Oscars 2021 Nominations: See How Viola Davis, Riz Ahmed and More Nominees Reacted

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Oscars 2021 Nominations: See How Viola Davis, Riz Ahmed and More Nominees Reacted

Let’s hear it for the nominees! Several stars have something to celebrate after being nominated for 2021 Academy Awards on Monday, March 15. The nominations were announced during a global livestream on Monday by Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Nick Jonas. The pack included Riz Ahmed, who received his first-ever nod for best actor in Sound of Metal. In a statement to Us Weekly, the 38-year-old English actor expressed how “honored” he was to be nominated and explained the importance of his film, which received a whopping five nominations. “Sound of Metal is about how a health crisis can cut you off from your life and loved ones and force you to grow in unexpected ways,” he shared. “In a challenging year for so many, I hope this story can inspire us to forge new and deeper connections with ourselves and others.” Viola Davis, meanwhile, noted via Instagram how she was “absolutely thrilled” to see her and her Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom colleagues recognized. The George C. Wolfe-directed project scored an impressive total of five nominations, including a posthumous Best Actor nod for late Chadwick Boseman, who died in August 2020 from colon cancer. [sendtonews type="float" key="YNv3D5O83d-2839612-14453"] This year’s Oscar nominations brought about many historic milestones. Davis, for one, became the most-nominated Black actress for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, marking her third overall nod. Minari’s Steven Yeun is now the first Asian American to be recognized within the best actor category. Additionally, filmmakers Chloé Zhao and Emerald Fennell are now among a small yet growing group of women that have been honored within the best director category for Nomadland and Promising Young Woman, respectively. There were also many first-time nominations including for LaKeith Stanfield (Judas and the Black Messiah), Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm), Leslie Odom Jr. (One Night in Miami) and Amanda Seyfried (Mank). The 93rd annual ceremony is set to commence at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, April 25, and honor some of the most critically acclaimed films released between January 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021. The event will occur two months later than its normal time frame due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. “During this time, it has become necessary to make exceptional changes to the Academy’s standard annual awards schedule,” the Academy said in a statement via its official website in June 2020. “The intent going forward is to ultimately return to awarding excellence for films released in the January-December calendar year. Future eligibility windows and the Oscar show date for 2022 will be announced at a later date.” It is uncertain whether someone will be tapped to host the prestigious affair. However, the last person recruited for the gig was Jimmy Kimmel, who hosted the Oscars in 2017 and 2018. ABC executive Robert Mills previously spoke of the possibility of hiring a host again, telling Entertainment Tonight in February 2020, “I think the producers have done the best possible version of the hostless Oscars. Going forward, you’ll look at if you can get the right host, that would be great. If not, there is a way to do it hostless. It’s great having a host.” Ahead of the big show, scroll down to see how this year’s nominees reacted to the news of their achievement! [podcast_block]

Credit: Shutterstock (2)

Oscars 2021 Nominations: See How Viola Davis, Riz Ahmed and More Nominees Reacted

