Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2004

 And the Nominees Were Not:

Al Pacino in The Merchant of Venice

Peter O'Toole in Troy

William Hurt in The Village

Nick Nolte in Clean

Billy Bob Thornton in The Alamo

Predict These Five, Those Five Or Both.

Tim Meadows in Mean Girls

Daniel Wu in New Police Story

Cameron Bright in Birth

Alfred Molina in Spider-Man 2

Bud Cort in The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou

Best Costume Design

1931:

1. Ed Ware & Vera West - Dracula
   
2. Travis Banton - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
3. Uncredited - Frankenstein
4. René Hubert - À Nous la Liberté 
5. Uncredited - The Smiling Lieutenant

1932:

1. Mitchell Leisen - The Sign of the Cross
2. Vera West - The Mummy
   
3. Travis Banton & Edith Head - Love Me Tonight
4. Travis Banton - Shanghai Express
5. Uncredited - Freaks

1933:

1. Adrian - Queen Christina
2. John Armstrong - The Private Life of Henry VIII
3. Uncredited - The Invisible Man
4. Max Pretzfelder - Don Quixote
5. Orry-Kelly - 42nd Street

1934:

1. Uncredited - Babes in Toyland
2. Vicky Williams - Cleopatra
3. Travis Banton - The Scarlet Empress
4. Paul Colin - Les Misérables
5. Gwen Wakeling - The Affairs of Cellini

1935:

1. Murray Mayer - The Black Room
2. Vera West - The Bride of Frankenstein
3. Adrian - Anna Karenina 
4. Dolly Tree - Mad Love
5. Dolly Tree - A Tale of Two Cities

1937:

1. Ernest Dryden - The Prisoner of Zenda
2. Ernest Dryden - Lost Horizon
   
3. Irene  - Shall We Dance
4. Uncredited - Pepe Le Moko
5. Adrian - Conquest

1938:

1. Milo Anderson - The Adventures of Robin Hood
   
2. Konstantin Eliseev - Alexandre Nevsky
3. Adrian & Gil Steele - Marie Antoinette
4. Edith Head - If I Were King
5. Louis Granier - La Marseillaise

1942:

1. Orry-Kelly - Casablanca
2. Georges Wakhévitch - The Devil's Envoys
   
3. Earl Luick - The Black Swan
4. Rydo Loshak, Marie Pickering & Leon Roberts - Yankee Doodle Dandy
5. Edith Head - I Married A Witch

1943: 

1. Joseph Bato -  The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp
2. Karl Sandt Jensen & Olga Thomsen - Day Of Wrath
3. Irene and Howard Shoup - Cabin In the Sky
4. René Hubert - Jane Eyre
5. René Hubert - Heaven Can Wait

1944:

1. Irene Sharaff - Meet Me In St. Louis
2. Roger K. Furse - Henry V
3. Leonid Naumov - Ivan the Terrible Part I
4. Irene - Gaslight
5. René Hubert - The Lodger

1945:

1. Mayo - Children of Paradise
2. Elizabeth Haffenden - The Wicked Lady
3. Uncredited - The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail
4. Renié - The Bodysnatcher
5. Oliver Messel - Caesar and Cleopatra

1947:

1. Hein Heckroth - Black Narcissus
2. Orry-Kelly - Ivy
3. Jean Louis - The Lady From Shanghai
4. Yvonne Wood - A Double Life
5. Rosine Delamare - Monsieur Vincent

1948:

1. Hein Heckroth - The Red Shoes
2. Roger K. Furse - Hamlet
3. Cecil Beaton - Anna Karenina 
4. Margaret Furse - Oliver Twist
5. Edward Stevenson - Blood on The Moon

1949:

1. Edith Head & Gile Steele - The Heiress
2. Edith Head, Dorothy Jeakins, Elois Jenssen, Gile Steele & Gwen Wakeling - Samson And Delilah 
3. Oliver Messel - The Queen of Spades
4. Michael Meyers & Ann Peck - She Wore A Yellow Ribbon
5. Anthony Mendelson - Kind Hearts and Coronets

1950:

1. Georges Annenkov - La Ronde
2. Uichi Ôhata - Rashomon
3. Marcel Escoffier - Orpheus
4. Dorothy Jeakins - Cyrano De Bergerac
5. Edith Head & Charles LeMaire - All About Eve

1951:

1. Ivy Baker - The Tales of Hoffmann
2. Beatrice Dawson - Pandor and the Flying Dutchman
3. Herschel McCoy - Quo Vadis
4. Doris Lee - A Christmas Carol
5. Sheila Graham & Thomas N. Morahan - Captain Horatio Hornblower

1952:

1. Marcel Vertès - Moulin Rouge
2. Roger K. Furse - Ivanhoe 
3. Mayo - Casque d'Or
4. Walter Plunkett - Singin' In The Rain
5. Riley Thorne - Limelight

1954:

1. Kôhei Ezaki & Mieko Yamaguchi - Seven Samurai
2. Uncredited - Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto
3. Norman Martien - 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
4. Margherita Marinari  - La Strada
5. Uncredited - Godzilla 

1955:

1. Margaret Furse & Roger K. Furse - Richard III
2. Edith Head & Yvonne Wood - The Court Jester
3. Uncredited - Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple
4. Jerry Bos - The Night of the Hunter
5. Sophie Devine & Orry-Kelly - Oklahoma!

1957:

1. Yoshirô Muraki - Throne of Blood
2. Manne Lindholm - The Seventh Seal
3. Piero Gherardi - Nights of Cabiria
4. Helen Rose - Designing Women
5. Beatrice Dawson - The Prince and The Showgirl 

1958:

1. M. Safonova - Ivan The Terrible Part II
2. Toshikazu Sugiyama - The Ballad of Narayama
3. Greta Johansson & Manne Lindholm - The Magician
4. Edith Head - Vertigo
5. Masahiro Katô - The Hidden Fortress

1960:

1. Valles & Bill Thomas - Spartacus
2. Tina Grani - Black Sunday
3. Piero Gherardi - La Dolce Vita
4. Uncredited - The Time Machine
5. Marik Vos - The Virgin Spring

1961:

1. Yoshirô Muraki - Yojimbo
2. Veniero Colasanti & John Moore - El Cid
3. Sophie Devine - The Innocents
4. Irene Sharaff - West Side Story
5. Edith Head - Breakfast At Tiffany's

1963:

1. Piero Tosi - The Leopard
2. John McCorry - Tom Jones
3. Anthony Mendleson - Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow
4. Piero Gherardi - 8 1/2
5. Vittorio Nino Novarese & Renié - Cleopatra

1965:

1. Orson Welles - Chimes At Midnight
2. Piero Gherardi - Juliet of the Spirits
3. Phyllis Dalton - Doctor Zhivago
4. Lidia Skarzynska & Jerzy Skarzynski - The Saragossa Manuscript
5. Vittorio Nino Novarese - The Agony And The Ecstasy 

1966:

1. Nadezhda Buzina, Mikhail Chikovani & V. Vavra - War and Peace Part II
2. Elizabeth Haffenden & Joan Bridge - A Man For All Seasons
3. Uncredited - The Sword of Doom
4. Carlo Simi - The Good The Bad and The Ugly
5. Maya Abar-Baranovskaya & Lidiya Novi - Andrei Rublev

1967:

1. Ondrej Brezovský & Theodor Pistek - Marketa Lazarova
2. Roza Satunovskaya - Viy 
3. Nadezhda Buzina, Mikhail Chikovani & V. Vavra - War and Peace Part IV
4. John Truscott - Camelot
5. Uncredited - -Le Samourai 

1968: 

1. Danilo Donati - Romeo and Juliet
2. Hardy Amies - 2001: A Space Odyssey
3. Margaret Furse - The Lion in Winter
4. Carlo Simi - Once Upon A Time in the West
5. Enrico Job - The Great Silence

