Sinners Poised to Sink Titanic’s 29-Year Oscars Record Despite Recent Snub
Ryan Coogler’s 2025 vampire epic Sinners is on track, per Variety Awards Circuit, to storm the Oscars with 15 to 17 nominations—potentially eclipsing Titanic’s 14—and to drag Hollywood’s lingering biases back into the spotlight.
Ryan Coogler might be about to do something no one has pulled off in nearly 30 years: blow past Titanic at the Oscars. His 2025 vampire horror hit 'Sinners' is tracking to an almost ridiculous number of nominations, and the debate around Michael B. Jordan is turning up the heat. Here is where the awards math stands, why the online discourse got loud after Critics Choice, and what categories could actually tip this thing into the history books.
The record in play
Variety's Awards Circuit, run by chief awards editor Clayton Davis, currently projects 'Sinners' for 15 to 17 Oscar nominations. If that holds, it would top Titanic's 14 nods from 1998, a mark that tied 'All About Eve' and later 'La La Land' matched in 2017. No film has crossed 14. Yet.
The catch: a recent SAG snub cooled some of the early momentum. Still, 'Sinners' keeps showing up everywhere that matters — across the Oscar shortlists, with Critics Choice support, and in a wide spread of categories. The movie is a genre-bender that made real money and has a star doing a showy dual turn. Translation: the Academy tends to notice that kind of thing.
"It’s getting crazy out here in awards land."
That was Variety's read on the escalating numbers. Hard to argue.
The Critics Choice dust-up
At the 2026 Critics Choice Awards, Timothee Chalamet took Best Actor. The internet did not take that well. Michael B. Jordan, nominated for playing twin brothers Smoke and Stack in 'Sinners', became the public's pick in a hurry. Fans called it a robbery, pointed out he delivered two performances that felt like two different people, and some accused the industry of bias. Others suggested the outrage itself was being used as a marketing cudgel.
Box office receipts fed the fire: 'Sinners' opened around $45.6 million, while 'Marty Supreme' debuted at $28.3 million, per Variety. And it is not like 'Sinners' walked away empty-handed at Critics Choice. It led the night with wins for Best Original Screenplay, Best Score (Ludwig Goransson), Best Young Actor or Actress (Miles Caton), plus the first-ever trophies for Best Casting and Best Ensemble. Jordan's year also carries weight beyond one telecast — he was honored with the American Cinematheque Award in November 2025.
Quick rundown
- Directed by: Ryan Coogler
- Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton
- Release date: April 18, 2025
- IMDb: 7.5/10
- Rotten Tomatoes: 97% critics, 96% audience
- Worldwide box office: $367 million
- Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
- Where to watch: Max (US)
How it could leap past Titanic
The nomination math favors a film like this. 'Sinners' is already in strong shape for Best Picture, Director, Actor, Supporting Actress, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Score, Sound, Visual Effects, and Casting. That last one matters — the Academy added a casting Oscar for this cycle, which gives a craft-heavy contender another lane to bank a nod.
From there, it becomes about stacking fringy-but-plausible categories. Makeup and Hairstyling fits the period and genre demands. Supporting Actor for Miles Caton could catch late buzz. The big swing is Original Song, where 'Sinners' reportedly has two shots; double-dipping there has inflated totals before. If Editing or Costume Design breaks its way on top of that, 15 becomes very real, and 17 is not impossible. Records rarely fall because of one big category — they fall when a movie pops up everywhere.
The bottom line
If 'Sinners' sets a nominations record and then whiffs on wins, the Academy will have some explaining to do. Spectacle can get you in the room; conviction is what lasts. We are about to find out which one this season rewards.
'Sinners' is streaming on Max in the US.