These Oscar nominees could make history this year
(KTLA) – We're inching closer to the 95th Annual Academy Awards. As Hollywood prepares for the big ceremony, there are a few nominees who are poised to make history if they take home the statuette. In the acting categories, 16 out of the 20 are first-time nominees.
Many viewers will also notice increased diversity among the acting honorees as the Academy evolves from criticism that spawned the social media hashtag #OscarsSoWhite many years ago. Sunday's show is the first time that four Asian actors are competing across multiple acting categories.
Michelle Yeoh is nominated for Best Actress for "Everything Everywhere All at Once," and co-stars Ke Huy Quan and Stephanie Hsu are nominated for Best Supporting Actor and for Best Supporting Actress, respectively. "The Whale" actress Hong Chau is also in the running for Best Supporting Actress.
If Ke Huy Quan wins, he will be the first Asian man to receive the award since 1985, when Haing S. Ngor won an Oscar for “The Killing Fields.” If Yeoh takes home the trophy, this would be the first time a woman of color has won in that category since Halle Berry became the first Black woman to win Best Actress in 2002 for "Monster's Ball."
Ana De Armas, who played Marilyn Monroe in the movie "Blonde," is the first Cuban actress to be nominated for Best Actress. Angela Bassett is also nominated for her role as Queen Ramonda in "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," in the Best Supporting Actress category. She is the first actor to receive a nomination for a Marvel Film, but she's no stranger to the Academy. In 1994, Bassett was nominated for Best Actress for her portrayal of Tina Turner in the 1993 biopic, "What's Love Got to Do With It?" She is the fourth Black actress to receive multiple Oscar nods. Others include Whoopi Goldberg, Octavia Spencer, and Viola Davis.
Critics have noted that the Academy snubbed "The Woman King" star Viola Davis and "Till" actress Danielle Deadwyler in the lead actress category. Actor Brian Tyree Henry is up for Best Supporting Actor for "Causeway," but he's the only Black male actor recognized by the Academy this year.
The film "RRR" could make history if the movie's song "Naatu Naatu" takes home the trophy for Best Original Song. It's the first Indian feature film to be nominated for anything other than the Best International Film category The 95th Annual Academy Awards is scheduled to take place on March 12 at 8:00 p.m. ET.