Oscars 2025: First Time Nominees
The much-awaited Oscars 2025 nominations are here, and we needed some time to process our feelings about the actors, movies, and directors obviously snubbed by the Academy. However, there are two sides to every coin. On one side, some are riding the high of being nominated for an Academy Award for the first time.
Here are the first-time nominees for Oscars 2025. All of the Best Actress nominees are first-timers, except for Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo, who has already been nominated twice in the past.
Oscars 2025 First-Time Nominees
Demi Moore
It wasn’t surprising to see Demi Moore nominated for Best Actress (we called it!) for her role in the body horror film, The Substance, especially since she won a Golden Globes for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy Motion Picture. What’s surprising, though, is that this is her first Academy Award nomination after being in the industry since 1981.
Karla Sofía Gascón
Not only is it Karla Sofía Gascón’s first Oscar nomination for Emilia Pérez, but she’s also the first openly transgender actress nominated for Best Actress.
Mikey Madison
Mikey Madison played the titular character in the romantic comedy-drama Anora, which earned her not only her first Academy Award nomination but also nominations at the Golden Globes and the BAFTAs.
Fernanda Torres
It’s also Fernanda Torres’ first Oscar nomination for I’m Still Here. She also won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Motion Picture. The nomination is not only a big deal for Brazil, since she’s only the second Brazilian actress to be nominated, following her mother Fernanda Montenegro’s nomination in 1999 for the film Central Station.
Similar to the Best Actress nominees, four of the nominees in the Best Supporting Actress category also received their first nomination.
Ariana Grande
After getting her first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress, Wicked’s Ariana Grande took to her Instagram to post how she cannot stop crying and how “humbled and deeply honored” she is for the “unfathomable recognition.”
Zoe Saldaña
Like Demi Moore, Zoe Saldaña’s nomination for Emilia Pérez is well-deserved. Still, it’s also a surprise, as it’s her first Academy Award nomination despite having been in several blockbuster films and being an actress for more than two decades.
Monica Barbaro
Considered a surprise Oscar nominee, Monica Barbaro’s nomination for A Complete Unknown is also a first for the actress. In an interview with Deadline, Barbaro said the nomination “was really unexpected.” She added, “I was trying not to pay attention to it because there are so many phenomenal actors’ performances this year and I’ve just been like, I’m not going to overthink it. I’m not going to expect any of it.”
Isabella Rossellini
This year’s nominees include actors who have been in the industry for a long time but have only been recognized for their talents recently, like Conclave’s Isabella Rossellini.
Sebastian Stan
For his portrayal of a young Donald Trump in the film The Apprentice, Sebastian Stan got his first Oscars nomination for the role. He is up against Adrien Brody who won in the past and veteran nominees Timothée Chalamet, Colman Domingo and Ralph Fiennes.
Kieran Culkin
His performance in the Jesse Eisenberg-written and directed film A Real Pain earned him the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor and his first Academy Award nomination in the same category.
Yura Borisov
Like his co-star Mikey Madison, Yura Borisov also received his first Oscar nom for the movie Anora. Borisov is nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category.
Jeremy Strong
It’s also the first Academy Award nomination for The Apprentice‘s Jeremy Strong, who’s also nominated for a BAFTA, a Golden Globe (which Kieran Culkin won), and a SAG Award.
Mindy Kaling
Mindy Kaling also received her first Oscar nomination, but not as an actress—rather, as a producer for the Best Live Action Short Film Anuja. On her Instagram, Kaling posted: ‘It has been such an honor to produce this short film and learn from the artists involved.