1970:

1. Gitt Magrini - The Conformist
2. Eva Lackingerová - Valerie and Her Week of Wonders
3. Simon Virsaladze - King Lear
4. Margaret Furse - Scrooge
5. Dorothy Jeakins - Little Big Man

1971:

1. Ilse Richter - McCabe & Mrs. Miller
2. Yvonne Blake & Antonio Castillo - Nicholas and Alexandra
3. Tiny Nicholls - The Devils
4. Milena Canonero - A Clockwork Orange
5. Helen Colvig - Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory

1973:

1. Alejandro Jodorowsky & Nicky Nichols - The Holy Mountain
2. Edith Head - The Sting
3. Sue Yelland - The Wicker Man
4. Uncredited - Lady Snowblood
5. Michael Baldwin - Theater of Blood

1974:

1. Anthea Sylbert - Chinatown
2. Rosanna Norton - Phantom of the Paradise
3. Theadora Van Runkle - The Godfather Part II
4. Theoni V. Aldredge - The Great Gatsby
5. Tony Walton - Murder on the Orient Express

1975:

1. Milena Canonero & Ulla-Britt Söderlund - Barry Lyndon
2. Hazel Pethig - Monty Python and the Holy Grail
3. Edith Head - The Man Who Would Be King
4. John Napier - Hedda
5. Jacqueline Guyot - The Story of Adele H.

1977:

1. John Mollo - Star Wars
2. Tom Rand - The Duellists
3. Shama Zaidi - The Chess Players
4. Patrizia von Brandenstein - Saturday Night Fever
5. Anthea Sylbert - Julia

1978:

1. Chi-Yu Liu - The 36th Chamber of Shaolin
2. Yvonne Blake - Superman
3. Anthony Powell - Death on the Nile
4. Patricia Norris - Days of Heaven
5. Patricia Norris - Movie Movie

1979:

1. John Mollo - Alien
2. Gisela Storch - Nosferatu the Vampyre 
3. Anthony Powell - Tess
4. Albert Wolsky - All That Jazz
5. Bobbie Mannix - The Warriors

1980:

1. Seiichiro Hagakusawa - Kagemusha
2. John Mollo - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
3. Patricia Norris - The Elephant Man
4. Danilo Donati - Flash Gordon
5. J. Allen Highfill - Heaven's Gate

1981:

1. Bob Mackie - Pennies From Heaven
2. James Acheson - Time Bandits
3. Deborah Nadoolman - Raiders of the Lost Ark
4. Milena Canonero - Chariots of Fire
   
5. Bob Ringwood - Excalibur

1983:

1. Milena Canonero - The Hunger
2. Aggie Guerard Rodgers & Nilo Rodis-Jamero - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
3. Ruth Myers - Something Wicked This Way Comes
4. Yvonne Sassinot de Nesle - Danton
5. Santo Loquasto - Zelig

1984:

1. Theodor Pištěk - Amadeus
2. Elizabeth Waller - The Company of Wolves
3. Gabriella Pescucci - Once Upon A Time in America
4. Bob Ringwood - Dune
5. John Bloomfield - The Bounty

1985:

1. Emi Wada - Ran
2. Charles Knode - Legend
3. James Acheson - Brazil
4. Raymond Hughes - Return to Oz
5. Deborah L. Scott - Back to the Future

1986:

1. April Ferry - Big Trouble in Little China
2. Sylvie Gautrelet - Jean De Florette
3. Gloria Glynn - Blue Velvet
4. Jenny Beavan & John Bright - A Room With A View
5. Ellis Flyte, Brian Froud & Polly Smith - Labyrinth

1987:

1. James Acheson - The Last Emperor
2. Erica Edell Phillips - Robocop
3. Phyllis Dalton - The Princess Bride
4. Donfeld - Spaceballs
5. Dorothy Jeakins - The Dead

1988:

1. James Acheson - Dangerous Liaisons 
2. Aggie Guerard Rodgers - Beetlejuice
3. Gabriella Pescucci - The Adventures of Baron Munchausen
4. Renée April - The Moderns
5. Deborah Nodoolman - Coming to America

1991:

1. Ruth Myers -  The Addams Family
2. Huamiao Tong - Raise the Red Lantern
3. Ellen Lens - Prospero's Books
4. Valérie Pozzo di Borgo - Delicatessen
5. Marilyn Vance - The Rocketeer

1992:

1. Eiko Ishioka - Dracula
2. Sandy Powell & Dien van Straalen - Orlando
3. Ann Hollowood & Polly Smith - Muppet Christmas Carol
4. Bob Ringwood & Mary E. Vogt - Batman Returns
5. Glenn Wright - Unforgiven

1993:

1. Gabriella Pescucci - The Age of Innocence
2. Changmin Chen - Farwell My Concubine
3. Janet Patterson - The Piano
4. Phyllis Dalton - Much Ado About Nothing
5. Jenny Beavan & John Bright - The Remains of the Day

1994:

1. Sandy Powell - Interview With the Vampire
2. Moidele Bickel - La Reine Margot 
3. Mark Thompson - The Madness of King George
4. Tim Chappel & Lizzy Gardiner - The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
5. April Ferry - Maverick

1996:

1. Alexandra Byrne - Hamlet
2. Christian Gasc - Ridicule
3. Ruth Myers - Emma
4. Janet Patterson - Portrait of a Lady
5. Ann Roth - The English Patient

1997:

1. Jean-Paul Gaultier - The Fifth Element
   
2. Sandy Powell - The Wings of the Dove
3. Deborah Lynn Scott - Titanic
4. Deena Appel - Austin Powers International Man of Mystery
5. Janet Patterson - Oscar and Lucinda

1998:

1. Sandy Powell - Shakespeare in Love
   
2. Alexandra Byrne - Elizabeth
3. Mary Zophres - The Big Lebowski
4. Sandy Powell - Velvet Goldmine
5. Liz Keogh Palmer - Dark City

1999:

1. Lindy Hemming - Topsy-Turvy
2. Colleen Atwood - Sleepy Hollow
3. Milena Canonero - Titus
4. Marit Allen - Eyes Wide Shut
5. Kym Barrett - The Matrix

2000:

1. Janty Yates - Gladiator
2. Eiko Ishioka - The Cell
3. Tim Yip - Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
4. William Chang - In the Mood For Love
5. Jacqueline West - Quills

2001:

1. Ngila Dickson & Richard Taylor - LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring
2. Karen Patch - The Royal Tenenbaums
3. Catherine Martin & Angus Strathie - Moulin Rouge!
4. Caroline Harris & Silvie Michajlova - A Knight's Tale
5. David C. Robinson - Zoolander

2002:

1. Sandy Powell - Gangs of New York
2. Emi Wada - Hero
3. Ngila Dickson & Richard Taylor - LOTR: The Two Towers
   
4. Ruth Myers - Nicholas Nickleby
5. Julie Weiss - Frida

2003:

1. Ngila Dickson & Richard Taylor - LOTR: The Return of the King
2. Milan Desai & Janet Patterson - Peter Pan
3. Colleen Atwood - Big Fish
4. Wendy Stites - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
5. Ngila Dickson - The Last Samurai

2004:

1. Emi Wada - House of Flying Daggers
2. William Chang - 2046
3. Colleen Atwood - Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
4. Sandy Powell - The Aviator
5. Madeline Fontaine - A Very Long Engagement

2005:

1. Janty Yates - Kingdom of Heaven
2. Jacqueline Durran - Pride & Prejudice
3. Gabriella Pescucci & Carlo Poggioli - The Brothers Grimm
4. Margot Wilson - The Proposition
5. Isis Mussenden - The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe

2008:

