‘Sinners’ Dominates Critics Choice Awards Below-the-Line Shortlists

Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” leads all films in shortlists for the Critics Choice Awards’ below-the-line categories, which were announced on Monday morning.

With a special committee from the Critics Choice Association narrowing the field to 12 semi-finalists in 11 different categories, “Sinners” was shortlisted in every category and received three mentions for Best Song, giving it 13 entries. “F1,” “Frankenstein” and “Wicked: For Good” were each recognized in nine categories.

The Best Song shortlisted entries for “Sinners” were “I Lied to You” and “Last Time (I Seen the Sun),” the two songs that were entered in the Oscar song race, and “Pale, Pale Moon,” which was not.  Other films with two shortlisted songs are “Wicked: For Good,” with “The Girl in the Bubble” and “No Place Like Home,” and “F1,” with “Drive” and “Lose My Mind” (but not “Just Keep Watching”).

For the most part, the CCA shortlists contain most of the likely Oscar nominees in those categories, with notable omissions including “Sentimental Value,” “Frankenstein” and “A House of Dynamite” in casting; “Jay Kelly,” “Wicked: For Good” and “The Testament of Ann Lee” in score; and “Blue Moon” in hair and makeup.

Shortlists were instituted for the first time this year in the casting and ensemble, cinematography, production design, editing, costume design, hair and makeup, visual effects, stunt design, song, score and sound categories. During the nomination round of voting, members of the CCA will be able to choose from all of the shortlisted films and will also have two lines on which they can cast a write-in vote, provided the film did not screen prior to Nov. 24 (this explains why “Avatar: Fire and Ash” did not make any of the shortlists, and why it may well still be nominated in some BTL categories).

Nomination voting will take place from Nov. 25 through Dec. 3, with nominations announced on Dec. 5. The 31st annual Critics Choice Awards will take place on Jan. 4, 2026, and will be hosted by Chelsea Handler for the fourth consecutive time.

Here is the complete list of shortlisted films:

BEST CASTING AND ENSEMBLE
Susanne Scheel – A House of Dynamite (Netflix)
Nina Gold – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Douglas Aibel, Nina Gold – Jay Kelly (Netflix)
Rich Delia – The Long Walk (Lionsgate)
Jennifer Venditti – Marty Supreme (A24)
No Other Choice (Neon)
Cassandra Kulukundis – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Rebecca Dealy – The Plague (IFC)
Kei Kawamura, Yumi Takada – Rental Family (Searchlight Pictures)
Gabriel Domingues – The Secret Agent (Neon)
Francine Maisler – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Tiffany Little Canfield, Bernard Telsey – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Anthony Dod Mantle – 28 Years Later (Sony Pictures)
Claudio Miranda – F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
Dan Laustsen – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Łukasz Żal – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Linus Sandgren – Jay Kelly (Netflix)
Darius Khondji – Marty Supreme (A24)
Kim Woo-hyung – No Other Choice (Neon)
David Chambille – Nouvelle Vague (Netflix)
Michael Bauman – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Steven Breckon – The Plague (IFC)
Autumn Durald Arkapaw – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Adolpho Veloso – Train Dreams (Netflix)

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Jeremy Hindle, David Schlesinger – A House of Dynamite (Netflix)
Ben Munro, Mark Tildesley, Reynan Castro Del Rosario, Andrew McCarthy, Véronique Melery – F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
Kasra Farahani, Jille Azis – The Fantastic Four: First Steps (Marvel Studios)
Tamara Deverell, Shane Vieau – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Fiona Crombie, Alice Felton – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Cara Brower, Stella Fox – Hedda (Amazon MGM Studios)
Jack Fisk, Adam Willis – Marty Supreme (A24)
Ryu Seong-hie – No Other Choice (Neon)
Inbal Weinberg, Kendall Anderson – Roofman (Paramount Pictures)
Jørgen Stangebye Larsen, Catrine Gormsen – Sentimental Value (Neon)
Hannah Beachler, Monique Champagne – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Nathan Crowley, Lee Sandales – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

