PGA Nominations: Wa Wa Wee Wa! "Borat Subsequent Moviefilm" made the list.

The Producers Guild of America has spoken and has named these ten pictures as nominees for its top category.

Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures

• Borat Subsequent Moviefilm Producers: Sacha Baron Cohen, Monica Levinson, Anthony Hines
• Judas and the Black Messiah Producers: Charles D. King, Ryan Coogler, Shaka King
• Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom Producers: Denzel Washington, Todd Black
• Mank Producers: Ceán Chaffin, Eric Roth, Douglas Urbanski
• Minari Producer: Christina Oh
• Nomadland Producers: Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey, Chloé Zhao
• One Night In Miami… Producers: Jess Wu Calder & Keith Calder, Jody Klein
• Promising Young Woman Producers: Josey McNamara, Ben Browning, Ashley Fox, Emerald Fennell
• Sound Of Metal Producers: Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche
• The Trial of the Chicago 7 Producers: Marc Platt, Stuart Besser

This is great news for Judas and the Black Messiah as a late breaking contender as well as Sound of Metal which has had a lot of buzz for Riz Ahmed but less so for other awards categories.  The PGA choices are a tough break for News of the World and The Father. But all is not lost for the latter two hopefuls as Oscar does often change things up a bit. Stats and more PGA nominations after the jump...

Differences in PGA to Oscar in recent Best Picture years. Oscar will usually dump at last one or two of the PGA titles and replace one. In the last five years though the choices have had less variety with Oscar voters usually only selecting from the PGA titles and not adding any of their own. Generally speaking Oscar has better taste if you look at omissions and substitutions but there have been a few outlier years where the PGA was wiser. 

2019: (PGA only): Knives Out
  Oscar replaced with: All other nominations matched

Difference of opinion: PGA chose 1917 for its top prize and Oscar went with Parasite.

2018: (PGA only) Crazy Rich Asians and A Quiet Place
          Oscar replaced with: All other nominations matched

2017: (PGA only) The Big Sick, I Tonya, Molly's Game, and Wonder Woman
          Oscar replaced with: Darkest Hour and Phantom Thread

2016: (PGA only) Deadpool
          Oscar replaced with: All other nominations matched.

  Difference of opinion: PGA chose La La Land for its top prize and Oscar went with Moonlight

2015: (PGA only) Ex Machina, Sicario and Straight Outta Compton
          Oscar replaced with: Room 

Difference of opinion: PGA chose The Big Short for its top prize and Oscar went with Spotlight

2014: (PGA only) Foxcatcher, Gone Girl and Nightcrawler
          Oscar replaced with: Selma

2013: (PGA only) Blue Jasmine and Saving Mr Banks
          Oscar replaced with: Philomena

Difference of opinion: NOT REALLY given Oscar outcomes but there was a tie and the PGA chose both Gravity (which won the most Oscars) for its top prize AND 12 Years a Slave which won Best Picture at the Oscars.

2012: (PGA only) Moonrise Kingdom and Skyfall
          Oscar replaced with: Amour

2011: (PGA only) Bridesmaids, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and The Ides of March
          Oscar replaced with: The Tree of Life and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

2010: (PGA only) The Town
          Oscar replaced with: Winter's Bone

2009: (PGA only) Invictus and Star Trek
          Oscar replaced with: The Blind Side and A Serious Man

BEFORE 2009 BOTH BOTH OSCAR AND PGA HAD 5 NOMINATIONS FOR THE TOP CATEGORY (though PGA allows ties so sometimes there were 6).

