The red carpet will be alive with lots of talented people from Hollywood on February 26, the night of the Academy Awards. The suspense is building for one of the most popular awards shows of the year. The nominations were recently announced, and people are going to have a hard time choosing who to cheer on between all of the wonderful movies that everyone enjoyed. La La Land, an award-winning revolutionary musical aimed at adults, received 14 nominations, enough to make history.

This Academy Awards is also trying to represent African Americans, with both Hidden Figures and Fences receiving nominations. Last year the Academy faced backlash for not being diverse enough, so many people are extremely excited about the representation this year. Many of the nominees are veterans of the movie world, such as Ryan Gosling, Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, Viola Davis, and Octavia Spencer. There are also some newcomers, including Lucas Hedges from Manchester by the Sea.

The nominees for Best Actor in a Leading Role are Casey Affleck for Manchester by the Sea, Andrew Garfield for Hacksaw Ridge, Ryan Gosling for La La Land, Viggo Mortensen for Captain Fantastic, and Denzel Washington for Fences. The nominees for Best Actress in a Leading Role are Isabelle Huppert for Elle, Ruth Nega for Loving, Natalie Portman for Jackie, Emma Stone for La La Land, and Meryl Streep for Florence Foster Jenkins. The nominees for Best Picture are Arrival, Fences, Hacksaw Ridge, Hell or High Water, Hidden Figures, La La Land, Lion, Manchester by the Sea, and Moonlight. The nominees for Best Director are Denis Villeneuve for Arrival, Mel Gibson for Hacksaw Ridge, Damien Chazelle for La La Land, Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea, and Barry Jenkins for Moonlight.

However, even with great movies nominated, the Academy Awards often does not grab the interest of WHHS students, unless they are true movie buffs. It is very long, many of the movies are rated R, and often spends a lot of time dwelling on awards viewed as boring, including Film Editing and Foreign Language Film.

“I’ll watch it if I have time, but it can get a little boring and long,” says sophomore Megan Kick when asked if she will be watching.

However, there are positives to the Academy Awards, especially to students interested in pursuing acting screenwriting, stage makeup, special effects, directing, and any other job in the movie production field. It is also an important event for students who are interested in journalism, because it is one of the most newsworthy events in entertainment.

Aspiring fashion designers might not stick around for the awards show, but they will definitely be watching the red carpet to spot some revolutionary trends in the fashion world. This year has already seen some great styles, especially from the recent SAG Awards.

WHHS students should definitely try to tune in on February 26 for an entertaining awards show that everyone will be talking about!