Critics’ Choice Awards: Joker Is Second Most Nominated Comic Book Movie Ever

Joker is the second most nominated “superhero” comic book movie at the Critics’ Choice Awards with seven nominations, behind only Marvel Studios’ acclaimed Black Panther, which earned a record 12 nominations. Of its nominations — including Best Picture, Best Action Movie, Best Acting Ensemble and Best Supporting Actor for Michael B. Jordan — Black Panther took home three prizes: Best Art Direction for Hannah Beachler and Jay Hart, Best Costume Design for Ruth E. Carter and Best Visual Effects for Geoffrey Baumann, Jesse James Chisholm, Craig Hammack and Dan Sudick.

Nominations for Joker include Best Picture, Best Actor for star Joaquin Phoenix, Best Adapted Screenplay for director Todd Phillips and co-writer Scott Silver, Best Cinematography for Lawrence Sher, Best Production Design for Mark Friedberg and Kris Moran, Best Score for composer Hildur Guðnadóttir and Best Hair and Makeup.

Its nomination for Best Picture makes Joker the first DC Comics-inspired movie since 2008’s The Dark Knight to be nominated for the ceremony’s highest honor.

The Dark Knight earned six nominations at the 2009 awards, including Best Director for Christopher Nolan, Best Acting Ensemble, and Best Composer for Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard. The Batman Begins sequel took home two Critics’ Choice Awards: Best Action Movie and Best Supporting Actor for Heath Ledger, who played the Joker.

At the awards ceremony airing January 12, Joker is the sixth most nominated film of the night, sharing that position with Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite and Jojo Rabbit, the World War II-set satire directed by Thor: Ragnarok‘s Taika Waititi. Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic The Irishman is the most nominated film of the ceremony with 14 nominations, including noms for Best Picture and Best Actor for Phoenix’s Joker co-star Robert De Niro, who in Irishman plays mob hitman Frank Sheeran.

In second place is the Quentin Tarantino-directed period piece Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, holding 12 nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor for Leonardo DiCaprio and Best Supporting Actor for Brad Pitt.

Greta Gerwig’s Little Women is nominated in nine categories, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress for Saoirse Ronan and Best Supporting Actress for Florence Pugh.

Sam Mendes’ World War 1 action-drama 1917 and Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story are tied at eight nominations each, including Best Picture and Best Director for both. Other nominations for 1917 include Best Action Movie and Best Cinematography for Roger Deakins, and Best Actor and Best Actress for Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson in Marriage Story.

The Critics’ Choice Awards air tonight on The CW.