AFTERWARDS OSCAR HAD BETWEEN 8-10 NOMINEES DEPENDING ON THE YEAR AND PGA STAYED WITH A TOP TEN EACH YEAR (unless there was a tie in which case they had 11)

2008: (PGA only) The Dark Knight
Oscar replaced with: The Reader

2007: (PGA only) The Diving Bell and Butterfly
Oscar replaced with: Atonement

2006: (PGA only) Dreamgirls
Oscar replaced with: Letters from Iwo Jima

Difference of opinion: PGA chose Little Miss Sunshine for its top prize and Oscar went with The Departed

2005: (PGA only) Walk the Line
Oscar replaced with: Munich

Difference of opinion: PGA chose Brokeback Mountain for its top prize and Oscar went with Crash

2004: (PGA only) The Incredibles
Oscar replaced with: Ray

Difference of opinion: PGA chose The Aviator for its top prize and Oscar went with Million Dollar Baby

2003: (PGA only) Cold Mountain and The Last Samurai (6 nominees that year)
Oscar replaced with: Lost in Translation

2002: (PGA only) Adaptation, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and Road to Perdition (6 nominees that year)
Oscar replaced with: The Hours and The Pianist 

2001: (PGA only) Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone, Shrek
 Oscar replaced with: Gosford Park and In the Bedroom

Difference of opinion: PGA chose Moulin Rouge! (which shocked and delighted awards-fanatics) for its top prize and Oscar went with A Beautiful Mindzzz

2000: (PGA only) Almost Famous and Billy Elliott
Oscar replaced with: Chocolat and Traffic

We could go back further but let's stop at just the last twenty years of stats since there are still more PGA nominations to discuss.

BACK TO THE NEW PGA NOMINATIONS

Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures

• The Croods: A New Age Producer: Mark Swift
• Onward Producer: Kori Rae
• Over the Moon Producers: Gennie Rim, Peilin Chou
• Soul Producer: Dana Murray
• Wolfwalkers Producers: Paul Young, Nora Twomey, Tomm Moore, Stéphan Roelants

It's interesting that PGA went with Over the Moon which missed the top category at the Annie Awards. The Annies preferred both The Willoughbys and Trolls World Tour  to Over the Moon  when it came to the American pictures. 

Dont ink anything in beyond Soul and Wolfwalkers with Oscar as these nomination fields almost never exactly match. It's happened just once and it was in a year with only three nominees: 2008's nominees WALL•E, Bolt, and Kung Fu Panda.  There was one other year where every PGA nominee was also nominated for the Oscar category but that was a year (2006) wherein the PGA chose 5 nominees and Oscar had only 3. Generally speaking PGA will only nominate American pictures for this prize whereas Oscar will often select one or two overseas entries as nominees. So hope is not lost yet for Annie nominees from overseas: Shaun the Sheep Farmageddon, Calamity, Ride Your Wave, or On-Gaku. 

Otherwise it's most common to only match 60%. Years with PGA/Oscar 4/5 matches: 2018, 2012, 2009; Years with PGA/Oscar 3/5 matches: 2019, 2017, 2016, 2014, 2013, 2011; Years with PGA/Oscar 2/5 matches: 2015;  Years with PGA/Oscar 2/3 matches: 2010, 2005; Years of PGA/Oscar matches 1/3: 2007

Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television – Drama

• Better Call Saul (Season 5) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Bridgerton (Season 1) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• The Crown (Season 4) Producers: Peter Morgan, Suzanne Mackie, Stephen Daldry, Andy Harries, Benjamin Caron, Matthew Byam Shaw, Robert Fox, Michael Casey, Andy Stebbing, Martin Harrison, Oona O’Beirn
• The Mandalorian (Season 2) Producers: Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Kathleen Kennedy, Colin Wilson, Karen Gilchrist, John Bartnicki, Carrie Beck
• Ozark (Season 3) Producers: Jason Bateman, Chris Mundy, Bill Dubuque, Mark Williams, Patrick Markey, John Shiban, Miki Johnson, Matthew Spiegel, Erin Mitchell, Martin Zimmerman, Peter Thorell

Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television – Comedy

• Curb Your Enthusiasm (Season 10) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• The Flight Attendant (Season 1) Producers: Greg Berlanti, Kaley Cuoco, Steve Yockey, Meredith Lavender, Marcie Ulin, Sarah Schechter, Suzanne McCormack, Jess Meyer, Raymond Quinlan, Jennifer Lence, Erika Kennair
• Schitt’s Creek (Season 6) Producers: Eugene Levy, Daniel Levy, Andrew Barnsley, Fred Levy, David West Read, Ben Feigin, Michael Short, Kurt Smeaton, Kosta Orfanidis
• Ted Lasso (Season 1) Producers: Bill Lawrence, Jason Sudeikis, Jeff Ingold, Bill Wrubel, Liza Katzer, Jane Becker, Jamie Lee, Kip Kroeger, Brendan Hunt, Tina Pawlik, Joe Kelly
• What We Do in the Shadows (Season 2) Producers: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Paul Simms, Scott Rudin, Garrett Basch, Eli Bush, Stefani Robinson, Sam Johnson, Marika Sawyer, Derek S. Rappaport

Outstanding Producer of Limited Series Television

• I May Destroy You Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Normal People Producers: Lenny Abrahamson, Sally Rooney, Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Emma Norton, Anna Ferguson, Catherine Magee
• The Queen’s Gambit Producers: William Horberg, Allan Scott, Scott Frank, Marcus Loges, Mick Aniceto
• The Undoing  Producers: Susanne Bier, David E. Kelley, Per Saari, Nicole Kidman, Bruna Papandrea, Stephen Garrett, Celia Costas, Deb Dyer
• Unorthodox Producers: Anna Winger, Henning Kamm, Alexa Karolinksi

Outstanding Producer of Televised or Streamed Motion Pictures

• Bad Education Producers: Fred Berger, Eddie Vaisman
• Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Hamilton Producers: Thomas Kail, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeffrey Seller
• Jane Goodall: The Hope Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• What the Constitution Means to Me Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television

• 60 Minutes (Season 53) Producer: Bill Owens
• The Last Dance (Season 1) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Laurel Canyon Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• McMillion$ (Season 1) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television

• 8:46 – Dave Chappelle (Special) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Season 26) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (Season 7) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (Season 6) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Saturday Night Live (Season 46) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

Outstanding Producer of Game & Competition Television

• The Amazing Race (Season 32) Producers: Jerry Bruckheimer, Bertram van Munster, Jonathan Littman, Elise Doganieri, Mark Vertullo, Phil Keoghan
• The Masked Singer (Season 3, Season 4) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• Nailed It! (Season 4) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• RuPaul’s Drag Race (Season 12) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*
• The Voice (Season 18, Season 19) Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion Pictures (previously announced)

• David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet Producer: Jonnie Hughes
• Dick Johnson Is Dead Producer: Kirsten Johnson, Katy Chevigny, Marilyn Ness
• My Octopus Teacher Producer: Craig Foster
• Softie Producers: Toni Kamau, Sam Soko
• A Thousand Cuts Producers: Ramona S. Diaz, Leah Marino, Julie Goldman & Christopher Clements, Carolyn Hepburn
• Time Producers: Lauren Domino, Kellen Quinn, Garrett Bradley
• The Truffle Hunters Producers: Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw

Dick Johnson, Time, My Octopus Teacher and Truffle Hunters ar still possibilities for the Oscar nomination but the rest are no longer in contention or were never eligible. 

Comments

[PP]

Wow! I would have never imagined Promising Young Woman and Sound of Metal here! That's wonderful!!

[JohnT]

About the docs - My Octopus Teacher (which is... not good) is also on the shortlist, no? was it kicked out?

[Rod]

Sound of Metal making it in is just fantastic.

[DAVID]

SOUND OF METAL!!! wow

[Lucky]

Da 5 Bloods really feels like it's out, no group coming to its rescue.

I can see Sound of Metal getting in Best Picture, but there really seem to be a lot of contenders still standing, with The Father, Judas and the Black Mesiah and News of the World also looking like possible nominees.

Nomadland, Mank, Minari, Ma Rainey's, PYW, Miami and Chicago 7 seem safe.

At this point, I don't think there's any chance Nomadland will lose. People trying to make this into a race between it and The Trail of the Chicago 7 must be wanting to entertain themselves.

[NATHANIEL R]

JohnT -- fixed. thanks for the catch.

