In a delayed announcement due to devastating Los Angeles wildfires, and against the backdrop of Donald Trump's dramatic White House return, the 2025 Oscar nominations were revealed Thursday in Hollywood, marking a watershed moment for international cinema.

The critically acclaimed "Emilia Perez," directed by French filmmaker Jacques Audiard, dominates this year's nominations with an unprecedented 13 nominations – setting a new record for a film not in English. This groundbreaking musical chronicles a Mexican drug baron's journey through gender transition, masterfully blending crime drama with intimate personal transformation.

In a historic achievement, Karla Sofia Gascon makes Oscar history as the first transgender performer nominated in the acting category. Her co-star Zoe Saldana secured a supporting actress nomination, while the film swept nearly every eligible category, including dual nominations for best original song.

Close behind with 10 nominations each are the box office phenomenon "Wicked" and the powerful historical epic "The Brutalist," directed by Brady Corbett. The latter presents a compelling narrative of a Jewish architect's post-Holocaust immigration from Hungary to America.

"Wicked" stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande both earned unexpected but well-deserved acting nominations – Erivo for lead actress and Grande for supporting actress. Meanwhile, "The Brutalist" garnered recognition for its stellar cast, with Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, and Guy Pearce all receiving acting nominations, alongside nods for original screenplay, cinematography, music, director, and best picture.

Director Edward Berger's tense Vatican thriller "Conclave" accumulated 8 nominations, including a worthy best actor nomination for Ralph Fiennes. The Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown" matched this total, featuring Timothee Chalamet's second career nomination for his portrayal of the enigmatic Jewish musician.

Notable contenders include "Anora" with 6 nominations, and "The Substance" with five, including recognition for stars Mikey Madison and Demi Moore – the latter having already claimed a Golden Globe with a memorable acceptance speech. Coralie Farge, who helmed "The Substance", stands as this year's sole female directing nominee. Denis Villeneuve's "Dune 2" secured 5 nominations, including best picture.

In the documentary category, while director Alexis Bloom's "The Bibi Files," featuring investigation footage of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, missed the cut, "No Other Land" by Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, and Rachel Szor earned a spot among the final five. The film, documenting IDF operations in Masafer Yatta, despite winning two Berlin Festival awards, remarkably still lacks US distribution – though this nomination will likely change that.

Other significant nominations include Kieran Culkin for Jesse Eisenberg's "A Real Pain" in the supporting actor category, following his recent Golden Globe win. Sebastian Stan surprised with a best actor nomination for his portrayal of Donald Trump in the contested film "The Apprentice."

The animated feature "The Wid Robot" impressed with 4 cross-category nominations, while Brazilian director Walter Salles' "Ainda Estou Aqui" ("I'm still here" in Portuguese) earned nominations for Best Foreign Film, Best Picture, and Best Leading Actress – with star Fernanda Torres already claiming a Golden Globe.

The most striking omission was Luca Guadagnino's erotic sports drama "Challengers," previously considered a front-runner for original score. Angelina Jolie's performance as opera legend Maria Callas in "Maria" also failed to secure a nomination.

The 97th Academy Awards ceremony, scheduled for March 2, will be hosted by comedian Conan O'Brien.

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The Academy's shortlist announcements brought mixed news for Israeli cinema Thursday, as the controversial documentary "The Bibi Files" advanced while the country's International Feature Film entry failed to make the cut.

"The Bibi Files" features investigation footage of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his wife, and son. Channel 13 investigative journalist Raviv Drucker serves among the documentary's producer.  The interrogation videos featured in the film were recorded by the Israel Police between 2016 and 2018, prior to the formal filing of corruption charges against Netanyahu.

The film also shows Netanyahu vehemently refuting claims that he approved regulations benefiting Israeli media mogul Shaul Elovitch. The prime minister repeatedly and dramatically labeled one of his senior aides, Nir Hefetz, a liar for making such assertions. Other witnesses allege that Elovitch reciprocated the supposed favors by allowing Netanyahu to directly influence his family's coverage on the Israeli news website Walla.

Tom Nesher's "Close to Me," Israel's official submission for International Feature consideration, did not advance in the competition. The film, which claimed this year's Ophir Award – Israel's highest film honor – explores a young woman's journey through grief following her brother's death, paralleling Nesher's own experience of losing her brother Ari in a fatal car accident.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian-Norwegian production "I Have No Other Land," co-created by two Israeli filmmakers, also maintained its position in the race.

Israel's most recent recognition in the International Feature Film category came in 2012 with Joseph Cedar's "Footnote." The Academy will reveal final Oscar nominations on Jan. 17, 2025, with the ceremony set for March 2 at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre.

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