Spinotti
Inspire Award: Lin-Manuel Miranda
Acting Achievement Award: Aubrey Plaza, Black Bear
Game-Changer Award: Nicole Beharie, Miss Juneteenth
Artisan Achievement Award: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Mank and Soul
Breakthrough Performance Actor: Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
Breakthrough Performance Actress: Cristin Milioti, Palm Springs
Standout Performance by an Actor or Actress 23 or Under Award: Sidney Flanigan, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Spotlight Award: Kiera Allen, Run
Filmmaker on the Rise Award: Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
Star on the Rise Award: Ellen Pellman, The Prom
Artisan on the Rise Award: Emile Mosseri, Minari

In total, the Hollywood Critics Association nominated 58 films, which included a mixture of independents, streamers, and studio releases. 

Here is the complete list of nominations and totals by film and studio.

Best Picture

• Da 5 Bloods
• Judas and The Black Messiah
• Minari 
• Nomadland 
• One Night in Miami
• Promising Young Woman 
• Soul 
• Sound of Metal 
• The Father 
• The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Actor

• Anthony Hopkins – The Father
• Chadwick Boseman – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom 
• Delroy Lindo – Da 5 Bloods
• Kingsley Ben-Adir – One Night in Miami
• Riz Ahmed – Sound of Metal

Best Actress

• Carey Mulligan – Promising Young Woman
• Elisabeth Moss – The Invisible Man 
• Frances McDormand – Nomadland 
• Vanessa Kirby – Pieces of a Woman
• Viola Davis – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
• Zendaya – Malcolm & Marie 

Best Supporting Actor

• Bo Burnham – Promising Young Woman 
• Chadwick Boseman – Da 5 Bloods
• Daniel Kaluuya – Judas and the Black Messiah 
• Leslie Odom Jr. – One Night in Miami…
• Paul Raci – Sound of Metal

Best Supporting Actress

• Amanda Seyfried – Mank 
• Ellen Burstyn – Pieces of a Woman
• Glenn Close – Hillbilly Elegy 
• Olivia Colman – The Father
• Yuh-Jung Youn – Minari

Best Animated or VFX Performance 

• Ben Schwartz – Sonic the Hedgehog
• Cathy Ang – Over the Moon
• Honor Kneafsey – Wolfwalkers 
• Jamie Foxx – Soul
• Tina Fey – Soul 

Best Male Director

• Darius Marder – Sound of Metal 
• David Fincher – Mank 
• Lee Isaac Chung – Minari 
• Shaka King – Judas and the Black Messiah 
• Spike Lee – Da 5 Bloods

Best Female Director

• Chloé Zhao – Nomadland
• Eliza Hittman – Never Rarely Sometimes Always
• Emerald Fennell – Promising Young Woman
• Regina King – One Night In Miami
• Sofia Coppola – On the Rocks

Best Original Screenplay

• Aaron Sorkin – The Trial of The Chicago 7 
• Abraham Marder & Darius Marder – Sound of Metal
• Andy Siara – Palm Springs
• Emerald Fennell – Promising Young Woman
• Lee Isaac Chung – Minari 

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Chloé Zhao – Nomadland
• Christopher Hampton & Florian Zeller – The Father 
• Jonathan Raymond & Kelly Reichardt – First Cow 
• Kemp Powers – One Night in Miami
• Ruben Santiago-Hudson – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom 

Best Cast Ensemble

• Da 5 Bloods
• Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
• One Night in Miami
• Promising Young Woman
• The Prom
• The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best First Feature

• Channing Godfrey Peoples – Miss Juneteenth 
• Darius Marder – Sound of Metal 
• Emerald Fennell – Promising Young Woman
• Radha Blank – The 40-Year-Old Version
• Regina King – One Night In Miami 

Best Animated Film

• Onward 
• Over The Moon
• Soul
• The Croods: A New Age
• Wolfwalkers

Best International Film

• Another Round
• Bacurau 
• I’m No Longer Here
• La Llorona
• Two of Us 

Best Documentary

• All In: The Fight For Democracy 
• Boys State
• Class Action Park 
• Dick Johnson is Dead
• Time 

Best Action Film

• Bad Boys for Life 
• Birds of Prey
• Extraction
• Tenet
• The Old Guard

Best Blockbuster Film

• Birds of Prey
• Sonic the Hedgehog
• Tenet
• The Old Guard 
• Wonder Woman 1984

Best Comedy/Musical Film

• Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
• On the Rocks 
• Palm Springs 
• The Personal History of David Copperfield 
• The Prom 

Best Horror Film

• Freaky
• His House
• Host
• Relic 
• The Invisible Man

Best Indie Film 

• Black Bear 
• First Cow 
• Minari 
• Miss Juneteenth
• Palm Springs

Best Short Film

• Burrow 
• Canvas
• Cops And Robbers
• If Anything Happens, I Love You
• The Heart Still Hums