Lucky -- yeah that was a strange thing where for a hot minute it looked like it was a shoo-in after looking like it had faded and now its faded again. Agreed that Nomadland is not going to lose.

[markgordonuk]

Yes Sound of Metal Boo Borat 2.

[Peggy Sue]

News of the World and The Father are very good in a classic way. Is that a problem these days?

[Paranoid Android]

This could be the Oscar list, minus Borat. I still think News of the World could place, but not sure who I'd kick out. Maybe Sound of Metal? RIP Father, Da 5 Bloods.

[Ryan T.]

Why praytell does BORAT keep happening?

Was DA 5 BLOODS too early? Was THE FATHER too late?

[PP]

@markgordonuk-Borat 2 > Mank and Ma Rainey

[Joe G]

Sound of Metal looks like a stronger contender now for the BP nom than it was before. And it already was a big contender. Good news for Judas too.

I think Da 5 Bloods is officially out. It has been barely there for a while, but it feels like the type of picture that would have a hard time slipping in without support from producers.

What's so odd about this year is the lack of critically acclaimed Blockbuster. That's usually the tell about what will get left out here (e.g., Crazy Rich Asians, etc). I guess that's Borat?

[Joe G]

On the TV side: The Undoing and Bridgerton feel out of place. I get that they were massive, buzzy hits and that counts for a lot at a show like this. But the Undoing over Mrs. America is shockingly bad. And, if Bridgerton was the same story, set in the same time period with American accents I doubt voters would be going for it. Maybe this is just voters celebrating their love of Shonda?

At the same time, I'm glad this group is still celebrating Curb Your Enthusiasm. Sure, it feels like David's show always gets nominated, but he did smart send ups of Trump, coastal culture, obnoxious wealth, and the metoo movement this season, all while producing storylines with a clear arc and voice.

[StephenM]

Once week till Oscar nominations! And this week will be so exciting!

[Jesus Alonso]

Borat was actually a no-brainer at the PGA when you seriously analyze it.

1) Shot in secret
2) Under a pandemic
3) Made the NEWS everywhere
4) Appeals to most "progressive" Hollywood
5) Extremely successful, reinventing the franchise
6) Broke through to have a likely acting win at the Oscars
7) It's the comedy of the year, Palm Springs may be better for most, but it hasn't made the waves Borat did.

From a Producer's perspective, it's a slam dunk

[JW]

Was Small Axe eligible?

[Rob]

I'm actually glad Da 5 Bloods is fading, tho I love & respect Spike Lee I did not like it, it is far too didactic (Spike's like that sometimes), overlong and not terribly entertaining. But I would have liked Delroy Lindo to get a BSA nom, as he's the best thing in it. Also, Sound of Metal has sat well with me so that's good news that it's a real contender, esp as I really want Riz Ahmed to get a BA nom and this can only help.

[markgordonuk]

@PP oh yeah Ma Rainey a bad film of a boring play with prime ham acting from the 2 Leads..

[NATHANIEL R]

Jesus -- yes but they've passed up on other slam dunk Producers Perspective movis in the past in favor or more Oscary best pic contenders. Like i still can't believe they turned their noses up at AVENGERS ENDGAME. Even if you dont like MCU or that movie (it was decent but not great cinema) that was a herculean decade-plus feat of producing/coordinating/pulling off.

[Jess]

Is markgordonuk going to bitch and complain about Ma Rainey every time??

[Ryan]

The Father, Sound of Metal, News of the World, Da 5 Bloods, Judas and the Black Messiah all vying for those last two slots.

[EricB]

i agree with Jesus. Borat 2 is named by the PGA for all of those reasons stated. Producers get how hard it was to do what those producers did. They also had to keep all their people (actors and crew) SAFE both medically and from the craziness they were pulling off onscreen.

Nathaniel, I get your point on Avengers Endgame, but here's the thing. It may have taken a decade, but there was ALWAYS money available to those producers at every step of the way. So I think the achievement is viewed as "less" by producers who are always dealing with budget limitations? I don't know, just a thought.

