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Earlier today, the London Critics Circle Film Awards were handed out, with Chloé Zhao’s movie Nomadland again doing quite well with a precursor. It took Film of the Year, Screenwriter of the Year for Zhao, as well as Actress of the Year for Frances McDormand.

One of the Sundance Film Festival titles this year expected to spark a bidding war was Passing, the directorial debut from Rebecca Hall. The movie, an ambitious period piece, had plenty of buzz going into the festival, and that continued with largely positive reviews.

The cinematic world lost another legend today, as it was announced that Christopher Plummer has passed away. He dead peacefully at his home, at the age of 91.

The Screen Actors Guild nominees for 2021 are now known! Yes, this morning saw SAG make their 27th annual announcement, with all of the requisite stunners that come along with that territory. This year has been unpredictable in so many ways, it’s hardly surprising to see the Guild follow suite. The question is, will this be a trend, or will the other Guilds stabilize the race to some degree? That remains to be seen, but for now, we have these nominees…

This morning, the Golden Globe nominations for 2021 were announced, with Netflix having quite the strong showing. Mank had the best day, overall, with six nominations, followed closely behind by The Trial of the Chicago 7 with five.

One of the films that had initially been pegged as a potential 2020 awards player was Taylor Sheridan’s Those Who Wish Me Dead. Starring Angelina Jolie, the movie is another western type work from Sheridan, representing his second directorial effort.

Today, the International Press Academy released their 25th annual Satellite Award nominations. While not seen as a precursor that immediately translates to Oscar, they’re certainly one of a handful that influences how the Academy Awards eventually go. So, in that realm, they’re obviously not to be ignored. We saw the usual suspects rewarded, so the main players, at least until Guilds announce, have more or less settled in. Sit tight for those…

Another film acquisition has come down the pike out of the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. This time, the title being picked up is the drama Jockey, pegged as one of the flicks most likely to be bought at the fest.

The 2021 Sundance Film Festival may turn out to be just like previous incarnations of the fest in at least one way…huge paydays for acquisition titles. Today, we have the first big buy of Sundance 2021, and it’s for the potential breakout hit Coda.

It’s official, folks. Not only is Zack Snyder’s cut of Justice League being called Zack Snyder’s Justice League, we have a release date.

Another important moment in the awards season has come our way today. Yes, the Academy has released their lists of what’s eligible in a few of the Oscar categories. In short, we now know what’s up for Academy Award nominations in the Best Animated Feature, Best Documentary Feature, and Best International Feature categories. Until we get to a shortlist, everything is up for grabs, but now we know what’s at least in the running, and that’s good…

Excuse me if I’m less than shocked by this news. The inevitable happened today, surprising not a soul, as the Cannes Film Festival delayed itself until the summer.

What a busy morning! Not only did the National Board of Review announce its winners, the Film Independent Spirit Awards revealed their nominees. It was quite the precursor day, to say the least! NBR gave their top prize to Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods, while the Spirit Awards were led by Eliza Hittman’s Never Rarely Sometimes Always.

The American Film Institute (better known as AFI) announced their ten best films of the year today, putting another dent in the precursor season. While they obviously had to snub a few titles, with Promising Young Woman being the main one to feel the pinch, the ten movies they did select definitely seem to be in the upper echelon of the awards hunt.

Earlier today, Warner Bros. finally released the first Trailer for Godzilla vs.

Another day, another release date getting delayed. Sound familiar? Well, then it’s the same films, too, a sense of deja vu is hard to ignore.

James Bond just can’t catch a break, can he? Once again, Bond is abandoning a release date. yes, MGM and Universal have moved the 25th 007 film, No Time to Die, from its most recent April 2nd release date.

One of the annual traditions of the precursor season is that the Film Independent Spirit Awards hold the ceremony on a Saturday, the day before the Academy Awards. Well, 2021 is going to be different, as the Spirit Awards are moving, one time only, to a Thursday.

Well, here’s an idea that’s going to prove divisive, to say the least. Warner Bros.

For those living under a rock, Euphoria is a pretty big deal for HBO. The first season was a smash, winning Zendaya an Emmy for Best Actress in a Drama Series, while the filming of the second season for creator Sam Levinson and company has been delayed by COVID-19.

The Critics Choice Association (of which I’m a member) released their nominations earlier today for the Series categories of the 26th annual Critics Choice Awards. Netflix had a big day, with The Crown and Ozark both leading the way with six citations apiece.

A still from Crip Camp by Nicole Newnham and Jim LeBrecht, an official selection of the U.S. Documentary Competition at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.

Anyone who has been eager to finally see the modern incarnations of Godzilla and King Kong do battle, well…have we got some good news for you. Yesterday, the report came down that not only has Legendary and Warner Bros.

The more that comes out about the HBO series adaptation of the video game The Last of Us, the more exciting this project sounds. The game, as well as its sequel, are landmarks for video games, telling moving and serious stories in a way any film would be jealous of.

A good period drama, with terrific acting, is a longtime staple of cinema. Last year, on the festival circuit, one such movie made the rounds in The World to Come.

When the Grammy Awards decided last week to change their show’s date, picking March 14th, it was only a matter of time until the other shoe dropped. Of course, that date was also held by the Screen Actors Guild Awards, so a corresponding move was inevitable.

Yesterday, the 30th Annual Gotham Awards were held, marking yet another notable moment in the awards and precursor season. Unsurprisingly, Best Feature went to Chloe Zhao’s Nomadland, while Breakthrough Series (Long Form) went to Watchmen.

Sunday evening, the Critics Choice Association held the first ever Critics Choice Super Awards. As a member of CCA, I voted for the Super Awards, helping to craft the inaugural slate of winners.

Another precursor chimed in yesterday, with the National Society of Film Critics awarding their annual citations. This time around, they went for Chloe Zhao’s Nomadland in Best Picture, also giving Zhao the Best Director prize, while star Frances McDormand took home the Best Actress award.

Last night, Apple TV+ debuted their awards player Cherry, as well as released a Teaser Trailer. The former represented its attempt to capture some Oscar buzz, while the latter is their move to alert audiences to the film’s existence.

Today, Netflix released a first Trailer for Malcolm & Marie, another movie they hope will be an Academy Award contender for them. Starring Zendaya and John Davis Washington, this film from Sam Levinson is going to be one of the final potential awards season X factors.

One of the films most anticipated for this year was always going to be Damien Chazelle’s follow-up to the Oscar winning La La Land. The flick in question is Babylon, a look at Old Hollywood that initially was going to reunite Chazelle with Emma Stone, who won an Academy Award for their first collaboration.

As of earlier today, get ready to refer to the Independent Film Project by a new name. Usually known as IFP, they are now going to be rebranding themselves.

Not all films complete stopped shooting last year when the Coronavirus pandemic hit. In fact, one particular flick managed to actually get produced during this pause in Hollywood.

Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff and Paul Bettany as Vision in Marvel Studios’ WANDAVISION. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2020. All Rights Reserved.

This will surprise absolutely no one, but having movie theaters largely closed during 2020 was bad for the box office figures. Go figure, right? Well, now that 2020 is in the books, this final weekend of the box office for last year just hammers it home.