1. Choi Eui-yeong & Kwon Yoo-jin - The Good The Bad The Weird
2. Tim Yip - Red Cliff Part I
3. Sammy Sheldon - Hellboy 2
4. Michael O'Connor - The Duchess
5. Jacqueline West - Australia

2009:

1. Anna B. Sheppard - Inglorious Basterds
2. Sandy Powell - The Young Victoria
3. Monique Prudhomme - The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
4. Tim Yip - Red Cliff Part II
5. Janet Patterson - Bright Star

2010:

1. Fung-San Lui - Let the Bullets Fly
2. Mary Zophres - True Grit
3. Laura Jean Shannon - Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
4. Antonella Cannarozzi - I Am Love
5. Gill Horn - Valhalla Rising

2011:

1. Jacqueline Durran - Tinker Tailor Solider Spy
2. Mark Bridges - The Artist
3. Sandy Powell - Hugo
4. Michael O'Connor - Jane Eyre
5. Sonia Grande - Midnight In Paris

2012:

1. Manon Rasmussen - A Royal Affair
2. Jacqueline Durran - Anna Karenina
3. Kym Barrett & Pierre-Yves Gayraud - Cloud Atlas
4. Sharen Davis - Django Unchained
5. Joanna Johnston - Lincoln

2013:

1. Patricia Norris - The Immigrant
2. William Chang - The Grandmaster
3. Mary Zophres - Inside Llewyn Davis
4. Catherine Martin - The Great Gatsby
5. Michael O'Connor - The Invisible Woman

2014:

1. Milena Canonero - The Grand Budapest Hotel
2. Mark Bridges - Inherent Vice
3. Jacqueline Durran - Mr. Turner
4. Amanda Neale - What We Do in the Shadows
5. Anushia Nieradzik - Belle

2015:

1. Jenny Beavan - Mad Max: Fury Road
2. Courtney Hoffman - The Hateful Eight
3. Jacqueline Durran - Macbeth
4. Jacqueline West - The Revenant
5. Sandy Powell - Cinderella

2016:

1. Jo Sang-gyeong - The Handmaiden
2. Dante Ferretti - Silence
3. Marina Hoermanseder - The Neon Demon
4. Mary Zophres - Hail Caesar!
5. Colleen Atwood - Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

2017:

1. Mark Bridges - Phantom Thread
2. Renée April - Blade Runner 2049
3. Luis Sequeira - The Shape of Water
4. Lindy Hemming - Paddington 2
5. Stacey Battat - The Beguiled

2018:

1. Mary Zophres - The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
2. Sandy Powell - The Favourite
3. Lena Mossum - The Man Who Killed Don Quixote
4. Jane Petrie - The Outlaw King
5. Alexandra Byrne - Mary Queen of Scots

2019:

1. Mayes C. Rubeo - Jojo Rabbit
2. Massimo Cantini Parrini - Pinocchio
3. Massimo Cantini Parrini - Ophelia
4. Jacqueline Durran - Little Women
5. Alexandra Byrne - The Aeronauts

2020:

1. Alice Babidge - True History of the Kelly Gang
2. Alexandra Byrne - Emma
3. Suzie Harman & Robert Worley - The Personal History of David Copperfield
4. Ann Roth - Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
5. Carlo Poggioli - Waiting For the Barbarians

2021:

1. Malgosia Turzanska - The Green Knight
2. Jacqueline West & Bob Morgan - Dune
3. Mary Zophres - The Tragedy of Macbeth
4. Janty Yates - The Last Duel
5. Paul Tazewell - West Side Story

2022:

1. Linda Muir - The Northman
2. Mary Zophres -  Babylon
3. Jacqueline Durran - The Batman
4. Monika Buttinger - Corsage
5. Sophie O'Neill & Zac Posen - The Outfit

2023:

1. Holly Waddington - Poor Things
2. Uncredited - Cobweb
3. Jacqueline West - Killers of the Flower Moon
4. Janty Yates & Dave Crossman - Napoleon
5. Kasia Walicka Maimone - The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

2024:

1. Linda Muir - Nosferatu
2. Jacqueline West - Dune Part II
3. Emmanuelle Youchnovski - The Substance
4. Massimo Cantini Parrini - Maria
5. Janty Yates & Dave Crossman - Gladiator II

2025:

1. Kate Hawley - Frankenstein
2. Wen-Ying Huang - Resurrection
3. Colleen Atwood & Christine L. Cantella - Kiss of the Spider Woman
4. Milena Canonero - The Phoenician Scheme
5. Jennifer Johnson - Bugonia

James Acheson, 4 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 1981: Time Bandits  (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1985: Brazil (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1987: The Last Emperor (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1988: Dangerous Liaisons (WINS)

Adrian, 4 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1933: Queen Christina (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1935: Anna Karenina (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1937: Conquest (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1938: Marie Antoinette (Nom)

Renée April, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1987: The Moderns (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2017: Blade Runner 2049 (Nom)

Colleen Atwood, 5 noms

Best Costume Design 1999: Sleepy Hollow (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2003: Big Fish (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2004: Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2016: Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2025: Kiss of the Spider Woman (Nom)

Travis Banton, 4 noms

Best Costume Design 1931: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1932: Love Me Tonight (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1932: Shanghai Express (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1934: The Scarlet Empress (Nom)

Jenny Beavan, 3 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1986: A Room With A View (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1993: The Remains of the Day (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2015: Mad Max: Fury Road (Nom)

Mark Bridges, 3 noms

Best Costume Design 2011: The Artist (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2014: Inherent Vice (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2017: Phantom Thread (WINS)

John Bright, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1986: A Room With A View (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1993: The Remains of the Day (Nom)

Nadezhda Buzina, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1966: War and Peace Part II (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1967: War and Peace Part IV (Nom)

Alexandra Byrne, 5 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1996: Hamlet (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1998: Elizabeth (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2018: Mary Queen of Scots (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2019: The Aeronauts (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2020: Emma (Nom)

Milena Canonero, 7 noms 3 wins

Best Costume Design 1971: A Clockwork Orange
Best Costume Design 1975: Barry Lyndon (Winner)

Best Costume Design 1981: Chariots of Fire (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1983: The Hunger (Winner)

Best Costume Design 1999: Titus (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2014: The Grand Budapest Hotel (Winner)

Best Costume Design 2025: The Phoenician Scheme (Nom)

William Chang, 3 noms

Best Costume Design 2000: In the Mood For Love (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2004: 2046 (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2013: The Grandmaster (Nom)

Mikhail Chikovani, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1966: War and Peace Part II (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1967: War and Peace Part IV (Nom)

Dave Crossman, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 2023: Napoleon (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2025: Gladiator II (Nom)

Phyllis Dalton, 3 noms

Best Costume Design 1965: Doctor Zhivago (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1987: The Princess Bride (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1993: Much Ado About Nothing (Nom)

Sophie Devine, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1955: Oklahoma! (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1961: The Innocents (Nom)

Ngila Dickson, 4 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 2001: LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2002: LOTR: The Two Towers (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2003: LOTR: The Return of the King (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2003: The Last Samurai (Nom)

Danilo Donati, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1968: Romeo and Juliet (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1980: Flash Gordon (Nom)

Ernest Dryden, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1937: The Prisoner of Zenda (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1937: Lost Horizon (Nom)

Jacqueline Durran, 7 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 2005: Pride & Prejudice (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2011: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2012: Anna Karenina (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2014: Mr. Turner (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2015: Macbeth (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2019: Little Women (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2022: The Batman(Nom)

April Ferry, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1986: Big Trouble in Little China (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1994: Maverick (Nom)

Margaret Furse, 4 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1948: Oliver Twist (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1955: Richard III (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1968: The Lion in Winter (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1970: Scrooge (Nom)

Roger K. Furse, 4 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1944: Henry V (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1948: Hamlet (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1952: Ivanhoe (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1955: Richard III (WINS)

