The 98th Academy Awards produced an unexpected twist on Sunday evening during the Best Live Action Short Film category, resulting in a rare tie between two films.

Kumail Nanjiani, presenting the award, displayed visible shock while declaring the outcome. “And the Oscar goes to — it’s a tie! I’m not joking, it’s actually a tie,” the comedian stated.

The winners share the honor: creators of Two People Exchanging Saliva and The Singers.

Ceremony Highlights

The glitzy event unfolds at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, honoring top 2025 films. Conan O’Brien hosts for his second straight year.

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners dominates with a record 16 nominations, the highest ever, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Michael B. Jordan. The 1930s Mississippi-set horror follows twin brothers confronting supernatural evil.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another follows with 13 nods, featuring Leonardo DiCaprio in Best Actor, plus Supporting Actor bids for Benicio del Toro and Sean Penn, and Supporting Actress for Teyana Taylor.

Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme, starring Timothée Chalamet as a ping-pong prodigy, secures nine nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actor. Chalamet leads the tight Best Actor race after early wins, though recent shifts favor Jordan.

Key Acting Categories

Best Actor contenders include Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme), Michael B. Jordan (Sinners), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), and Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent).

Jessie Buckley frontruns Best Actress for Chloe Zhao’s Hamnet, a reimagined tale of Shakespeare’s family tragedy. Competitors: Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I Would Kick You), Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue), Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value), Emma Stone (Bugonia).

Best Supporting Actor: Benicio del Toro (One Battle After Another), Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Sean Penn (One Battle After Another – winner), Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value).

Best Supporting Actress: Elle Fanning (Sentimental Value), Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value), Amy Madigan (Weapons – winner), Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners), Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another).

Notable Snubs and New Categories

Snubs include Paul Mescal, Adam Sandler, Jesse Plemons in Supporting Actor, Ariana Grande and Gwyneth Paltrow in Supporting Actress, and Wicked: For Good overall.

The inaugural Best Casting category nominees: Nina Gold (Hamnet), Jennifer Venditti (Marty Supreme), Cassandra Kulukundis (One Battle After Another – winner), Gabriel Domingues (The Secret Agent), Francine Maisler (Sinners).

Best Picture Nominees

• Bugonia
• F1
• Frankenstein
• Hamnet
• Marty Supreme
• One Battle After Another
• The Secret Agent
• Sentimental Value
• Sinners
• Train Dreams

Other Winners

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Frankenstein – winner

Best Costume Design

Frankenstein – winner

The ceremony airs live on ABC at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT, streaming on Hulu and other platforms.