'Avatar: The Way of Water' leads Saturn Awards with 12 nominations

Bonus post time! I was planning on only writing holiday and year-end retrospective entries until I checked the Saturn Awards website yesterday and found out that they not only had announced the nominees, but also that voting is open and will be until December 30th. Time to start my series on the Saturn Awards so I can vote by the deadline and share my votes by National Science Fiction Day. Here is the paragraph about the leading nominee, Avatar: The Way of Water from Deadline.

Disney and Lightstorm’s Avatar sequel scored 12 nominations overall — two more than the original Avatar got here in 2010. It’s up in the categories of Best Science Fiction Film, Best Actor in a Film (Sam Worthington), Best Actress in a Film (Zoe Saldana), Best Supporting Actor in a Film (Stephen Lang) and Best Younger Performer in a Film (Jack Champion), along with directing and writing noms for Cameron and screenwriting partners Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver.

Follow over the jump for Avatar: The Way of Water's nominations at the Saturn Awards.

Best Science Fiction Film

Avatar: The Way of Water (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
The Creator (20th Century Studios)
M3GAN (Universal Pictures/Blumhouse)
Prey (20th Century Studios/Hulu)
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (Paramount/Hasbro)

As the Deadline article above stated, Avatar: The Way of Water has 12 nominations — I checked — followed by Prey with three, The Creator and M3GAN with two each, and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts with only this one.* Based on its lead in nominations as well as being the highest grossing film of all time, I expect it will win. I wrote as much when I discussed its chances in 'Weird' leads television movies with eight nominations at the Emmy Awards for World Television Day.

Normally, I'd be rooting for Prey to win because it's a serious science-fiction film full of action, horror, and drama. It's the kind of entry I'd be looking forward to voting for at the upcoming Saturn Awards, should there be a Best Film Presentation on Streaming Media award there (that category didn't exist last year). If it gets lumped in with the theatrical releases, I expect Avatar: The Way of Water, which I plan on voting for as Best Science Fiction Film, will clobber it.

I still think so. I suspect it's more likely that The Creator might upset Avatar: The Way of Water, like Nope did to Dune at the 50th Saturn Awards. That would be a victory of art over entertainment, something uncharacteristic for the Saturn Awards.

The one movie that appears out of place is M3GAN, which is generally considered to be a horror movie. I think it's an exception that proves a rule; if the terror is technological, not supernatural, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films considers it science fiction, not horror. I'm O.K. with that, especially since the category needed a fifth nominee while seven nominees made the cut for Best Horror Film. That's probably why Prey got a nomination here, instead of Best Television Presentation, which also has seven nominees. At least it wasn't snubbed!

Best Actor in a Film

Ralph Fiennes, The Menu (Searchlight Pictures)
Harrison Ford, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Lucasfilm/Paramount/Disney)
Ben Kingsley, Jules (Bleecker Street)
Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)
Chris Pratt, Guardians of the Galaxy – Vol. 3 (Marvel/Walt Disney Studios)
Keanu Reeves, John Wick: Chapter 4 (Lionsgate Films)
Sam Worthington, Avatar: The Way of Water (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)

Sam Worthington is the science fiction film nominee in this category. I also think he's the weakest. Ben Kingsley has an Oscar and a Saturn Award along with three Oscar nominations, two Saturn Award nominations, a BAFTA Award, a Critics Choice Award, and a Grammy Award. Ralph Fiennes has two Oscar nominations and three Saturn Award nominations. Harrison Ford has a Saturn Award, a Golden Globe, four Saturn Award nominations, and an Oscar nomination. Cillian Murphy has a Critics Choice Award nomination and a Golden Globe nomination for Oppenheimer in addition to this Saturn Award nomination, his second. He's almost certainly getting an Oscar nomination for his acting in Oppenheimer as well. That's enough to have me pencil him in as my vote, although I expect the plurality of Saturn Award voters will cast their ballots for Harrison Ford. Both Chris Pratt and Keanu Reeves have three Saturn Award nominations, along with a bunch of People's Choice Award nominations. Sam Worthington has a Saturn Award for the first Avatar movie along with this nomination. His next biggest award is a Teen Choice Award. I'm not convinced that he will repeat in this company.