Piero Gherardi, 4 noms

Best Costume Design 1957: Nights of Cabiria (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1960: La Dolce Vita (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1963: 8 1/2 (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1965: Juliet of the Spirits (Nom)

Elizabeth Haffenden, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1945: The Wicked Lady (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1966: A Man For All Seasons (Nom)

Edith Head, 10 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1932: Love Me Tonight (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1938: If I Were King (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1942: I Married A Witch (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1949: The Heiress (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1949: Samson and Delilah (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1955: The Court Jester (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1958: Vertigo (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1961: Breakfast At Tiffany's (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1973: The Sting (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1975: The Man Who Would Be King (Nom)

Hein Heckroth, 2 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 1947: Black Narcissus (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1948: The Red Shoes (WINS)

Lindy Hemming, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1999: Topsy-Turvy (WINS)
Best Costume Design 2017: Paddington 2 (Noms)

René Hubert, 4 noms

Best Costume Design 1931: À Nous la Liberté (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1943: Jane Eyre (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1943: Heaven Can Wait (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1944: The Lodger (Nom)

Eiko Ishioka, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1992: Dracula (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2000: The Cell (Nom)

Irene, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1937: Shall We Dance (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1944: Gaslight (Nom)

Dorothy Jeakins, 4 noms

Best Costumes Design 1949: Samson and Delilah (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1950: Cyrano De Bergerac (Nom) 

Best Costume Design 1970: Little Big Man (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1987: The Dead (Nom)

Orry-Kelly, 3 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1933: 42nd Street (Nom)
Best Costume Design 1942: Casablanca (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1947: Ivy (Nom)

Manne Lindholm, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1957: The Seventh Seal (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1958: The Magician (Nom)

Catherine Martin, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 2001: Moulin Rouge! (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2013: The Great Gatsby (Nom)

Mayo, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1945: Children of Paradise (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1952: Casque d'Or (Nom)

Anthony Mendleson, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1949: Kind Hearts and Coronets (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1963: Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow (Nom)

Oliver Messel, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1945: Caesar and Cleopatra (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1949: The Queen of Spades (Nom)

John Mollo, 3 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 1977: Star Wars (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1979: Alien (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1980: Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (Nom)

Linda Muir, 2 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 2022: The Northman (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2024: Nosferatu (WINS)

Ruth Myers, 4 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1983: Something Wicked This Way Comes (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1991: The Addams Family (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1996: Emma (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2002: Nicholas Nickleby (Nom)

Deborah Nadoolman, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1981: Raiders of the Lost Ark (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1988: Coming to America (Nom)

Patricia Norris, 4 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1978: Days of Heaven (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1978: Movie Movie (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1980: The Elephant Man (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2013: The Immigrant (WINS)

Vittorio Nino Novarese, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1963: Cleopatra  (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1965: The Agony and the Ecstasy (Nom)

Michael O'Connor, 3 noms

Best Costume Design 2008: The Duchess  (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2011: Jane Eyre (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2013: The Invisible Woman (Nom)

Massimo Cantini Parrini, 3 noms

Best Costume Design 2019: Pinocchio (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2019: Ophelia (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2024: Maria (Nom)

Janet Patterson, 5 noms

Best Costume Design 1993: The Piano (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1996: Portrait of a Lady (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1997: Oscar and Lucinda (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2003: Peter Pan (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2009: Bright Star (Nom)

Gabriella Pescucci, 4 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1984: Once Upon A Time in America (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1988: The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1993: The Age of Innocence (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2005: The Brothers Grimm (Nom)

Carlo Poggioli, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 2005: The Brothers Grimm (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2020: Waiting For the Barbarians (Nom)

Theodor Pištěk, 2 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 1967: Marketa Lazarova (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1984: Amadeus (WINS)

Sandy Powell, 11 noms 3 wins

Best Costume Design 1993: Orlando (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1994: Interview With the Vampire (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1997: The Wings of the Dove (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1998: Shakespeare in Love (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1998:  Velvet Goldmine (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2002: Gangs of New York (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2004: The Aviator (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2009: The Young Victoria (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2011: Hugo (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2011: Cinderella (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2018: The Favourite (Nom)

Renié, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1945: The Body Snatcher (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1963: Cleopatra (Nom)

Bob Ringwood, 3 noms

Best Costume Design 1981: Excalibur (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1984: Dune (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1992: Batman Returns (Nom)

Aggie Guerard Rodgers, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1983: Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1988: Beetlejuice (Nom)

Ann Roth, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1996: The English Patient (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2020: Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (Nom)

Carlo Simi, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1966: The Good The Bad and The Ugly (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1968: Once Upon A Time in The West (Nom)

Irene Sharaff, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1944: Meet Me In St. Louis (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1961: West Side Story (Nom)

Polly Smith, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1986: Labyrinth (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1992: Muppet Christmas Carol (Nom)

Gile Steele, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1949: The Heiress (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1949: Samson and Delilah (Nom)

Anthea Sylbert, 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1974: Chinatown (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1977: Julia (Nom)

Richard Taylor, 3 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 2001: LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2002: LOTR: The Two Towers (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2003: LOTR: The Return of the King (WINS)

Dolly Tree, 2 noms

Best Costume Design 1935: Mad Love (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1935: A Tale of Two Cities (Nom)

V. Vavra 2 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1966: War and Peace Part II (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1967: War and Peace Part IV (Nom)

Emi Wada, 3 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 1985: Ran (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2002: Hero Nom)

Best Costume Design 2004: House of Flying Daggers (WINS)

Gwen Wakeling, 2 noms 

Best Costume Design 1934: The Affairs of Cellini (Nom)

Best Costume Design 1949: Samson and Delilah (Nom)

Jacqueline West, 6 noms 

Best Costume Design 2000: Quills (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2008: The Duchess (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2015: The Revenant (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2021:  Dune (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2023:  Killers of the Flower Moon (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2024:  Dune Part II (Nom)

Vera West, 3 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1931: Dracula (WINS)

Best Costume Design 1932: The Mummy (Nom)
Best Costume Design 1935: Bride of Frankenstein (Nom)

Janty Yates, 5 noms 2 wins

Best Costume Design 2000: Gladiator (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2005: Kingdom of Heaven (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2021: The Last Duel (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2023: Napoleon (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2025: Gladiator II (Nom)

Tim Yip, 3 noms

Best Costume Design 2000: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (Nom)
Best Costume Design 2008: Red Cliff Part I (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2009: Red Cliff Part II (Nom)

Mary Zophres, 7 noms 1 win

Best Costume Design 1998: The Big Lebowski (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2010: True Grit (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2013: Inside Llewyn Davis (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2016: Hail Caesar! (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2018: The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (WINS)

Best Costume Design 2021: The Tragedy of Macbeth (Nom)

Best Costume Design 2022: Babylon (Nom)

Best Actor FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions for future reference, feel free to ask any additional questions that would fit here to be added to the list. 

1. Why Don't You Review Actresses?

When I started this endeavor some time ago there were several blogs that covered exclusively female performances, so the whole point was as contrast by covering the then ignored male performances. Now most of those blogs have fallen by the wayside so that contrast no longer really exists. However I have been at this so long with this focus it just is too insurmountable of a task in my mind to try to start from nominations even with Actress and Supporting Actress. Though if there were two of me, I'd be all for it. 

2. How does the prediction contest work?

Simply for fun you predict how I will order the final five, however if you win you can request one performance for me to review in the future. If it is a ten lineup, you get two chances and if you get both sets of five correct you get two predictions. 

3. Rules on the Prediction Contest?

You may change your predictions after the first review of the lineup of five only. Technically the second review overall when it is a set of ten. I also ask that if you change your prediction in the same post to delete your old prediction if possible. 