[Giovanni]

Where's The Father???😢

[Feline Justice]

The Guilds always with a piece of cake for our beloved Nicole Kidman. Love it. 😉

[Andrew]

Really hope Sound of Metal can go all the way. It's hit all the key guilds so far. Would love to see Picture, Actor, Supporting Actor, Screenplay, Editing & Sound.

[Yavor]

Just watched Sound of Metal and I'd like to marry Riz Ahmed

[NATHANIEL R]

Yavor -- wouldn't we all!

[Working stiff]

@ Jess

Thanks for asking.

[Roge]

Very much trying my best not to be a contrarian, but I think BORAT is the best film nominated. We are looking at an all-time blah Best Picture lineup.

[Finkelman]

Ma Rainey is no good.

[Working stiff]

PS. DGA Documentary nominations:
The Truffle Hunters (Sony Pictures Classics)
My Octopus Teacher (Netflix)
Welcome to Chechnya (HBO Max)
Boys State (Apple/A24)
The Painter and the Thief (Elevation Pictures)

DGA TV nominations:
Dramatic Series
Ozark, “Wartime”
The Mandalorian, “Chapter 9: The Marshal”
Better Call Saul, “Bagman”
Homeland, “Prisoners of War”
Bridgerton, “Diamond of the First Water”

Comedy Series
Ted Lasso, “Biscuits”
Ted Lasso, “The Hope that Kills You”
The Flight Attendant, “In Case of Emergency”
Curb Your Enthusiasm, “The Surprise Party”
Curb Your Enthusiasm, “The Spite Store”

TV Movies/Limited Series
The Undoing (SUSANNE BIER)
The Queen’s Gambit
Hamilton
WandaVision
Little Fires Everywhere, “Find a Way” (LYNN SHELTON)

Specials
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Presents “Remembering RBG: A Nation Ugly Cried with Desi Lydic”
What the Constitution Means to Me (MARIELLE HELLER)
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, “Stephen Colbert’s Election Night 2020: Democracy’s Last Stand: Building Back America Great Again Better 2020”
American Utopia (SPIKE LEE)
A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote

[Kenneth]

I didn't care for Ma Rainey or The Sound of Metal nor its surly star.

[Your Mother]

Thank you for covering real awardage. So strange you'll snub other legitimate groups trying to award on merit, but then you post that Critics Choice bullshit. Love you but you're a big hypocrite.

[Editor]

Jess, it isn't a good film and Boseman is cakewalking to rob better contenders of the Best Actor Oscar mostly because he died. So yeah let folks vent and complain.

Jesus made an error in his post. He accidentally wrote "likely acting win" when he meant "likely acting nomination" because Close is a done deal.

[J]

I've beem feeling Brokeback Mountain and The Social Network vibes from Nomadland. Hope I'm wrong.

[NATHANIEL R]

J -- NOOoooooo don't go there. That would be so very sad.

[Edwin]

Interesting that Netflix and Amazon have three movies each in the Best Picture lineup. Amazon originals have really caught up with Netflix lately.

[Edwin]

Also, I know everyone was doubting Maria Bakalova’s chances after her Globe loss, but I think if Borat 2 is even showing up here, she’s probably safe.

[PT]

Hope The Masked Singer wins, that must be hard to deal with the secrecy of that show.

[Jesus Alonso]

@Editor

Bakalova would be the FIRST BFCA Supporting Actress winner since 2008 to not go on to win an Oscar. Kate Winslet won it in 2009, and won the LEAD Actress Oscar. Stats make her the frontrunner now (she's nominated everywhere and won the safest predictor for Oscar in this category). So "likely winner" is beyond accurate. I didn't say locked by any means (not even the nom!)

[jules]

Borat is not my favorite of these nominees, but it's in the top 4. And I agree with Editor's comments on Boseman. There are so many great performances by lead actors this year (even, for instance, LaKeith Stanfield, who's getting no attention) that it's irksome that this cakewalk has just been agreed to.