British-Nigerian actress Wunmi Mosaku has earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the 98th Academy Awards for her role in the vampire horror film Sinners.
This marks another major milestone for Nigerian talent on the global stage.
Mosaku, who is considered one of the favourites in a highly competitive category, is part of a historic Oscar moment for the film, which went on to become the most-nominated movie in Academy Awards history.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Thursday that Sinners, directed by Ryan Coogler, received a record-breaking 16 nominations.
It surpassed the long-standing benchmark of 14 nominations previously held by All About Eve (1950), Titanic (1997), and La La Land (2016).
The blues-infused vampire epic benefited in part from the Academy’s newly introduced Best Casting category and drew widespread recognition across both major and technical fields.
Coogler secured a rare trifecta of nominations for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay, while longtime collaborator Michael B. Jordan earned his first-ever Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
Veteran actor Delroy Lindo also received his first nomination, landing a nod for Best Supporting Actor.
Beyond Mosaku’s historic nod, the film achieved several other landmark moments in the technical categories.
Ruth E. Carter, nominated for Best Costume Design, became the most-nominated Black woman in Oscar history, while Autumn Durald Arkapaw’s recognition for Best Cinematography marked only the fourth time a woman has been nominated in the category’s 98-year history.
The film’s haunting original song, I Lied To You, co-written by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig Göransson, also earned a nomination.
Despite its dominance, Sinners faces strong competition, with Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another trailing closely behind with 13 nominations.