4. What questions are okay?

Anything film or TV related. I will occasionally touch Music and Books, however I prefer if it is related to a film or TV in some way, if not I'd ask that it be a question where a very simple reply would suffice. 

5. Can I change my winning request?

You may change it to a performance from the same year, once. 

6. Can I ask ratings/thoughts on any performance?

First I'd ask you to check if I reviewed the performance or given thoughts previously (search "actoroscar.blogspot.com" on google with that given performance, then on the page it gives you use search/control+F to find the performance). Otherwise I won't give thoughts on saved performances from the current year. Saved meaning either they are in contention for a nomination or I might do a full review in the alternate lineup that year. 

7. I saw you watched a film from the year you're currently covering when can I ask about it?

Please wait on any films from a year I'm currently covering for the results section of that year, that way all the thoughts are in one consistent place for future reference. Unless it is about a film where I am reviewing one of the performances then ask in that review.

My Wins 2025

 

Alternate Best Actor 2025: Results

10. Frank Dillane in Urchin - Dillane gives a compelling portrayal of a very specific cyclical depiction of the life of an addict.

Best Scene: Attempted reconciliation meeting. 

9. David Strathairn in A Little Prayer - Strathairn gives a moving nuanced depiction of a man coming to terms with the nature of his son and struggling with the relationship with his daughter-in-law. 

Best Scene: Bench. 

8. Dylan O'Brien in Twinless - O'Brien gives an effective depiction of the overly confident twin and the struggling twin dealing with grief.

Best Scene: First meeting. 

7. Josh O'Connor in Wake Up Dead Man - O'Connor delivers another great performance here finding both the proper comedic enthusiasm for the mystery and the proper dramatic depth for his character's journey. 

Best Scene: Phone Call

6. Robert Aramayo in I Swear - Aramayo flawlessly depicts the very specific difficult tics of his character while also giving a moving depiction of a man slowly finding personal strength through understanding and acceptance. 

Best Scene: In the car. 

5. Paul Mescal in Hamnet - Mescal delivers some potent words from Shakespeare as Shakespeare, while also giving a moving depiction of the maturation of a man as he deals with the notion of family both the good and the pain. 

Best Scene: Again. 

4. Joel Edgerton in Train Dreams - Edgerton gives a quietly moving depiction that so potently realizes the internal journey of his character through life. 

Best Scene: Second talk with Claire. 

3. David Jonsson in The Long Walk - Jonsson delivers an amazing performance that captures both the visceral horror of his situation but also such a powerful poignant optimism that defines his character.  

Best Scene: Reason for his outlook on life. 

2. Jesse Plemons in Bugonia - Plemons is masterful in his realization of such a specific tone where he successfully depicts the madness of his character but with a deeply human foundation. 

Best Scene: Dinner table.

1. Lee Byung-hun in No Other Choice - Hearing about the concept of the film I knew Lee had the potential to give a great performance, but what he delivered not only was outstanding it was outstanding in a wholly unexpected way from him. Throwing out his expected presence to deliver an absolutely hilarious yet also truly impactful depiction of a man haplessly turning into a cold blooded murderer. 

Best Scene: First "murder".

Updated Overall:

1. Lee Byung-hun in No Other Choice
2. Jesse Plemons in Bugonia
3. Timothée Chalamet in Marty Supreme
4. Leonardo DiCaprio in One Battle After Another
5. Wagner Moura in The Secret Agent
6. Stellan Skarsgård in Sentimental Value
7. David Jonsson in The Long Walk
8. Joel Edgerton in Train Dreams
9. Jacob Elordi in Frankenstein
10. Paul Mescal in Hamnet
11. Robert Aramayo in I Swear
12. Josh O'Connor in Wake Up Dead Man
13. Cooper Hoffman in The Long Walk - 5
14. Ethan Hawke in Blue Moon
15. Josh O'Connor in The Mastermind
16. Dylan O'Brien in Twinless
17. David Strathairn in A Little Prayer
18. Frank Dillane in Urchin 
19. Harry Melling Pillion
20. Sergi López in Sirât
21. Archie Madekwe in Lurker
22. Michael B. Jordan in Sinners
23. Billy Barratt in Bring Her Back
24. Cillian Murphy in Steve
25. Daniel Day-Lewis in Anemone
26. Riz Ahmed in Relay 
27. Everett Blunck in The Plague
28. Oscar Isaac in Frankenstein - 4.5
29. Liam Neeson in The Naked Gun
30. Mads Mikkelsen in Dust Bunny
31. Jacob Tremblay in Sovereign
32. Hugh Jackman in Song Sung Blue
33. Channing Tatum in Roofman
34. Michael Fassbender in Black Bag
35. Denzel Washington in Highest 2 Lowest
36. David Corenswet in Superman
37. Jeremy Allen White in Deliver Me From Nowhere
38. Jackson Yee in Resurrection
39. Josh O'Connor in Rebuilding
40. Robert Pattinson in Mickey 17
41. Miles Teller in Eternity
42. Nick Offerman in Sovereign
43. Theo James in The Monkey 
    
44. Austin Butler in Caught Stealing
45. Matthew McConaughey in The Lost Bus
    
46. Benedict Cumberbatch in The Roses
47. Paul Mescal in The History of Sound
48. Théodore Pellerin in Lurker
49. Filippo Scotti in Le Città Di Pianura
50. Sergio Romano in Le Città Di Pianura
51. Pierpaolo Capovilla in Le Città Di Pianura
52. Pedro Pascal in Fantastic Four: The First Steps 
53. Colin Farrell in Ballad of a Small Player 
54. Keenan Arrison in The Heart is a Muscle
55. Michael Angelo Covino in Splitsville
56. Tonatiuh in Kiss of the Spider Woman
57. Brendan Fraser in Rental Family
58. Ben Whishaw in Peter Hujar's Day 
59. Lee Kang-Sheng in Blue Sun Palace
60. Jorma Tommila in Sisu Road to Revenge -  4
61. Callum Turner in Eternity
62. Jonathan Majors in Magazine Dreams
63. Vahid Mobasseri in It was Just An Accident
64. Miles Caton in Sinners
65. Ishaan Khatter in Homebound
66. Benicio del Toro in The Phoenician Scheme
67. Alfie Williams in 28 Years Later
68. Guillaume Marbeck in Nouvelle Vague
69. George Clooney in Jay Kelly
70. Diego Luna in Kiss of the Spider Woman
71. Paul Walter Hauser in The Luckiest Man in America
    
72. Sean Bean in Anemone
73. Vishal Jethwa in Homebound
74. Tom Hardy in Havoc
75. Bob Odenkirk in Nobody 2
76. Robert Pattinson in Die My Love
77. Brad Pitt in F1
78. Jack Quaid in Novocaine
79. Jason Bateman in Zootopia 2 
80. Christopher Guest in Spinal Tap The End Continues
81. Michael McKean in Spinal Tap The End Continues
82. Kyle Marvin in Splitsville
83. James Sweeney in Twinless - 3.5
84. Ryo Yoshizawa in Kokuho
85. Joaquin Phoenix in Eddington
86. Tim Key in The Ballad of Wallis Island
87. Ben Affleck in The Accountant 2 
88. Ewan Horrocks in Truth and Treason
89. Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning
90. Mahershala Ali in Jurassic World Rebirth 
91. Damson Idris in F1
92. Jared Leto in Tron Ares 
93. Will Arnett in Is This Thing On? - 3
94. Dwayne Johnson in The Smashing Machine
95. Tom Basden in The Ballad of Wallis Island
96. Anthony Mackie in Captain America: Brave New World 
97. Yonas Kibreab in Elio - 2.5
98. Tim Robinson in Friendship
99. Adam Sandler in Happy Gilmore 2
100. Jonathan Bailey in Jurassic World Rebirth
101. Glen Powell in The Running Man
102. Rami Malek in The Amateur
     
103. Rami Malek in Nuremberg
104. Jack Quaid in Companion 
105. Sam Worthington in Avatar: Fire & Ash
106. Robert De Niro in Alto Knights - 2

Next: Waiting though eventually 2004 Supporting. 