Best Actress in a Film

Viola Davis, The Woman King (TriStar Pictures)
Mia Goth, Pearl (A24)
Anya Taylor-Joy, The Menu (Searchlight Pictures)
Amber Midthunder, Prey (20th Century Studios/Hulu)
Margot Robbie, Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Zoe Saldana, Avatar: The Way of Water (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)

Amber Midthunder and Zoe Saldana are the science fiction film nominees here and, like Sam Worthington, I think they're among the weaker nominees in this field along with the aptly named Mia Goth. The strongest nominees are Oscar, Golden Globes, and Critics Choice Award winner Viola Davis, Critics Choice winner, and Oscar and Golden Globes nominee Margot Robbie, and Golden Globe and Critics Choice Award winner and Emmy nominee Anya Taylor-Joy, in that order. Of the three, my choice is between Davis and Robbie. Davis got snubbed for an Oscar nomination earlier this year, likely being replaced by Andrea Riseborough, so I'm glad she got a nomination here. I don't know if that's enough get me to vote for Davis. She may be the stronger actress overall, but I think Robbie has the better nominated performance for Barbie, so she has my vote for now. I'd like to think she has a plurality of the other voters, too. That written, Saldana, like Worthington, has a Saturn Award for this role in the first Avatar movie, which might be enough to persuade people to vote for her.

While I don't think she'll win, I think Midthunder got snubbed at the Emmy Awards and deserves her nomination here, so I'm thrilled to be able to share her Gold Derby interview, Amber Midthunder ('Prey'): Portraying a Comanche woman as 'intelligent and innovative'.

Amber Midthunder ('Prey'): Portraying a Comanche woman as 'intelligent and innovative... really sparked something in me.' She stars as Naru, [a] young Comanche woman [who] is determined to prove herself as a hunter on the Northern Great Plains of 1719. Gold Derby editor Rob Licuria hosts this webchat.

Even though I'm not voting for her and would be surprised if she won, Midthunder already has a Saturn Award as shown in the image I used to illustrate this category, even though IMDB didn't list it. A belated congratulations and good luck!

Best Supporting Actor in a Film

Nicolas Cage, Renfield (Universal Pictures)
Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)
Ryan Gosling, Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Michael Keaton, The Flash (DC/Warner Bros. Pictures)
Stephen Lang, Avatar: The Way of Water (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Mads Mikkelsen, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Lucasfilm/Paramount/Disney)

Stephen Lang is the nominee from a science fiction film and, like his co-stars from Avatar: The Way of Water, I think he's among the weakest in the field. Also like his co-stars, he's a previous Saturn Award winner for the same role in the original Avatar movie. The strongest on paper are Oscar and Golden Globe winner Nicholas Cage, Three-time Golden Globe, Critics Choice, and Emmy winner Michael Keaton, Golden Globe winner Ryan Gosling, and Golden Globe and three-time Saturn Award winner Robert Downey, Jr. Mads Mikkelsen looks much weaker on paper, but he is a previous Saturn Award winner and BAFTA nominee. I think he's better than his IMDB page suggests.

That written, this award is about these nominated performances, not the actors' entire careers. On that basis, I think it's between Downey and Gosling. "Barbenheimer" lives! The Gold Derby editors think Downey is going to win this category at Critics Choice and Golden Globes, but this is not the same electorate and electorates matter. Right now, I'm voting for Gosling, who I thought did a terrific job in Barbie. I might change my mind if I watch Oppenheimer by the 30th, but don't count on it. I'm also not counting on a plurality of Saturn Awards voters agreeing with me.

Best Younger Performer in a Film

Halle Bailey, The Little Mermaid (Walt Disney Studios)
Vivien Lyra Blair, The Boogeyman (20th Century Studios)
Jack Champion, Avatar: The Way of Water (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Xolo Maridueña, Blue Beetle (DC/Warner Bros. Pictures)
Violet McGraw, M3GAN (Universal Pictures/Blumhouse)
Noah Schnapp, The Tutor (Vertical Entertainment)

Jack Champion from Avatar: The Way of Water and Violet McGraw from M3GAN are the nominees from science fiction films. Since everyone here is relatively new to movies, I'm not going to use IMDB to handicap their chances. Instead, I feel like the nominees who are the title characters of their films have the best shot at winning and getting my vote. That means I'm deciding between Halle Bailey, The Little Mermaid herself, and Xolo Maridueña, Blue Beetle himself. Sight unseen, I've penciled in my vote for Bailey, but I plan on watching both movies before I vote, so I'm prepared to change my choice. The upset choice would be Vivien Lyra Blair, who played young Leia Organa in Obi-Wan, earning a nomination for Performance by a Younger Actor (Streaming) at the 2022 Saturn Awards. Having a track record with this electorate might make a difference.