BEST EDITING
Kirk Baxter – A House of Dynamite (Netflix)
Stephen Mirrione – F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
Evan Schiff – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Chloé Zhao, Affonso Gonçalves – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Amir Etminan – It Was Just an Accident (Neon)
Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme (A24)
Kim Sang-bum, Kim Ho-bin – No Other Choice (Neon)
Andy Jurgensen – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Viridiana Lieberman – The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix)
Michael P. Shawver – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Bob Ducsay – Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery (Netflix)
Joe Murphy – Weapons (Warner Bros.)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Alexandra Byrne – The Fantastic Four: First Steps (Marvel Studios)
Kate Hawley – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Malgosia Turzanska – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Lindsay Pugh – Hedda (Amazon MGM Studios)
Colleen Atwood – Kiss of the Spider Woman (Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions)
Miyako Bellizzi – Marty Supreme (A24)
Colleen Atwood – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Rita Azevedo – The Secret Agent (Neon)
Ruth E. Carter – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Ernesto Martinez – Song Sung Blue (Focus Features)
Małgorzata Karpiuk – The Testament of Ann Lee (Searchlight Pictures)
Paul Tazewell – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP
28 Years Later (Sony Pictures)
Bugonia (Focus Features)
Frankenstein (Netflix)
Hedda – Amazon MGM Studios)
Kiss of the Spider Woman (Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions)
Kokuho (Gkids)
Sinners (Warner Bros.)
The Smashing Machine (A24)
Superman (Warner Bros.)
The Ugly Stepsister (IFC)
Weapons (Warner Bros.)
Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
The Fantastic Four: First Steps (Marvel Studios)
Frankenstein (Netflix)
How to Train Your Dragon (Universal Pictures)
Mickey 17 (Warner Bros.)
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (Paramount Pictures)
Predator: Badlands (20th Century Studios)
Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Sketch (Angel)
Superman (Warner Bros.)
Tron: Ares (Walt Disney Pictures)
Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

BEST STUNT DESIGN
Ballerina (Lionsgate)
F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
Frankenstein (Netflix)
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (Paramount Pictures)
One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Predator: Badlands (20th Century Studios)
Sinners (Warner Bros.)
The Smashing Machine (A24)
Superman (Warner Bros.)
Thunderbolts* (Marvel Studios)
Warfare (A24)
Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

BEST SONG
“Clothed by the Sun” – Daniel Blumberg – The Testament of Ann Lee (Searchlight Pictures)
“Dear Me” – Diane Warren – Diane Warren: Relentless (Greenwich Entertainment
“Drive” – Ed Sheeran, John Mayer, Blake Slatkin – F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
“The Girl in the Bubble” – Stephen Schwartz – Wicked: For Good (Universal
Pictures)
“Golden” – Ejae, Mark Sonnenblick, Ido, 24, Teddy – KPop Demon Hunters
Netflix)
“Highest 2 Lowest” – Howard Drossin, Aiyana-Lee – Highest 2 Lowest (A24/Apple Original Films)
“I Lied to You” – Raphael Saadiq, Ludwig Göransson – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
“Last Time (I Seen the Sun)” – Alice Smith, Miles Caton, Ludwig Göransson – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
“Lose My Mind” – Don Toliver, Doja Cat, Hans Zimmer, Ryan Tedder, Grant Boutin – F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
“No Place Like Home” – Stephen Schwartz – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)
“Pale, Pale Moon” – Brittany Howard, Ludwig Göransson – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
“Train Dreams” – Nick Cave, Bryce Dessner – Train Dreams (Netflix)

BEST SCORE
Volker Bertelmann – A House of Dynamite (Netflix)
Jerskin Fendrix – Bugonia (Focus Features)
Hans Zimmer – F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
Alexandre Desplat – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Max Richter – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Hildur Guðnadóttir – Hedda (Amazon MGM Studios)
Daniel Lopatin – Marty Supreme (A24)
Jonny Greenwood – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Johan Lenox – The Plague (IFC)
Ludwig Göransson – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Kangding Ray – Sirāt (Neon)
Nine Inch Nails – Tron: Ares (Walt Disney Pictures)

BEST SOUND
A House of Dynamite (Netflix)
F1 (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
Frankenstein (Netflix)
Hamnet (Focus Features)
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You (A24)
The Lost Bus (Apple Original Films)
One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Sinners (Warner Bros.)\
Sirāt (Neon)
Superman (Warner Bros.)
Warfare (A24)
Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

The post ‘Sinners’ Dominates Critics Choice Awards Below-the-Line Shortlists appeared first on TheWrap.