Alternate Best Actor 2025: Josh O'Connor in Wake Up Dead Man

Josh O’Connor did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Father Jud Duplenticy in Wake Up Dead Man. 

Wake Up Dead Man is the third Benoit Blanc mystery following this time the murder of a Monsignor Wicks (Josh Brolin) of a small parish. 

Following in the spirit of all three of Rian Johnson’s Benoit Blanc mystery, Blanc himself is technically secondary to the good person embroiled in the mystery, this film taking this approach to the most extreme to the point where he’s fully supporting to the unquestionable true lead by up and comer Josh O’Connor. O’Connor had quite the year in 2025 appearing in four films, three of which he was the lead. O’Connor delivered three different performances in each. One particularly low key was in Rebuilding bringing a quiet paternal energy that was befitting the specific tone of that film. A film built on the attempted naturalism to which O’Connor offered that with the most ease within that film, and more impressive in creating this rancher type without forcing the presence in any way. A good performance though I’d argue held back a little by the limitations of his material. There was also the Mastermind, a performance in a kind of anti-heist heist movie, where it technically depicted the mastermind of a heist but in an exceedingly low key way that more so depicted just the dissolution of any connection between the man, his family and society in general. O’Connor plays the man where the performance is an effective combination between bridging the description and the execution. Where O’Connor does deliver the certain cold precision of the expert thief with careful silent moments of performance where you see him considering his actions, along with the overly blasé man whose moral standings become less and less through the progression of the film. O’Connor’s performance working there was almost as a realization of the hideousness of a kind of complacency. Where his performance consistently is about the lack of guilt or remorse, creating a very specific quality of sinister where it is the lack of consideration for anyone’s true feelings yet constant is the sense of the man thinking through his next step of his criminal enterprise then his next step in escaping justice for his crime. O’Connor weaponizes this very specific duplicity brilliantly. Which seems a natural segue to O’Connor’s performance here which is natural show of range and a specific contrast as the character who is our full entryway into the mystery, to the point Blanc doesn’t show up until 30 minutes into the film, as the good Father Jud. 

O’Connor offers a specific contrast from his other two leading performances in very much emphasizing his youth with Jud and quite effectively so. In the opening of the film we find Jud as he’s in slight trouble with the Catholic hierarchy as a priest for punching a jerk deacon, which might seem like a minor scene but even O’Connor instinctual moment in the performance suggests the nature of the character. That nature being the strictly goodhearted nature of Father Jud, despite his first act being an act of violence, something we emphasize all the more in his conversation with the church authorities. Where O’Connor brings such a great energy that is particularly endearing in expressing Jud’s view of faith and his wish to embrace not fight as a shepherd. Where O’Connor finds just the right kind of enthusiasm where it is just almost too much like when he tells his superior he’s going to come at people with the spirit, O’Connor hits the note just right to be almost too much but also wholly convincing as someone whose filled with just a lot of goodwill to the point it is nearly bursting out of him. Unfortunately for him he’s sent to work with the fire and brimstone Wicks who instantly tries to purposefully challenge Jud’s patience. O’Connor’s effective in the quiet way he takes in every attack and mind game from Wicks, along with finding out the background of the church with the church lady Martha (Glenn Close), where O’Connor finds a nice variation between his comedic surprise to Martha’s way of appearing out of nowhere along with his more down to earth frustration with the nature of Wicks. 

We follow Jud then as he tries to deal with the church parishioners who are immediately disgusted away by Wicks’s judgmental sermons or are in this strange sway with Wicks at all times as their spiritual leader. O’Connor brings the right sense of quiet empathy within all of his reactions and his earnest narration in explaining where he sees Wicks going all wrong while attempting to connect with the parishioners as best he can. Where O’Connor is most effective in showing just the way that Jud listens to everyone at all times and there is the important sense of the man wanting to learn, wanting to connect to the best of his ability and trying to be a good priest however in this instance almost censored by his situation. O’Connor bridging tonal moments of the film particularly effectively such as when he tries to set up a prayer group with the core group only to find they only care about Wicks, and O’Connor’s way of tossing around the ball of frustration while also still showing that earnest concern of trying to connect with them manages to be funny while also getting across the genuine nature of Jud. Building within just the increasing distress at the situation and small scene that I love is when Jud has been drinking and yells at a devil’s head at a bar. I love it because O’Connor manages within it sum up Jud, as even the way he’s yelling at the head has this very lax quality of a man who can only get so mad in the moment, followed by the most sincere of all apologies to the barkeep when he accidentally the lap it sits upon. 

Eventually the conflict leads to the unexpected murder of Wicks in a seemingly impossible setup in a small room without any other exits where he was the only person in the room leading to the arrival of Benoit Blanc and one of O’Connor’s best scenes. The moment being as Blanc denounces religion from his perspective, Jud offers his counter with such a specific and effective rhythm, where he begins by acknowledging Blanc’s perspective with a calm, before quieting building to present his own passionate beliefs with this quiet certainty and directness where you see in the moment Jud’s full potential power of a priest flawlessly realized in O’Connor’s delivery. Followed however by his quick breakdown where O’Connor expresses a convincing frustrated sorrow of someone who sees he may lose his ability to fulfill his calling because of the murder that people are trying to pin on him leading to Jud joining Blanc in the investigation. Where we get the dynamic between the two which very much makes this sequel in so many ways. As while Blanc is calculating the possibilities, O'Connor is terrific in the energy he brings in his bursts of specific enthusiasm of trying to make his own guesses and put different ideas together. Finding a remarkable balance again to certain comedy within the “spirit” of Jud, such as his perfect delivery of Jud’s declarations of questions for the possible suspects so confidently before realizing he has no more to say. Or just sometimes his confusion at a bit of the absurdity such as his confusion when realizing one of the suspects is essentially quoting Star Wars to him. Finding the right endearing quality in Jud not being a great detective but being absolutely sincere in every bit of detail and clue he tries to bring out or name as they go along. 

At the same time though what O’Connor carries is the emotional weight of Jud as a character throughout the situation. Particularly one seemingly throwaway moment when calling a construction company for piece of evidence where the employee Louise (Bridget Everett) is taking awhile to give it, where O’Connor is great in playing up the attempt at being as courteous but with the sense of trying to move the conversation along as quickly as possible with the entirety of the focus on the evidence not the woman. However she continues to speak revealing that her mother is dying and she’s struggling. O’Connor is truly great in playing the moment of switching from just focusing on the mystery to just in his reaction portraying the moment of pause and immediately switching to calm empathy. O’Connor presents the best of Jud within his delivery of his prayer with Louise where every bit of his delivery is with the strictest care and absolute empathy for the woman’s plight and to help her. Following the moment where you see in O’Connor performance essentially where Jud should be rather than caught up in the mystery. Where O’Connor is able to deliver the built up frustrations of all, again but now with a passionate alternative as he explains his reasons for calling to help the sinners and the sick. When Jud explains his own troubled past not as defense but a man with this conviction in clarity of knowing what he has to do. Leading towards the climactic moments of the film where O’Connor is able to combine a comedic confusion at the series of unexpected revelations, but with this exact conviction whenever he is focused on actually being a priest. Leading to the finale where I would say the call scene actually is more moving than the setup mystery ending dramatic scene, however O’Connor still absolutely delivers on the dramatic intentions of the scene. Where O’Connor’s performance continues to embody that sense of calm and understanding throughout the sequence where he brings this quiet comfort from that unquestionable earnest empathy that is just pouring out of every aspect of his performance. The crowning achievement of O'Connor's impressive year, as his resume continues to grow in his range and of this film. O'Connor breathes a pivotal life into the mystery creating essential investment not only by offering a new kind of energy as the novice investigator but also providing rich emotional depth to the journey of Father Jud. 