Gold Derby has an interview of Jack Champion ('Avatar: The Way of Water') on 'acting to tennis balls' and trusting his gut instinct, which I'm sharing here.

Jack Champion ('Avatar: The Way of Water') on 'acting to tennis balls' and trusting his gut instinct. The actor spent a major part of his teenage years in an unconventional filming process, where the second and third films in the saga. Gold Derby's Sam Eckmann hosts this webchat.

That was fun. I'm looking forward to seeing what he does in the next installment of the Avatar franchise.

Now for the nominees behind the camera.

Best Film Direction

James Cameron, Avatar: The Way of Water (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Greta Gerwig, Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
James Gunn, Guardians of the Galaxy – Vol. 3 (Marvel/Walt Disney Pictures)
James Mangold, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Lucasfilm/Paramount/Disney)
Mark Mylod, The Menu (Searchlight Films)
Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)
Danny Philippou & Michael Philippou, Talk to Me (A24)

James Cameron, Greta Gerwig, James Gunn, and Christopher Nolan make this an all-star field, one that James Mangold, Mark Mylod, and the Philippou brothers should be thrilled to be part of. As the Twitter image above shows, Cameron earned a nomination for Best Director at last year's Golden Globes and also a nomination at the Critics' Choice Awards, but won neither and was snubbed at the Oscars for Best Director. It's too early to know if the same thing will happen to Greta Gerwig and Christopher Nolan, who both have directing nominations both awards (I think both will earn Oscar nominations), but the Gold Derby editors think that Nolan will win the directing award at both shows. That doesn't mean that I'm following suit. Right now, I'm voting for Gerwig. I'm not confident the rest of the Saturn Awards electorate will agree with me. I wouldn't put it past them to vote for Cameron because the Oscars snubbed him. As I've written about the Saturn Awards for years, "the Saturn Awards are about entertainment not art, they don't care for subtle, and they love to stick it to the experts." Voting for Cameron would do all three.

Cameron has a nomination in the next category as well along with two other nominated directors, Gerwig and Nolan.

Best Film Screenwriting

Avatar: The Way of Water, James Cameron and Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Barbie, Noah Baumbach & Greta Gerwig (Warner Bros. Pictures)
The Menu, Seth Reiss & Will Tracy (Searchlight Films)
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, Erik Jendresen & Christopher McQuarrie (Paramount Pictures)
Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan (Universal Pictures)
Pearl, Ti West & Mia Goth (A24)

Two other directors join Cameron, Gerwig, and Nolan, Christopher McQuarrie for Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One and Ti West, who co-wrote his script with Mia Goth, the star of Pearl. That's certainly a collection of auteurs! That makes Seth Reiss and Will Tracy of the The Menu odd writers out in this field, as they're part of the only writing team that doesn't include the film's director.

The writers of two movies earned nominations for their scripts at the Critics Choice Awards and Golden Globes, Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig for Barbie and Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer. They're in separate categories at the Critics Choice Awards, Gerwig for Original Screenplay and Nolan for Adapted Screenplay. Gold Derby's editors think Baumbach and Gerwig have the inside track to win Original Screenplay with six picking them to ascend the stage while they think Poor Things, which I expect will be nominated for Best Fantasy Film at next year's Saturn Awards, will beat Oppenheimer for Adapted Screenplay with six of eight editors also picking it. The three films are competing in the same category at the Golden Globes, which has only one screenplay category. The Gold Derby editors are tied, with five each picking Barbie and Poor Things with Oppenheimer placing no higher than second and most editors thinking it's in third. I don't have to worry about Poor Things this year, so I'm voting for Barbie, which I really enjoyed. Right now, I don't care what the rest of the Saturn Awards voters think about this category.

