Directors Guild Award nominations indicate a tight Oscar race

The Directors Guild of America announced its nominations Thursday for outstanding directorial accomplishment successful theatrical diagnostic film, offering 1 of the clearest snapshots yet of the Oscar contention for manager arsenic guild voters statesman to measurement in.

Nominated for the DGA’s apical movie grant are Paul Thomas Anderson for “One Battle After Another,” Ryan Coogler for “Sinners,” Guillermo del Toro for “Frankenstein,” Josh Safdie for “Marty Supreme” and Chloé Zhao for “Hamnet.”

Winners volition beryllium announced astatine the 78th DGA Awards connected Feb. 7 astatine the Beverly Hilton.

The DGA grant remains 1 of the strongest predictors of Oscar success. Twenty of the past 23 recipients of the guild’s apical directing prize person gone connected to triumph the Academy Award for director. Last year’s DGA winner, “Anora” manager Sean Baker, went connected to repetition astatine the Oscars.

Several of this year’s nominees are acquainted figures to the guild. Anderson’s motion for “One Battle After Another” marks his 3rd clip being recognized by the DGA successful the apical movie category, pursuing his earlier nominations for “There Will Be Blood” and “Licorice Pizza.” Zhao, who won some the DGA Award and the Oscar for “Nomadland,” receives her 2nd information for the wrenching play play “Hamnet,” making her 1 of a tiny radical of women — including Jane Campion, Kathryn Bigelow and Greta Gerwig — to beryllium recognized much than erstwhile by the guild.

Del Toro, who won the DGA Award for “The Shape of Water,” earns his 2nd vocation information successful the class for his long-gestating “Frankenstein” adaptation, portion Safdie receives his archetypal DGA information for theatrical diagnostic movie for his gonzo sports play “Marty Supreme.”

The DGA nominations often way intimately with the Oscars successful portion due to the fact that of overlapping membership: Most directors successful the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are besides members of the guild. While the groups ballot independently, that shared basal has made the DGA 1 of the astir reliable bellwethers successful the Oscar directing race.

This year’s DGA nominations overlap importantly with the Golden Globe nominations for directing, which besides included Anderson, Coogler, Del Toro and Zhao. The Globes additionally recognized Jafar Panahi for “It Was Just an Accident” and Joachim Trier for “Sentimental Value,” 2 filmmakers who didn’t look successful the DGA lineup. The differences item the contrasting constitution of the Globes’ voting assemblage of planetary critics and the DGA’s much industry-focused membership.

The guild besides announced nominees for the Michael Apted Award for outstanding directorial accomplishment successful first-time theatrical diagnostic film, a class that has progressively served arsenic a spotlight for emerging talent. This year’s nominees are Hasan Hadi for “The President’s Cake,” Harry Lighton for “Pillion,” Charlie Polinger for “The Plague,” Alex Russell for “Lurker” and Eva Victor for “Sorry, Baby.” Last year’s Apted Award winner, RaMell Ross, went connected to gain a champion representation Oscar information for “Nickel Boys.”

Television, documentary and different DGA nominations were announced earlier this week, recognizing directing enactment crossed drama, comedy, constricted bid and nonfiction programming. In melodramatic series, nominees included “Severance,” “Andor,” “The Diplomat” and HBO Max’s “The Pitt,” portion drama bid nominees included “The Bear,” “Hacks,” “The White Lotus” and Apple TV+’s “The Studio.”