Alternate Best Actor 2025: Lee Byung-hun in No Other Choice

Lee Byung-hun did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Yoo Man-su in No Other Choice.

No Other Choice follows a laid off paper company finding ways to eliminate his competition in order to procure a position. 

I will admit along with so many here I could not have been more excited to not only see the great Lee Byung-hun to team up with Park after a 25 year creative separation from their mutual breakout of JSA, but also with the idea of the film’s plot as a leading role for him. I have not hidden my praise for Lee as a performer over the years, and I’ll admit it was with great satisfaction to see him get at least minor recognition via Golden Globe for this film, even if I knew it was never going to amount to more than that. And going into the film I couldn’t help but have a certain notion in my mind about Lee playing a coldly brutal villain checking names off permanently as the cinematic badass we’ve come to know him as in his great work in The Good the Bad The Weird, I Saw the Devil and of course A Bittersweet Life. So it was quite the surprise when Lee seemingly threw out his own very successful playbook from the moment we enter into the film on an idyllic barbecue at the grand house of his Yoo Man-su, and we see a decidedly quite goofy looking Lee sporting not exactly the coolest looking mustache and Hawaiian shirt. Lee offers a presence totally out of the ordinary for him as a performer, and pulls it off with a different kind of ease. An ease in his own performance but something else within the character of Man-su’s own approach to basically being the ideal dad/family man, cooking his eel with pride stating how important it is as a gift laid on a bit too thickly by Man-su. Lee presents a pride in Man-su that frankly is a bit much, but as it should be a bit much, to the point of becoming comical illustrating a man who feels he needs to reinforce just how important his job and the success of the job is to him. The importance of the “ideal” family and even reinforcing how proud he is of his sexual prowess with his wife Lee Mi-ri (Son Ye-jin), with the same a bit more than needed from Lee, but pitch perfect in setting up Man-su who defines his life a bit too overtly by what he gets from his job. The cherry on the top of the sequence being when he calls his family in for a sixty second group hug, where Lee’s portrays real joy mixed in with a bit much joy of Man-su needing for himself and his family to acknowledge just how great their life is as a man who must doubly convince himself of the importance of himself as the breadwinner. 

Lee’s performance in that opening scene does two things, one is establish the nature of Man-su’s particular drive and establishing just how important not only his job is but even more so what the job represents to him as a person, but more so Lee establishes the tone of the performance, where quite frankly he has the brilliant willingness to be a bit goofy. In this case running with the idea of the overbearing dad. We then find Lee as he prepares a passionate speech to his company to defend the jobs of his coworkers, and Lee again excels with very much reinforcing just how silly Man-su is at a fundamental level with how he treats his job. In this case Lee, who certainly could make a dramatic passionate speech about the importance of the jobs of his coworkers, instead excels in subverting that a bit in bringing a try hard speech of someone who where the calculation is a bit too obvious and even his little aside about the importance of his coworkers is again Lee’s delivery of laying it on a bit too thick that reveals much about Man-su. Unfortunately for Man-su he basically gets one word out of his speech to the American owners of the company before they drive off leaving Lee’s hilarious reaction as the totally lost Man-su in seeing his plan go up in smoke, only topping that with his reaction to finding out that he too is being cut out of the plant work. Lee, who often brings a cool in roles, is great here by excelling not being cool in the least as we witness Man-su attempting to deal with his world while no longer being employed by his paper company. Where we see Lee then as the man dealing with the company mandated program for losing his job where he goes about various “wellness” activities to support himself, and Lee wonderfully plays that sense of desperation now in Man-su trying to force himself in another direction. Projecting such a festering sense of vulnerability in every act particularly his not at all calming tapping of his head while reciting mantras to find success again. Exacerbating the situation is we see at Man-su’s home that his wife will have to go back to work, they’ll have to give up Netflix, their golden retrievers, and possibly even sell Man-su’s childhood house. Lee’s near silence speaks volumes in the rundown of his losses scenes, where you see in his expression this hollowness in himself as a man who seems like his dreams are being stripped away from him. Lee expresses the fundamental weight of the loss within Man-su as we see a near broken man as he loses his “perfect” world. 

Man-su initially does try to make it back into the workforce through more typical means where we see him however in an interview where Lee is wonderfully awkward in his less than skillful interviewing method. I especially love the overeager glee as he stumbles around in his delivery of stating that he has no flaws before sloppily readjusting to stating it as his inability to say no, where Lee’s perfectly stupid looking smile just denotes someone who has no idea what he’s doing at a fundamental level and there is no confidence whatsoever that he would be able to get the job merely through an interview. Lee then presents the fixation on the idea of success so intently though less of a man with an insatiable drive and more so a rather silly fool pathetically watching Choi Seon-chul (Park Hee-soon), the man with the job he’d like to have. The first man he considers killing as he takes on a large vase to drop on his head, where Lee creates this immediate narrowmindedness in the moment in his eyes of a man just completely caught up in the moment before he rightfully ponders that merely killing this man will in no way guarantee him getting a job. What Lee presents effectively is the jealousy prodding Man-su to this extreme as he becomes intent on literally killing his competition, going so far as to create a fake paper company to gather resumes in order to find the only men who could get a job over him potentially and determine their fate. Lee finds even a captivating energy in presenting this conviction in every step of this process, suggesting Man-su at his most professional and perhaps if he puts this effort into just an interview he probably could secure a job, but instead he decides that triple homicide is a better idea. A key masterful element of Lee’s performance is all the insecurities to this point, the hollowness as he sees other people look through his own home for purchase, he makes it just the natural progression for Man-su who simply sees no other choice than to become a murderer. 

Making this choice however does not lead to any kind of badass as we’d expect from Lee, instead quite the opposite as he begins his first stakeout of target number one, Goo Beom-mo (Lee Sung-min), the unemployed paper expert whose wife Lee A-ra (Yeom Hye-ran) is currently cheating on him. Lee is extraordinary in every bit of performance he does in this whole sequence which is less the setup of a deadly assassin and more so the bumbling actions of a real fool. Lee creates a buffet of enjoyment throughout the process of watching Beom-mo and his wife. Part of it is just the physicality of his performance because really typically again Lee is someone who knows how to move in a very controlled and just simply cool way as shown in numerous performances. Here Lee finds a way to be just so wonderfully bumbling yet wholly natural in a way that presents Man-su as far from cut out for this job with the first kill. He sticks out like a proper sore thumb through every moment of the stakeout just as he moves without precision and with a lot of effort. I especially adore every second of when he is watching over Beom-mo and his wife. Where every Lee reaction is comic gold as we see just the way he licks his lips when he sees them eating fried chicken, to his sympathetic head nodding when Beom-mo explains his refusal to take another job than a paper goods one due to his training and expertise. Lee manages to do two things with these moments, one being just simply very funny while also conveying the sense of connection that Man-su has with this other man he's planning on killing. I’d be remiss though if I also didn’t mention the moment where Man-su believes himself to be bit by a snake, where Beom-mo’s wife drains the venom, quite medically ineffectually for him for a bit sexual need, where Lee’s reactions first in his confusion along with fear, followed by then his after the fact shrugging annoyance is just a bit more great comedy from the performer. 

