This Is Where You Can Stream The Oscar-Nominated Movies In Canada

The Academy Awards won’t be handed out until April 25, but this year’s nominations list already feels like a win.

Six years after writer, editor, former lawyer and current activist April Reign first tweeted #OscarsSoWhite—calling out the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for overlooking racialized filmmakers and audiences time and time again—the 2021 Oscars are more diverse than they have ever been.

Reign’s campaign was prompted in response to all-white acting nominees in 2015 and 2016. This year, the Oscars recognized nine incredible actors of colour for their work, including a posthumous nomination for Chadwick Boseman. Judas and the Black Messiah, which has six nominations total, is the first best picture nominee with an all-Black production team (Shaka King, Charles D. King and Ryan Coogler). There are not one, but two women nominated for best director, including Nomadland’s Chloé Zhao, who is the first woman of colour and first woman of Asian descent to be recognized in this category. Minari’s Steven Yeun is the first Asian American to be nominated for best actor and Sound of Metal’s Riz Ahmed is the first Muslim to be nominated in that category. This year is also the first time the best actor category includes multiple men of Asian heritage.

Oscar nominations and winners are determined by more than 9,000 voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a community comprised of artists, filmmakers and executives—more than 800 of whom were added in the past year thanks to ongoing efforts to diversify the Academy’s membership. The 2021 Academy Award nominations for 23 awards categories—including what’s up for this year’s best picture—were announced on March 15 by actor-producer Priyanka Chopra Jonas and singer, songwriter and actor Nick Jonas.

And, while yes, the 2021 Oscar nominations feel like a win, industry insiders note there is still a lot of work that needs to be done behind the scenes.

The nominations come on the heels of new research that revealed that film executives are still nearly all white (92 percent).

“The upper echelons of the industry power structure are less diverse than literally every other sector in the country, and I would also add, less diverse than the Trump administration was,” Franklin Leonard, CEO and founder of The Blacklist, told CNBC when discussing the McKinsey findings.

The study further found that Black-led stories remain underfunded and undervalued, despite demonstrating a higher return on investment. Black creatives continue to disproportionately shoulder the responsibility for providing opportunities for Black talent—issues that have also been documented in Canada’s film industry. The McKinsey study noted that addressing these inequities could boost Hollywood’s revenues by an estimated $10 billion per year.

For many of us, the Oscars is an excuse to pop some popcorn and bubbly and ultimately fall asleep on the couch. But for those in the film industry, the Academy Awards represents a huge platform, a way of signalling who and what stories are “worthy of consideration.”

So before tuning in for the 93rd Academy Awards on April 25, here’s where you can stream this year’s Oscar-nominated films in Canada:

Mank, 10 nominations

Take a behind-the-scenes look at 1930s Hollywood through the eyes of infamous screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, racing to finish his 1941 masterpiece Citizen Kane. Nominated for: Best supporting actress (Amanda Seyfried), costume design, original score, sound, actor (Gary Oldman), cinematography, director (David Fincher), makeup and hairstyling, production design and best picture Where to stream: Netflix

Judas and the Black Messiah, 6 nominations

Daniel Kaluuya transforms into Black Panther Party Chairman Fred Hampton in this biopic about Hampton's revolutionary leadership and William O'Neil (Lakeith Stanfield), the petty criminal coerced by the FBI to help silence the Black Panther Party. Nominated for: Best supporting actor (Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield), cinematography, original song, original screenplay and best picture Where to stream: Available for rent on digital and on-demand platforms (Apple TV, Google Play, YouTube, Cineplex, Amazon Prime Video Canada, Microsoft)

Nomadland, 6 nominations

Screenplay writer, producer and director Chloé Zhao invites audiences to hitch a ride along with America’s modern-day nomad community—many of whom Zhao worked with and cast in the film—in a story that challenges us to reconsider the meaning of home. Nominated for: Best adapted screenplay, actress (Frances McDormand), cinematography, editing, director (Chloé Zhao) and best picture Where to stream: Available on Disney+ April 9

Sound of Metal, 6 nominations

Noise metal drummer, Ruben (Riz Ahmed), has his world turned upside down when he begins to lose his hearing, and gains new appreciation for the Deaf community and culture. Nominated for: Best actor (Riz Ahmed), supporting actor (Paul Raci), sound, original screenplay, editing and best picture Where to stream: Available for rent on digital and on-demand platforms (Apple TV, Google Play, Cineplex, the digital TIFF Bell Lightbox)