Best Cinematography 

• Erik Messerschmidt – Mank
• Dariusz Wolski – News of The World
• Joshua James Richards – Nomadland
• Hoyte van Hoytema – Tenet
• Martin Ruhe – The Midnight Sky

Best Stunts

• Birds of Prey
• Extraction
• Tenet
• The Old Guard
• Wonder Woman 1984

Best Score

• Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – Mank
• Emile Mosseri – Minari
• James Newton Howard – News of The World
• Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste – Soul
• Alexandre Desplat – The Midnight Sky

Best Original Song

• Husavik (My Hometown) – Eurovision Song Contest
• Rocket to the Moon – Over the Moon
• Speak Now – One Night in Miami
• Turntables – All In: The Fight for Democracy
• Wear Your Crown – The Prom

Best Hair & Makeup

• Deborah La Mia Denaver and Adruitha Lee – Birds of Prey
• Eryn Krueger, Mekash Patricia Dehaney, and Matthew Mungle – Hillbilly Elegy
• Kimberley Spiteri, Colleen LaBaff, Gigi Williams, and Michelle Audrina Kim – Mank
• Matiki Anoff, Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal, Larry M. Cherry, Sian Richards, Deidra Dixon and Jamika Wilson – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
• Angela Wells and Daniel Curet – Promising Young Woman

Best Costume Design

• Erin Benach – Birds of Prey
• Alexandra Byrne – Emma
• Trish Summerville – Mank
• Ann Roth – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
• Suzie Harman – The Personal History of David Copperfield

Best Production Design

• Kave Quinn – Emma
• Donald Graham Burt – Mank
• Mark Ricker – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
• Cristina Casali – The Personal History of David Copperfield
• Jamie Walker McCall – The Prom

Best Film Editing

• Chloé Zhao – Nomadland
• Frédéric Thoraval – Promising Young Woman
• Yorgos Lamprinos – The Father
• Andy Canny – The Invisible Man
• Alan Baumgarten – The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Visual Effects

• Greg Steele and Annemarie Griggs – Birds of Prey
• Ged Wright – Sonic the Hedgehog
• Andrew Jackson – Tenet
• Jonathan Dearing – The Invisible Man 
• Matt Kasmir, Chris Lawrence, Dave Watkins, and Max Solomon – The Midnight Sky

Number of Nominations by Film (in alphabetical order)

• All In: The Fight for Democracy – 2
• Another Round – 1
• Bacurau – 1
• Bad Boys For Life – 1
• Birds of Prey – 6
• Black Bear – 1
• Boys State – 1
• Burrow – 1
• Canvas – 1
• Class Action Park – 1
• Cops And Robbers – 1
• Da 5 Bloods – 5
• Dick Johnson is Dead – 1
• Emma – 2
• Eurovision Song Contest – 2
• Extraction – 2
• First Cow – 2
• Freaky – 1
• Hillbilly Elegy – 2
• His House – 1
• Host -1 
• I’m No Longer Here – 1 
• If Anything Happens I Love You – 1
• Judas and The Black Messiah – 3
• La Llorona – 1
• Malcolm & Marie – 1
• Mank – 7
• Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – 7
• Minari – 6
• Miss Juneteenth – 2
• Never Rarely Sometimes Always – 1
• News of The World – 2
• Nomadland – 6
• One Night in Miami – 8
• On the Rocks – 2
• Onward – 1
• Over the Moon – 3
• Palm Springs – 3
• Pieces of a Woman – 2
• Promising Young Woman – 9
• Relic – 1
• Sonic The Hedgehog – 3
• Soul – 5
• Sound of Metal – 6
• Tenet – 5
• The Croods: A New Age – 1
• The Father – 5
• The Forty-Year Old Version  – 2
• The Heart Still Hums – 1
• The Invisible Man – 4
• The Midnight Sky – 3
• The Old Guard – 3
• The Personal History of David Copperfield – 3
• The Prom – 4
• The Trial of the Chicago 7 – 4
• Time – 1
• Two of Us – 1
• Wolfwalkers – 2
• Wonder Woman 1984 – 2

Number of nominations by Studio (in alphabetical order)

• A24 – 11 
• Amazon Studios – 17
• Apple – 5
• Disney – 7
• Focus Features – 12
• HBO Max – 1
• IFC Films – 1
• Kino Lorber – 1
• Magnolia Pictures – 1
• Momentum Pictures – 1
• Neon – 4
• Netflix – 53
• Paramount – 3
• Samuel Goldwyn Films – 1
• Searchlight – 9
• Shudder – 2
• Sony Pictures – 1
• Sony Pictures Classics – 5
• Universal Pictures – 8
• Vertical Entertainment – 2
• Warner Brothers – 16

Images courtesy of David Lee / Netflix; Amazon Studios; Merie Weismiller Wallace / Focus Features

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Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.

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