‘All of Us Strangers’: This fantasy will make Oscars a reality for Andrew Haigh

Fantasy is a genre that is often hard done by the awards groups, particularly the academy. Occasionally, the odd masterpiece such as Peter Jackson‘s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, which won 17 Oscars, will break their barrier but, in general, the genre doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. Even “Harry Potter” failed to earn an Oscar win and was never nominated in any above-the-line category.

However, Andrew Haigh‘s “All of Us Strangers” is poised to be the next fantastical film that makes the academy’s voters sit up and take notice. Part romance, part ghost story, the film is loosely based on Taichi Yamada‘s 1987 novel “Strangers.” The story follows Andrew Scott‘s Adam as a writer struggling with his latest project who forms a relationship with Paul Mescal‘s Harry. As their relationship progresses, Adam finds himself drawn to his past and visits his hometown only to find his parents (played by Claire Foy and Jamie Bell) just as they were the day they died, 30 years ago.

The film has received rapturous praise and currently sits on 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. Many of these rave reviews made special mention of the writing.

David Rooney (The Hollywood Reporter) noted: “In Haigh’s script, the circumstances of their separation at a formative time in Adam’s life are written by a cruel stroke of fate. But many queer audiences cut off from their families after coming out will recognize the urge on both sides to rewrite fractured history and share words that were never said.”

Wendy Ide (ScreenDaily) observed: “Haigh’s elegantly elliptical screenplay was adapted from a 1987 Japan-set novel, titled ‘Strangers,’ by Taichi Yamada… All of this chimes, first and foremost, because of the quality of Haigh’s gorgeous, perceptive screenplay. But there’s a harmony in the craft here that complements and elevates the writing.”

David Ehrlich (Indie Wire) opined: “Haigh tells this potentially maudlin story with such a light touch that even its biggest reveals hit like a velvet hammer, and his screenplay so movingly echoes Adam’s yearning to be known — across time and space — that the film always feels rooted in his emotional present, even as it pings back and forth between dimensions.”

Not surprisingly, “All of Us Strangers” is high up on our Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar chart. It currently sits just outside our predicted five nominees: “Killers of the Flower Moon” (Martin Scorsese and Eric Roth), “Oppenheimer” (Christopher Nolan), “Poor Things” (Tony McNamara), “American Fiction” (Cord Jefferson), and “The Zone of Interest” (Jonathan Glazer).

This would be Haigh’s first-ever nomination and “All of Us Strangers” would become just the 10th fantasy film this century to reap a bid for its writing and only the fifth adapted screenplay to do so.

Here’s the breakdown for Original Screenplay: Guillermo del Toro was nominated for “Pan’s Labyrinth” in 2007 but lost to Michael Arndt for the indie drama “Little Miss Sunshine.” Woody Allen won the award in 2012 for “Midnight in Paris.” Josh Cooley, Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, and Ronnie del Carmen were nominated in 2016 for “Inside Out” but lost to Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy for the biographical drama “Spotlight.” Efthimis Filippou and Yorgos Lanthimos reaped a 2017 bid for “The Lobster” but fell to Kenneth Lonergan‘s drama “Manchester by the Sea.” Del Toro was nominated again in 2018 for “The Shape of Water” (shared with Vanessa Taylor) but lost this time to Jordan Peele‘s horror movie “Get Out.”

And here’s the breakdown for Adapted Screenplay: Jackson, Philippa Boyens, and Fran Walsh were nominated for “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” in 2002 while in the same year, Ted Elliott, Roger S. H. Schulman, Joe Stillman, and Terry Rossio reaped a bid for “Shrek.” Both movies lost to the biopic “A Beautiful Mind,” which was penned by Akiva Goldsman. Jackson, Boyens, and Walsh won in 2004, however, for “The Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King.”

So, Haigh’s would be the first fantasy film nominated in Adapted Screenplay since 2004. It certainly deserves to be — and there is another reason to believe he can pull off the nomination, too. Acclaimed writer-directors often find nominations in writing categories for films that are snubbed in other categories. It’s a nomination to make up for skipping over them in other categories such as Director or Picture.

We don’t think “All of Us Strangers” will compete in either of those categories so a nomination for Adapted Screenplay could be the perfect way for the academy to recognize Haigh’s work and film. This has happened several times before. In Original Screenplay: Rian Johnson was nominated in 2020 for “Knives Out,” Paul Schrader was nominated in 2019 for “First Reformed,” and Mike Mills was nominated in 2017 for “20th Century Women.” In Adapted Screenplay: Johnson was nominated for “Glass Onion” in 2023, Maggie Gyllenhaal was nominated for “The Lost Daughter” in 2022, and Greta Gerwig was nominated for “Little Women” in 2020. Haigh’s potential nomination would fit right alongside these bids.

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