The Father, 6 nominations

Step into the shoes of an elderly man (Anthony Hopkins) with dementia, determined to maintain his independence, who begins to notice unsettling changes in his surroundings—and even his own family—leading him to question his reality. Nominated for: Best production design, supporting actress (Olivia Colman), adapted screenplay, actor (Anthony Hopkins), film editing and best picture Where to stream: Available for rental on March 26 through digital and on-demand platforms (iTunes, the digital TIFF Bell Lightbox, Google Play and through cable providers)

Minari, 6 nominations

Inspired by writer-director Lee Isaac Chung’s life, this beautiful story follows a Korean American family starting a farm in Arkansas in pursuit of the American Dream. Nominated for: Best supporting actress (Youn Yuh-jung), original score, original screenplay, actor (Steven Yeun), director (Lee Isaac Chung) and best picture Where to stream: Available for rent on digital and on-demand platforms (Apple TV, Google Play, Amazon Prime Video, Cineplex)

The Trial of the Chicago 7, 6 nominations

Based on true events, writer-director Aaron Sorkin brings together a star-studded cast including Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in this retelling of a court case brought against seven young men following an uprising at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Nominated for: Best supporting actor (Sacha Baron Cohen), cinematography, editing, original song, original screenplay and best picture Where to stream: Netflix

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, 5 nominations

This film takes audiences to 1927 Chicago and a recording session with artist Gertrude “Ma” Rainey (Viola Davis)—aka the “Mother of Blues”—and an ambitious trumpet player Levee (Chadwick Boseman) determined to bring a new sound to the world stage. Nominated for: Best actor (Chadwick Boseman), actress (Viola Davis), costume design, makeup and hairstyling and production design Where to stream: Netflix

Promising Young Woman, 5 nominations

A twisted, candy-coloured thriller about a young woman (Carey Mulligan) seeking revenge on the individuals, and societal norms, that harmed her close friend. Nominated for: Best actress (Carey Mulligan), director (Emerald Fennell), editing, original screenplay and best picture Where to stream: Available March 16 for rental on digital and on-demand platforms (Apple TV, Google Play, Amazon Prime Video, Cineplex)

One Night in Miami…, 3 nominations

This film imagines a meeting between four real-life historic icons—Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Muhammad Ali then known as Cassius Clay (Eli Goree)—coming together for a celebration and challenging discussions around their respective roles in the civil rights movement. Nominated for: Best supporting actor (Leslie Odom Jr.), original song and best adapted screenplay Where to stream: Amazon Prime Video Canada

Hillbilly Elegy, 2 nominations

Rod Howard’s adaptation of the bestselling memoir from J.D. Vance explores middle America’s white Appalachian community through the experiences of one multi-generational family. Nominated for: Best supporting actress (Glenn Close) and best makeup and hairstyling Where to stream: Netflix

Borat Subsequent Movie Film, 2 nominations

The sequel to Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan brings Borat back to America for a whole new set of jaw-dropping antics, this time, alongside his daughter, Tutar (Maria Bakalova). Nominated for: Best supporting actress (Maria Bakalova) and best adapted screenplay Where to stream: Amazon Prime Video Canada

Another Round, 2 nominations

Prepare to raise a glass to this Danish dramedy about four friends, all high school teachers, testing the theory that life is better with a daily dose of booze. Nominated for: Best international film and best director Where to stream: Rent on digital and on-demand platforms (Apple TV, TIFF Bell Lightbox, YouTube, Google Play, Cineplex, Amazon Prime Video Canada)

The United States Vs. Billie Holiday, 1 nomination

Based on true events, this film follows musical icon Billie Holiday (Andra Day, Andra Day, which is actually a stage name the actor and musician chose as a tribute to Holiday) as she becomes the target of a Federal Department of Narcotics and an investigation led by an undercover agent (Trevante Rhodes) who falls in love with her. Nominated for: Best actress (Andra Day) Where to stream: Rental on digital and on-demand platforms (Apple TV, YouTube, Google Play, Cineplex, Amazon Prime Video Canada)

Pieces of a Woman, 1 nomination

After suffering the traumatic loss of a child, which is depicted through a heart-wrenching 22-minute single shot opening scene, Martha (Vanessa Kirby) attempts to piece her family, marriage and sense of self back together. Nominated for: Best actress (Vanessa Kirby) Where to stream: Netflix