Best Film Music (Composer)

Avatar: The Way of Water, Simon Franglen (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Barbie, Mark Ronson & Andrew Wyatt (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, John Williams (Lucasfilm/Paramount/Disney)
The Little Mermaid, Alan Menken (Walt Disney Pictures)
Renfield, Marco Beltrami (Universal Pictures)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Daniel Pemberton (Sony Pictures/Marvel)

Daniel Pemberton has nominations for original score at both the Critics Choice and Golden Globe Awards for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, while Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt have a joint original score nomination for Barbie at the Critics Choice. Barbie also has the same three songs nominated for original song at both awards, which are also nominated at the Grammy Awards, where it's also nominated for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media. So is Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, John Williams' only major award nomination for his score so far. The rest have no major movie award nominations for music, although a couple come close, as Avatar: The Way of Water had some music nominations and wins from the Hollywood Music In Media Awards and local critics groups, and The Little Mermaid has nominations for music from the Hollywood Music In Media Awards and the Black Reel Awards. This is the only music nomination for Renfield. While I fully expect the plurality of the Saturn Awards electorate will vote for John Williams, I'm not joining them. I plan on voting for Barbie on the strength of the songs, which Mark Ronson also composed.

That written, this entry is about Avatar: The Way of Water, so I'm sharing Gold Derby interviewing Simon Franglen ('Avatar: The Way of Water' composer) on being 'the narrator' of underwater scenes.

Simon Franglen ('Avatar: The Way of Water' composer) on being 'the narrator' of the film's underwater sequences. 'I hope James is looking down on me and he approves of what I’ve done,” he confesses, referring to the late composer James Horner. Gold Derby's Sam Eckmann hosts this webchat.

I'm embedding one of Franglin's compositions at the end of this entry.

Best Film Make-Up

The Covenant, Donald Mowat (United Artists Releasing)
Evil Dead Rise, Luke Polti (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Guardians of the Galaxy-Vol. 3, Alexei Dmitriew (Marvel/Walt Disney Studios)
Oppenheimer, Luisa Abel, Jason Hamer (Universal Pictures)
Prey, Alec Gillis, Tom Woodruff Jr. (20th Century Studios/Hulu)
Renfield, Christien Tinsley (Universal Pictures)

Prey earned a nomination here, not Avatar: The Way of Water, the one category where that happened. Since Oppenheimer is the only nominee also nominated for Hair and Makeup at the Critics Choice Awards — the Golden Globes doesn't have a comparable category — I guess it's the professional choice, but I'm not enthused about it. I'm more likely to vote for Guardians of the Galaxy-Vol. 3. The rest of the Saturn Award electorate will probably vote for a horror film. I'll revisit my provisional vote after I examine the superhero and horror nominees.

Best Film Editing

Avatar: The Way of Water, Stephen Rivkin, David Brenner, John Refoua, James Cameron (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Fast X, Dylan Highsmith, Kelly Matsumoto, Corbin Mehl, Laura Yanovich (Universal Pictures)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Andrew Buckland, Michael McCusker, Dirk Westervelt
(Lucasfilm/Paramount/Disney)
John Wick: Chapter 4, Nathan Orloff (Lionsgate Films)
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, Eddie Hamilton (Paramount Pictures)
Oppenheimer, Jennifer Lane (Universal Pictures)

Look at all the action films! I think Avatar: The Way of Water is out of place here, but that's not stopping me from sharing Gold Derby interviewing Stephen Rivkin ('Avatar: The Way of Water' editor) on blending complicated live action and virtual.

Stephen Rivkin ('Avatar: The Way of Water' editor) on blending live action and virtual: 'The most complicated way you could ever make a movie.' He edited the project alongside director James Cameron, John Refoua and the late David Brenner and one of the largest editorial staffs ever. Gold Derby's Sam Eckmann hosts this webchat.

Right now, I'm tempted to vote for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. It may be nominated as a fantasy film, but it has plenty of action. I'm not tempted to vote for Oppenheimer, which is the only nominee here also nominated for editing at the Critics Choice Awards. That may make it the professional choice, but any movie that long makes me wonder how well edited it really is.

Best Film Production Design

Avatar: The Way of Water, Dylan Cole, Ben Proctor (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Barbie, Sarah Greenwood (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Guardians of the Galaxy-Vol. 3, Beth Mickle (Marvel/Walt Disney Studios)
John Wick: Chapter 4, Kevin Kavanaugh (Lionsgate Films)
Oppenheimer, Ruth De Jong (Universal Pictures)
Renfield, Alec Hammond (Universal Pictures)

At least Avatar: The Way of Water earned a nomination for Best Achievement in Production Design at the Academy Awards, so it's a professional choice. However, Barbie and Oppenheimer have current nominations for Production Design at the Critics Choice Awards, so they're also professional choices. Gold Derby's editors prefer Barbie to Oppenheimer with five picking Barbie, three choosing Poor Things, but none ranking Oppenheimer first. I agree — best doll houses in the movies — so I'm planning on voting for Barbie.

