After years of aggressive campaigning, the streaming service received its first-ever nomination for best picture Tuesday, with Oscar voters naming “Roma” as one of the best movies of 2018. The meditative black-and-white film about life in Mexico in the 1970s — which officially has ticket sales of zero, since Netflix does not release its films in a traditional manner — received 10 nominations overall, including for Alfonso Cuarón’s direction, cinematography and original screenplay.
Yalitza Aparicio, who plays the lead role in “Roma,” received a best actress nomination.
Rounding out the best-picture category were studio crowd-pleasers (“A Star Is Born,” “Black Panther,” “Bohemian Rhapsody”), idiosyncratic indies (“The Favourite,” “Vice”) and films about racism in America (“BlacKkKlansman,” “Green Book”).
“Roma” tied with “The Favourite” for the most nominations. “The Favourite,” a dark-hearted period comedy, also received attention in 10 categories, with Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone each receiving a supporting actress nod; Yorgos Lanthimos honored for his direction and editing; and Oscar powerhouse Sandy Powell competing in costume design.
The best actress contest is unusually competitive. Glenn Close received her seventh Oscar nomination — she has never won — for playing the title role in “The Wife,” an art film about a woman who sacrifices her professional ambitions. Close, who won a Globe for the performance, will be vying against the first-time nominees Aparicio, Lady Gaga (“A Star Is Born”) and Olivia Colman, also a Globe winner for her portrayal of a tortured British monarch in “The Favourite.” Filling out the category was Melissa McCarthy (“Can You Ever Forgive Me?”).
Among actors, Bradley Cooper (“A Star Is Born”) will compete against Christian Bale, who transformed himself into a paunchy Cheney in “Vice,” and Rami Malek, who morphed into a toothy Freddie Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Also nominated were Willem Dafoe (“At Eternity’s Gate”) and Viggo Mortensen (“Green Book”).
“Green Book,” adored by many for its feel-good depiction of interracial friendship and disliked by others for its reliance on racial clichés, garnered five nominations, including editing and original screenplay. Voters seemed unfazed by ongoing brouhahas around “Green Book,” including the resurfacing of an anti-Muslim tweet by Nick Vallelonga, one of the film’s screenwriters. (He apologized.) “Green Book” also won the predictive top prize at the Producers Guild of America awards over the weekend.
The 91st Academy Awards is scheduled for Feb. 24.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.