17 possible best director nominees for the 2023 Oscars

Spinning a yarn about a friendship break-up—humdrum, yet profound, yet difficult to depict accurately and entertainingly—is something only a master of melancholic wit like could pull off. The In Bruges maestro was also smart to write with his favorite leads in mind; Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson come alive both individually and together under his direction. emerged as an Oscar contender the moment it snagged accolades at the Venice Film Festival and shows no signs of slowing its momentum.

Festivals, independent film awards, and the BAFTAs have noticed Ruben Östlund’s deft, daring work. Could the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences be next? made quite the impression on audiences and critics alike; it’s hard for it not to, particularly given the symphonic explosion of bodily fluids that is its centerpiece. But Oscar voters recognizing a film that includes that much vomit would also confirm the exciting direction they’ve been leaning in, toward international and off-the-wall fare. Östlund is a worthy carrier of that particular banner.

Park Chan-wook is like fellow non-American filmmakers on this list, from Ruben Östlund to S. S. Rajamouli: audacious, original, and able to blend genres and cinematic homages. But he’s also in a mold-breaking league of his own, as the romantic crime thriller proves. The Cannes Film Festival directing prize winner is certainly the kind of storyteller who remains several steps ahead of his audience, in a good way; he channels Hitchcock with his sense of mystery but retains the irresistible eroticism that made The Handmaiden a should-have-been-Oscar-nominee. The Academy now gets to right the wrong that is Park Chan-wook not yet being one of its anointed auteurs.

Jordan Peele’s Get Out Oscar win was for original screenplay, while for directing he only achieved the nomination. We’d argue that deserves that the other way around; while his script is full of profound meaning within mysteries within comedies, it’s his depiction of the extraterrestrial force that haunts Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer’s desert ranch that deserves attention. Jaws, but instead of an ocean to fear, it’s the sky? An imaginative and ambitious concept, executed to nail-biting perfection.

Any fan of Away From Her and Take This Waltz—which is any audience member who’s seen them—wouldn’t be surprised to hear Sarah Polley is riding the momentum of her behind-the-camera career to an Oscar shortlisting for . The former actor harnesses a cast of emotional geniuses to tell the tale of a group of abused Mennonite women, well, talking. That premise shouldn’t make for such gut-wrenching, devastating, and even edge-of-your-seat drama, but it does.

Did the directors of Braveheart and Gladiator have to stage battle scenes amid a deadly global pandemic? I didn’t think so. channels those muscley historical epics to stunning effect with , the rare film on this list that has the box office goods to back up its pedigree. Plus, Prince-Bythewood trained for hours a day with Viola Davis and that incredible cast, so give this woman her due!

It’s not fair to call one of this year’s most exciting out-of-nowhere hits, since for Tollywood fans, it’s not out of nowhere at all. But for American and other audiences outside India, S. S. Rajamouli’s tour de force has opened eyes to the wonder of—well, where to begin? N. T. Rama Rao Jr. and Ram Charan’s dazzling dancing? Their hilarious, heartbreaking chemistry as two based-on-real-life revolutionaries? That one shot where a bunch of tigers and bears emerge from a barreling truck to start wreaking havoc…? If you have no idea what I’m talking about, queue up Netflix because you’re in for a treat. And Academy voters: put Rajamouli on your shortlist, please.

Last and nowhere near least—most, in fact—is the one and only Steven Spielberg. The case for his inclusion in this category could end right there, just stating his name. But let’s pull up the Oscar tally just to drive home the point: 19 total nominations, eight for directing and 11 for producing, including two just last year for West Side Story; three total wins, two for directing and one for producing. Nothing for his screenwriting—which could change this year! , his most acutely personal film that ticks both prestige and crowdpleaser boxes, is the closest thing we have to a frontrunner at the 2023 Academy Awards, in this and most other categories. The ingenuity in Spielberg’s last shot alone is worth a truckload of trophies.