Oscar firsts and rare nominations for the 91st Academy Awards

When the critically acclaimed blockbuster “The Dark Knight” failed to garner a Best Picture nomination in 2009, the Academy expanded the category’s field from five finalists to 10 in the hopes of getting more mainstream films in the running for the top prize — perhaps even a, gasp, superhero movie. Ten years later, Ryan Coogler’s “Black Panther” has succeeded where Nolan’s Batman movies, "Wonder Woman" and the elegiac “Logan” fell short. Can it actually win? Well, Coogler's a Gemini, which means we should expect the unexpected.

The Academy membership’s shameful snubbing of “Do the Right Thing," “Malcolm X” and “25^th Hour” was partially redressed in 2015 when it awarded Spike Lee an honorary Oscar. Now that he’s received his first Best Picture and Director nominations (for “BlacKkKlansman”), Oscar voters can complete the mea culpa they owe to Lee and sentient movie lovers who are still appalled that “Driving Miss Daisy” won in the year of “Do the Right Thing." Or they can double down on their cluelessness and give the top prize to “Green Book."

Yes, the legendary screenwriter who wrote or co-wrote such classics as “Taxi Driver," “Raging Bull” and “Blue Collar” has inexplicably never been nominated for either of the Academy’s Best Screenplay awards — until now. And while this long overdue recognition should be cause for celebration, many movie buffs are irate that Schrader’s excellent “First Reformed” failed to earn nominations for Best Picture and Actor (the latter being an especially egregious snub given that Ethan Hawke gives the performance of his career as a minister facing a deep spiritual crisis).

Along with snagging her first Best Actress nomination for her first film performance, Yalitza Aparicio is also the first indigenous woman to vie for this highly coveted award (and only the second Mexican woman since Salma Hayek in 2003). These are all remarkable achievements for a schoolteacher who had no grand acting aspirations when director Alfonso Cuarón discovered her. Aparicio has indicated that she’d like to continue to act, so here’s hoping we get to see more from this talented newcomer in the near future.

Hollywood’s had a hot-and-heavy love affair with Rami Malek since he took home the Best Actor in a Drama Emmy for “Mr. Robot” in 2016. His fully committed performance as Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody” has enraptured moviegoers and Academy members alike, earning him his first Best Actor nomination. He’s looking like a lock after winning top acting prizes from the Screen Actors Guild and the Golden Globes in January. People just love how ferociously he’s sunk his Gary Dell’Abate-sized choppers into this role.

If you’re asking “who," you need to catch up with Paweł Pawlikowski’s exceptional filmmaking output from the last 20 years (particularly “My Summer of Love” and the 2015 Best Foreign Film winner “Ida”) and get out to the art house nearest you to check out his visually striking and brilliantly performed “Cold War," for which he’s received his first Best Director nomination. Pawlikowski might not win this year, but this tremendously gifted filmmaker will almost certainly be back this way again.

Olivia Colman was one of England’s best-kept acting secrets when she scorched the 2011 Sundance Film Festival with her devastating portrayal of an abused woman in Paddy Considine’s “Tyrannosaur." Her genius has been on full display in movies and television ever since (in “Broadchurch," “The Night Manager” and “The Lobster”), but it’s taken eight years for the Oscars to get wise. This year, however, she was undeniable as the vain and prematurely decrepit Queen Anne.

“It’s about f—king time,” said Sam Elliott upon learning he’d received his first Oscar nomination in a 50-year career that's featured award-worthy turns in Peter Bogdanovich’s “Mask," George P. Cosmatos’ “Tombstone” and, yes, Rowdy Herrington’s bar bouncer classic “Road House." The grizzled man’s man has never been afraid to show his sensitive side, and he lets it all hang out with his emotionally raw portrayal as Bradley Cooper’s caretaker brother in “A Star Is Born." That unforgettable shot of him backing out of the driveway might’ve single-handedly won him the Oscar.

Richard E. Grant corralled a dedicated fan base with his 1987 debut in Bruce Robinson’s cult classic “Withnail & I," and he’s been a welcome presence in movies good (“The Age of Innocence”), bad (“Warlock”) and transcendent (“Hudson Hawk”) throughout his long, though not celebrated enough, career. There are certainly tragic echoes of Withnail in his portrayal of the homeless sot Jack Hock in Marielle Heller’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”; a win here would feel like a little bit of validation for his most beloved character. But if he happens to miss out on Oscar Sunday, we know he’ll come up smiling Monday morning.

Marina de Tavira has appeared in numerous films and telenovelas over the last decade, but she’s broken through in a big way with her tough performance as a betrayed woman in Alfonso Cuarón’s engrossing memory piece. De Tavira may be much more seasoned than her “Roma” castmate Aparicio, but for many viewers outside of Mexico, she’s a fresh face as well. Now that she’s been nominated for Best Supporting Actress, it’s likely we’ll be seeing much more of her.