That is but a warmup act to the sequence where Man-su goes about the actual murder, which is only after poor Beom-mo has caught his wife, despite Man-su’s attempt to prevent him from doing so, where importantly Lee presents a whole lot of earnest desire to help the man…he’s going to kill, but creates that consistent sense of Man-su putting himself in the man’s shoes despite not quite fully making the connection. Leading to the moment where Man-su comes in with his father’s gun to kill the poor man while Beom-mo is living in his sorrows while listening to his record. A sequence that might be the greatest of 2025, at least it is certainly in contention. Lee is magnificent part of the scene starting with the attempt at a grim killer’s face as he aims his gun at the man, only for such incredible micro expressions on Lee’s face switch where you see the needling guilt in the moment as he has the poor man dead to rights, only for the man to make a final plea for himself including his wife’s love, just as his wife comes behind Man-su with an award, where Lee’s performance is a hilarious but also weirdly moving blend of anger with sympathy as he chews out the poor man for not taking a different sensible job. Lee’s whole performance in the scene is so good because he manages to be very funny by bringing this random passion in a scene where Man-su should be ice cold but by also showing the underlying sense of Lee seeing Beom-mo as himself, as he’s essentially yelling at himself, yet separating the idea by putting all this against Beom-mo who he’s frustrated with but in no way hates. A bullet only coming out of the gun and hitting Beom-mo in the shoulder purely by accident, with Lee’s “whoops” reaction also being hilarious and showing just how not cut out for the situation Man-su is in every step of this. Leading to a totally ridiculous brawl on the floor between the three, where Lee’s movements are less trained killer and more of man bad at twister, leading him to run away when the wife gets the gun and only to luck out when she decides to shoot her husband first. Lee’s getting to play genuine horror at seeing the crime he failed to do, before also getting comic gold when after the death of her husband she turns to Man-su and Lee’s reaction of pure fear is absolutely hilarious. With the comic topper perhaps being Lee’s adrenaline fueled exasperation as he drives away from his accidentally successful crime, and particularly his double horror first of seeing how many missed calls he has from his wife then noticing he’s on empty. 

Speaking of Man-su’s wife, parallel to casing his first “victim”, we see as Man-su very much fails to hide his secrets from his wife. Where Lee’s performance brings this consistent silly awkwardness of the man attempting to present one thing for another, while bringing this quiet sense of paranoia in his eyes anytime his wife interacts with her dentist boss, a younger man, who refuses even to have him check his aching tooth. A problem that Lee conveys as a fixation point that we see in no way can he balance it out as the sloppy man who is even more like Beom-mo than he’d care to admit. After the first death though we follow basically Man-su operating from all his paranoia over his wife as we see him follow to what was supposed to be a couples dance now is a broken situation where he walks in to see her dancing with her boss. Lee again deserves all the credit because for a man who can look so cool onscreen, Lee is gloriously uncool in his American classic naval officer outfit as he attempts to look cool on the dance floor which Lee performs to the point of beautiful hilarity. Before slinking out alone, leading to a bedroom confrontation between the two where Lee excels in showing really who deep down Man-su is in this ball of his own insecurities as he essentially acts out thinking he’s in the exact same situation as poor Beom-mo. Lee brings this sloppiness to every bit of his initial aggression with Mi-ri, who comes back with frustration to his secretiveness, anger to his behavior, but also warmth of a wife who doesn’t like seeing the man she does love in such a state. In this interaction Lee and Son are great in seeing the early days of their relationship in a way, where Mi-Ri was the “higher class” less attainable woman, and he the follow-up fool, in his mind who was led to drink and even violence. Lee presenting essentially the dormant pathetic nature of the man in every word, as he goes from confrontation, to this beaten down sorrow as Lee expresses the man we see deep down and paints an even stronger sense of the motivation of a man who doesn’t want to return to the jobless low class fool he had always perceived himself as. 

One of the many elements, where Lee excels within the performance is showing the progression of Man-su with each victim, where we started with the man he connected too much with, we jump next to the next currently working as a shoe salesmen. Lee creates in these scenes a striking contrast between in his eyes a sense of familiarity to, but naturally easing back too much connection this time in presenting a calmer determination. Lee is outstanding in the way he essentially bridges the tone as we step from the hilarious moment of the complete fool, to the next step as the killer who isn’t all the way there. Lee still presents glints of sympathy in his interactions with the man, but now the presentation is less of himself and more almost like an executioner who is putting someone out of their misery…well that is until he actually has to do the killing and again we get a great subversion of presence where we see the attempt at the cold killer again is a little faulty, not as faulty, but still faulty. As Lee brings a shaky hand and slowly loses the cold conviction as he tries to cover up the man’s face, leading to a bit more physical comedy as shoots the man and Lee’s once again hilarious reaction is more of surprise than one of cold brutality. Lee successfully shows the push and pull within Man-su who is maybe “learning” a bit each time but not quite enough. Lee's performance as Man-su unexpectedly has to deal with his son being arrested for stealing cellphones right after this murder, where Lee’s silent reactions of guilt while he has no suspicion are perfect. There is a natural sense of change though as Man-su does not allow his son to be railroaded by the father of his son’s friend whose store they robbed together. Lee finally presents some calm cunning as he blackmails the man and we see some progression. Not all though as Lee beautifully fumbles around the police interview over the disappearance of two paper men. Lee finds just the right wrong rhythm throughout the conversation of his deliveries too quickly in some moments and then labored in others, painting himself so effectively as the lying guilty man only lucking out by the police not really having an idea of what the disappearances even mean yet.

Man-su has his final target now of Choi Seon-chul, who Man-su approaches for a drink right outside the man’s home. Lee again being so great into bringing us into the particular thinking of Man-su as he goes about the crime again, where Lee does so much with silence throughout this performance in this instance putting on the face of the interested coworker why also awaiting that sense of opportunity once again, while also still having a minor bit of uncertainty. An aspect that only changes when the man forces the sober Man-su to drink, and essentially Lee uses this as killer Popeye’s spinach as he depicts the change to the cold calculation fueled essentially by the alcohol. Where he first works through the pain by taking out his own tooth depicted with visceral perfection by Lee, to then accentuating a man fully with purpose and direction as he essentially leads Choi to his murder trap. The murder trap this time being a fully developed look of an accident by having Choi drink to unconsciousness, forcing him to choke on food, then leaving him as a drunken suffocated dead man. Lee now depicts finally the killer’s edge and precision within Man-su as he makes his most cold-blooded moment and we see the man embracing the choice fully. That isn’t to say Lee becomes the badass of many of his other roles, not in the least. Rather what he presents is the coldhearted nature we have fully seen develop in Man-su as progression of crimes. An element we see more distinctly in the second police interrogation, where Lee is still brilliantly playing the layers, but now instead of being the comedic sloppy fool, he’s more internalizing the questions about how much the police know and a more exact demeanor of someone more comfortable with his crimes. 

Far more damning though is his final interactions with Mi-ri who has figured out his crimes and while horrified by them she does turn him in. Lee in the final sequence calls back to his first scene in an expert subversion of that. As there is now again a bit of a put on, but in a very different way. Where we saw someone deep down happy over his success who laid on too thickly to reinforce the idea to everyone, including himself, now it too seems forced but with a distinct change in Lee’s performance which is the lack of any soul. When he now hugs his wife, as he hugged his family before, instead of being the goofy dad overdoing things, we see the serial killer putting on a false face and accepting his dark achievement with a bone chilling smile as he’s fully separate from any sense of morality. Lee creates such a disturbing process in frankly losing the humor of Man-su from the sloppy guy failing at life, to the horrible human finding his success as he watches over a lifeless factory as the only human employee working with only machines. Lee delivers one masterful choice after another in delivering perhaps his crowning achievement as an actor. As he successfully purges what makes him such a captivating performer, to be captivating in a completely new way in giving flawless comedic performance, he manages to convincingly transform into the dark journey of a man fully losing his connection to humanity in order to preserve his dream. I love everything Lee does here, as while I knew Lee had a great performance in him as a guy killing the competition to achieve his goals, I never knew he had this specific performance that managed to both live up to the high expectation I had for it while also completely subverting it with one brilliant choice after another.