THERE’S A LOT still to be revealed about the upcoming Academy Awards in 2026, but one thing is for sure – the film Hamnet is bound to garner a rake of Oscar nominations. If it doesn’t, it’ll be a huge upset for a film which has been stunning audiences and critics.

It’ll also be a huge upset for Ireland, as the stars of the Chloé Zhao-directed film (which will be in cinemas here on 9 January) are two Irish actors at the top of their game: Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal.

Earlier this month, the film garnered six Golden Globes nominations, including in the acting categories for Buckley (Best Female Actor in a Motion Picture) and Mescal (Best Supporting Actor).

The Golden Globes will take place on 11 January, and the winners will give us a bit of an idea about what the feeling in Hollywood is towards both of these stars. 

Later in the same month the Oscar nomination ballots will open, and on 22 January we will find out if Buckley or Mescal have received any Oscar nominations for their roles as Agnes Hathaway and William Shakespeare in Hamnet. Buckley will be hoping for a Best Actress nod, and Mescal a Best Supporting Actor nod.

It looks likely that Hamnet will also get nominated in the film, directing and screenplay categories. In the latter, that would mean the Derry-born author Maggie O’Farrell getting a nomination, as she co-wrote the Hamnet script with Zhao.

Other hopes

But it’s not just Hamnet that Ireland is staking its hopes on.

John Kelly’s short film Retirement Plan and Cartoon Saloon’s film Éiru have both been shortlisted in the Best Animated Short category, so could get nominations there too.

Retirement Plan was made with the New Yorker, giving it great pedigree – and it’s narrated by Domhnall Gleeson, a familiar name to those in the Academy. Plus it’s been getting a really positive reaction online.

It has 59,000 views on YouTube – you can watch it yourself here:

Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon has a great history with the Oscars, with several nominations under its belt, and Éiru is yet another example of how stunning its hand-drawn work is. 

Meanwhile, Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos’s latest film Bugonia was produced by Ireland’s own Element Pictures, though it will be destined for fewer nominations than Hamnet.

In the technical categories, two Irishmen have been shortlisted in the Cinematography category: Robbie Ryan (Bugonia) and Seamus McGarvey (Die My Love). Both are no stranger to the Oscars, having been nominated several times before.

Predictions

If we look to the Hollywood trade magazines to give us a steer on what those in the industry predict, things look good for Ireland. Variety predicts 10 Oscar nominations for Hamnet, including Best Film, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor.

Plus, it predicts Andrew Scott could get a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his short but sweet appearance in the Richard Linklater film Blue Moon (which was filmed here in Ireland and sees Ethan Hawke play lyricist Lorenz Hart).

It also has Bugonia in for a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination, but nothing else.

In the shorts category, it predicts a nomination for Cartoon Saloon.

AwardsWatch predicts a Best Actress nomination for Jessie Buckley, and that Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott could be in the Best Supporting Actor category together.

Hollywood Reporter has Buckley as the top frontrunner in Best Actress, Mescal as the third frontrunner in Best Supporting Actor – and says Andrew Scott getting a nomination is a “long shot”.

It also has Kerry Condon as a “long shot” in Best Supporting Actress, for Train Dreams, and playwright Enda Walsh as a “long shot” in the Best Adapted Screenplay category for co-writing Die My Love.

So – it looks almost certain that via Hamnet Ireland will be connected to a number of 2026 Oscar nominations. And we also know that every year, the Oscars nominations include a few surprises.

We still have a few weeks to go before the Academy start voting on 12 January – so if we can up the Irish charm before then, maybe that’ll go in our stars’ and filmmakers’ favour.