Christopher Nolan has the chance to make Oscar history by accomplishing something that hasn’t been done for seven decades.
Nolan’s The Odyssey remains the front-runner in several categories in the Gold Derby odds, including Best Picture and Best Director, creating the opportunity for him to become the first filmmaker in 64 years to direct consecutive films that win Best Picture, since David Lean for The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Lawrence of Arabia (1962).
Nolan’s last film, the historical epic Oppenheimer, was released three years ago and won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. He is well within striking distance of again pulling off the twofer.
To date, Lean is the only director in Oscar history to direct consecutive Best Picture winners. He also picked up Best Director trophies for both films in the process.
While there have been multiple directors who have won the Best Director prize consecutively — such as Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity and Roma), Alejandro González Iñárritu (Birdman and The Revenant), John Ford (The Grapes of Wrath and How Green Was My Valley), and Joseph L. Mankiewicz (A Letter to Three Wives and All About Eve) — none of them also prevailed twice in the respective Best Picture races.
There were also directors like Francis Ford Coppola, who technically did win Best Picture consecutively for The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, but he directed Best Picture nominee The Conversation in between his Mafia movies.
After the massive awards success that was Oppenheimer, Nolan returned this summer with his feature adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey, starring an ensemble cast of A-listers including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, John Leguizamo, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Samantha Morton, Charlize Theron, and Zendaya.
Best Director
1.
Christopher Nolan
The Odyssey
2.
Javier Ambrossi, Javier Calvo
La Bola Negra
3.
Martin McDonagh
Wild Horse Nine
4.
5.
Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim
You Can See Everything
With a worldwide box office gross nearing $2 billion and a planned return to theaters in Imax 70mm in December, during crucial precursor voting periods [verify: re-release timing and voting schedule], The Odyssey looks poised to dominate the upcoming awards season.
Per the Gold Derby experts’ odds, the film is leading the Best Picture race with a 100% chance of being nominated. Nolan shares the same percentage in the Best Director category. It additionally leads categories including Best Supporting Actress (Hathaway), Best Casting, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Sound, Best Costume Design, and Best Production Design, while being a contender in Best Actor (Damon), Best Supporting Actor (Leguizamo), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Song, Best Visual Effects, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling.
If The Odyssey manages to win the top category, it will be a historic achievement for Nolan as he will become the second director overall to shoot Best Picture winners back to back, and the first in over six decades.