Regina King has turned in several Oscar-worthy performances since making her big-screen debut in John Singleton’s “Boyz n the Hood” 28 years ago, but she had to take it to a career-best level for the Academy to finally take notice. As a mother desperate to free her unjustly imprisoned son so that he can marry his childhood sweetheart and be a father to their soon-to-be-born child, King displays the full range of her considerable talents. Her alleyway scene with the young woman who holds the key to her son’s freedom is an absolute knockout.

It’s a little disappointing that one of the most perceptive and consistently original voices in American independent cinema has finally received her first Oscar nomination for an adapted screenplay (which she did not direct), but any kind of recognition for the great Nicole Holofcener is a welcome thing. “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” is a terrific film, but if you want to see the pure, uncut Holofcener, dial up a double feature of “Walking and Talking” and “Lovely & Amazing."

This is Łukasz Żal’s first solo Best Cinematography nomination (he shared his nod for “Ida” with Ryszard Lenczewski), but his visually stunning black-and-white collaborations with Pawel Pawlikowski deserve special attention. Plenty of great modern filmmakers have dabbled in black-and-white photography over the years, but few are brave enough to double down on the old-school aesthetic by shooting in the boxy 4:3 aspect ratio. These are bold artistic choices that could alienate today’s moviegoers, but Żal’s masterful use of contrast makes it all feel not only natural but necessary.

Congratulations to everyone who had Best Editor in their “In Which Category Will John Ottman Receive His First Oscar Nomination” pool. The smart money was on Best Score, given that Ottman’s been far more prolific as a composer over his 26-year film career. As an editor, he’s worked solely with director Bryan Singer, which means he somehow didn’t get nominated for “The Usual Suspects." In light of the on-set turmoil that plagued “Bohemian Rhapsody” (Singer was fired before shooting was finished), Ottman’s nomination might be a tip of the cap for salvaging what could’ve been an unreleasable disaster.

The Academy’s decadeslong snub-a-thon of Spike Lee has also caused his highly respected editor, Barry Alexander Brown, to be overlooked for “Do the Right Thing," “Malcolm X," etc., as well as Mira Nair’s wonderful 1988 debut, “Salaam Bombay!." If Lee and Brown win in their respective categories this year, it will be a long overdue celebration of a director/editor collaboration that’s shaped the medium as profoundly as Scorsese/Schoonmaker, Spielberg/Kahn and Coppola/Murch.

Costume designer Sandy Powell picked up her 13th and 14th Oscar nominations this year for “The Favourite” and “Mary Poppins Returns," which means she’s competing against herself for the third time in her illustrious career. Alas, the last time she doubled up in this category (2015 with “Carol” and “Cinderella”), she went home empty-handed. Perhaps she’s splitting the vote? A win this year would be her fourth overall. (She previously triumphed for “Shakespeare in Love," “The Aviator” and “The Young Victoria”.)

It would’ve been sweeter had Robbie Ryan’s first Best Cinematography nomination coincided with his longtime collaborator, Andrea Arnold, getting her first Best Director nod (which she would’ve absolutely deserved for “Wuthering Heights” or “American Honey”), but that would require an actual, vigorous Oscar campaign from the folks who distribute her movies. Hopefully, now that Ryan’s on the Academy’s radar thanks to his surreally exquisite imagery in “The Favourite," it'll pay closer attention the next time he teams up with Arnold.

Marc Shaiman’s Best Original Score and Original Song nominations for “Mary Poppins Returns” bring his overall Oscar tally to seven nods — and if he loses in both categories as expected (to “If Beale Street Could Talk” and “A Star Is Born,” respectively), that’ll make him a seven-time loser. We’re not trying to shame Shaiman for this unique achievement. The shame belongs entirely to the Academy, which could’ve gotten him off the schneid 19 years ago by rightfully awarding him Best Original Song for “Blame Canada” from “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut." That one still stings.

Frequent Childish Gambino collaborator Lucas Göransson is one of the most exciting young composers working in any medium today, but he’s been doing sensational work in movies of late with his scores for Ryan Coogler’s “Fruitvale Station," “Creed” and now “Black Panther," for which he’s earned his first Oscar nomination for Best Original Score. Like everything else in Coogler’s superhero blockbuster, Göransson’s score is far more distinctive than the samey scores Marvel usually slaps on its product. 

Lady Gaga’s been making waves as an actress since winning a Golden Globe for her work on FX’s “American Horror Story," but talented as she is, did anyone expect her to give an absolutely iconic performance in her first lead movie role? Gaga’s actually been nominated for an Oscar once before (Best Original Song in 2015 for "The Hunting Ground"), but this is the first time she’s been recognized in one of the major acting categories — and if she brings it like this every time she steps in front of the cameras, this definitely won’t be her last trip to the Kodak Theatre.