Let’s hear it for the nominees! Several stars have something to celebrate after being nominated for 2021 Academy Awards on Monday, March 15. The nominations were announced during a global livestream on Monday by Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Nick Jonas. The pack included Riz Ahmed, who received his first-ever nod for best actor in Sound of Metal. In a statement to Us Weekly, the 38-year-old English actor expressed how “honored” he was to be nominated and explained the importance of his film, which received a whopping five nominations. “Sound of Metal is about how a health crisis can cut you off from your life and loved ones and force you to grow in unexpected ways,” he shared. “In a challenging year for so many, I hope this story can inspire us to forge new and deeper connections with ourselves and others.” Viola Davis, meanwhile, noted via Instagram how she was “absolutely thrilled” to see her and her Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom colleagues recognized. The George C. Wolfe-directed project scored an impressive total of five nominations, including a posthumous Best Actor nod for late Chadwick Boseman, who died in August 2020 from colon cancer. [sendtonews type="float" key="YNv3D5O83d-2839612-14453"] This year’s Oscar nominations brought about many historic milestones. Davis, for one, became the most-nominated Black actress for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, marking her third overall nod. Minari’s Steven Yeun is now the first Asian American to be recognized within the best actor category. Additionally, filmmakers Chloé Zhao and Emerald Fennell are now among a small yet growing group of women that have been honored within the best director category for Nomadland and Promising Young Woman, respectively. There were also many first-time nominations including for LaKeith Stanfield (Judas and the Black Messiah), Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm), Leslie Odom Jr. (One Night in Miami) and Amanda Seyfried (Mank). The 93rd annual ceremony is set to commence at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, April 25, and honor some of the most critically acclaimed films released between January 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021. The event will occur two months later than its normal time frame due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. “During this time, it has become necessary to make exceptional changes to the Academy’s standard annual awards schedule,” the Academy said in a statement via its official website in June 2020. “The intent going forward is to ultimately return to awarding excellence for films released in the January-December calendar year. Future eligibility windows and the Oscar show date for 2022 will be announced at a later date.” It is uncertain whether someone will be tapped to host the prestigious affair. However, the last person recruited for the gig was Jimmy Kimmel, who hosted the Oscars in 2017 and 2018. ABC executive Robert Mills previously spoke of the possibility of hiring a host again, telling Entertainment Tonight in February 2020, “I think the producers have done the best possible version of the hostless Oscars. Going forward, you’ll look at if you can get the right host, that would be great. If not, there is a way to do it hostless. It’s great having a host.” Ahead of the big show, scroll down to see how this year’s nominees reacted to the news of their achievement! [podcast_block]

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Sacha Baron Cohen for Best Supporting Actor in ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’

“I'm incredibly humbled and grateful to the Academy for both nominations! First, to the team of Trial of the Chicago 7 — acting is a team sport, and I would not be in this position if it were not for the brilliance of Aaron Sorkin and the incredibly talented actors and crew that he surrounded us with and who lifted us up every day,” the comedic actor, 49, said in a statement to Us. “Thank you, also, to the Academy for nominating Borat for the second time for Adapted Screenplay and for giving us the award for hiring the most WGA members in one movie. And, of course, congratulations to the sensational Maria Bakalova for her nomination! As a cast and crew, we took insane risks because we believed so deeply in the message of this movie — exposing the dangers of the last administration, but also celebrating the underlying goodness of ordinary people. Because underneath it all, we’re all the same, as Rudy Giuliani so very nearly demonstrated in that hotel room.”

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Vanessa Kirby for Best Actress in ‘Pieces of a Woman’

“It is the greatest honor to be recognized by the Academy and for a film I care so much about, and is so deeply in my heart,” the English actress, 32, said in a statement to Us. “Thank you to Kornel and Kata for so bravely telling your story and for trusting me to be your Martha, to Kevin Turin and Ashley and Sam Levinson for believing in me, the cast and crew who I share this with, and to my family at Netflix for supporting and championing our story. I am so honored that this story has been shared; it is one of so many women, and of their babies. This belongs to them.”

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Glenn Close for Best Supporting Actress in ‘Hillbilly Elegy’

“Congratulations to all my fellow nominees. I’m beyond thrilled and deeply grateful for Netflix’s brilliant support of their artists,” the 73-year-old actress said in a statement to Us. “I owe so much to Ron Howard, Amy Adams, Owen Asztalos and my genius hair and makeup team. This wouldn’t have happened without them. I dedicate this honor to all the grandmothers in the world who fight to give their children a better life.”

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Amanda Seyfried for Best Supporting Actress in ‘Mank’

“Working with David Fincher on Mank has been the highlight of my career, and being recognized by the Academy for an experience that brought me this much joy and fulfillment feels surreal,” the Mamma Mia! star, 35, said in a statement to Us. “I won’t be able to thank David enough for trusting me with this role and for the honor of reintroducing the world to the Marion Davies that I’ve come to know. To get to study this brilliant, humble woman and help restore her legacy has been a true privilege. Congratulations to David, Gary, and the whole cast and crew of Mank today – your brilliance has not gone unnoticed and I am humbled to share this recognition with you.”

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Carey Mulligan for Best Actress in ‘Promising Young Woman’

“I’m absolutely elated this morning, and I am so honored to be in such esteemed company across all categories,” the English actress, 35, said in a statement to Us. “Thank you to the Academy for embracing this story which means so much to me. It’s all thanks to my dear friend — the fearless, hilarious, bold writer and director Emerald Fennell and the incredible cast and crew she assembled. We all signed on because we believed wholeheartedly in her vision, and I’m so grateful to her for inviting me to be a part of it.”

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Riz Ahmed for Best Actor in ‘Sound of Metal’

“Wow! I’m honored to be nominated by my fellow actors alongside such inspiring performances and [I] am grateful to the Academy for their support and encouragement,” the English actor, 38, said in a statement to Us. “I’m equally thrilled for our visionary writer-director Darius Marder and the brilliant Paul Raci, as well as our editor Mikkel, sound designer Nicolas and cowriter Abe Marder. These nominations represents the time, generosity and talents of so many — all of our incredible cast, crew, producers, and in particular, I’d like to thank my mentors in the drumming, addiction recovery, and D/deaf communities.”

He added, “Sound of Metal is about how a health crisis can cut you off from your life and loved ones, and force you to grow in unexpected ways. In a challenging year for so many, I hope this story can inspire us to forge new and deeper connections with ourselves and others.”

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LaKeith Stanfield for Best Supporting Actor in ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’

“I’m nominated for an Oscar ,” the Atlanta star, 29, wrote via Instagram.

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Viola Davis for Best Actress in ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’

“Absolutely thrilled,” the How to Get Away With Murder alum, 55, wrote via Instagram. “Congratulations to the whole @MaRaineyFilm team! Deserved!💛.”

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Gary Oldman for Best Actor in ‘Mank’

“After such a stressed pandemic year, there is a kind of comfort and reassurance in knowing that we soldier on in many ways with important traditions,” the 62-year-old actor said in a statement to Us. “In our industry, there is nothing more traditional than the Academy Awards, which hopefully sends a sign of hope that we will get out of this. The Oscars are such a sign that normalcy still exists. In my case, today marks my third Academy Award Nomination. Not to trivialize the current state of the world, it is a source of great pride and an honor to be recognized alongside these other tremendous, wonderful artists.”

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Yuh-Jung Youn for Best Supporting Actress in ‘Minari’

“Never in my dreams did I ever think a Korean actress would be nominated for an Oscar, and I can’t believe it’s me! I am incredibly humbled by the honor,” Youn, 72, said in a statement to Us. “Thank you so much AMPAS, A24, Plan B, my Minari family and our entire cast and crew. We made this film with love, and I thank you for loving us back. And thank you, Isaac. This is all because of you!”

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Daniel Kaluuya for Best Supporting Actor in ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’

“Chairman Fred Hampton was a light, a beacon of a being who would illuminate all he touched with his incredible message,” the Get Out star said in a statement to Us. “With the ability to command any stage and robbed of his opportunity to captivate a global audience. He created strategies that supported and uplifted the black community but also unified other communities with his laugh, his mind, his passion and his love."

He continued, “Today, I am humbled to be nominated for portraying a man whose principles I deeply respect and for guiding me to walk in his footsteps. With the blessing of Chairman Fred Hampton’s family, and the unwavering support from Ryan Coogler, Shaka King and Charles King, and the cast led by LaKeith Stanfield and Dominique Fishback, I became a vessel for Chairman Fred’s spirit at a time when we need his rally cry for equality and justice more than ever. I commend my fellow nominees for their impressive work. To be seen and celebrated by my peers in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences is beautifully humbling and I am deeply grateful. Thank you.”

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Leslie Odom Jr. for Best Supporting Actor in ‘One Night in Miami’

“I left the Broadway stage four or five years ago and I started this journey in film,” he told Good Morning America on Monday. “I wanted to learn how to be on camera, I wanted to learn if I could be useful in this medium, and thanks to [director] Regina King and [screenwriter] Kemp Powers and this film, I really do feel like I'm on my way. It feels like a good beginning.”