Dylan Cole, Ben Procter ('Avatar: The Way of Water' production designers) on building fantasy world.

Dylan Cole and Ben Procter ('Avatar: The Way of Water' production designers) on using reality to build a fantasy world: 'nature is the best designer ever.' While digital design is of clear importance, the duo are quick to point out that there are still plenty of practical elements in the film. Gold Derby's Sam Eckmann hosts this webchat.

I may not be voting for Avatar: The Way of Water, but I still learned a lot from this interview and enjoyed it. That makes today a good day.

Best Film Costume

Avatar: The Way of Water, Bob Buck, Deborah Scott (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
Barbie, Jacqueline Durran (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Ruth E. Carter (Marvel/Walt Disney Studios)
Guardians of the Galaxy-Vol. 3, Judianna Makovsky (Marvel/Walt Disney Studios)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Joanna Johnston (Lucasfilm/Paramount/Disney)
Oppenheimer, Ellen Mirojnick (Universal Pictures)

There are two professional choices in this field, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which won Ruth E. Carter a second Oscar, and Barbie, which co-leads the Gold Derby editors' picks along with Poor Things at the Critics Choice Awards. Right now, I'm planning on voting for the Oscar winner.

Now watch Gold Derby's interview of Deborah L. Scott ('Avatar: The Way of Water' costume designer): Making every single garment for epic.

Deborah L. Scott ('Avatar: The Way of Water' costume designer) reveals 'we actually made every single garment' for this underwater adventure. The Oscar winner discusses the intense world building for the seaside Metkayina tribe in the James Cameron film. Gold Derby's Sam Eckmann hosts this webchat.

Every exists in the real world, not just as a digital file. As Spock would say, fascinating. That leads directly into the next category.

Best Film Visual / Special Effects

Avatar: The Way of Water, Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon, Daniel Barrett (Walt Disney/Lightstorm)
The Creator, Jay Cooper, Ian Comley, Andrew Roberts, Neil Corbould (20th Century Studios)
Guardians of the Galaxy-Vol. 3, Stephane Ceretti, Alexis Wajsbrot, Guy Williams, Dan Sudick (Marvel/Walt Disney Studios)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Andrew Whitehurst, Kathy Siegel, Robert Weaver, Alistair Williams (Lucasfilm/Paramount/Disney)
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, Alex Wuttke, Simone Coco, Jeff Sutherland, Neil Corbould (Paramount Pictures)
Oppenheimer, Andrew Jackson, Giacomo Mineo, Scott Fisher, Dave Drzewiecki (Universal Pictures)

Avatar: The Way of Water won the Oscar in this category earlier this year. Meanwhile, the Gold Derby editors' favorite to win this category at the Critics Choice Awards, Oppenheimer, didn't even make the Oscars shortlist for Special Visual Effects. Some professional choice. I'm voting for Avatar: The Way of Water. That makes me pleased to share Gold Derby's How 'Avatar: The Way of Water' senior VFX supervisor Joe Letteri created new facial animation system.

How 'Avatar: The Way of Water' senior VFX supervisor Joe Letteri created a new facial animation system. The four-time Oscar winner explains underwater filming, how the tulkun were designed and more. Gold Derby senior editor Joyce Eng hosts this webchat as part of the Meet the Experts visual effects panel for 2023 Oscar contenders.

I'm even more pleased that WETA is mounting an awards campaign for this Saturn Awards, as shown by the Twitter image above. They're not taking this award for granted!

As promised, I'm sharing music from today's featured film, Zoe Saldaña - The Songcord (From "Avatar: The Way of Water"/Audio Only).

Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, “Avatar: The Way of Water” begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure. Directed by James Cameron and produced by Cameron and Jon Landau, the Lightstorm Entertainment Production stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang and Kate Winslet. Screenplay by James Cameron & Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver. Story by James Cameron & Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver & Josh Friedman & Shane Salerno. David Valdes and Richard Baneham serve as the film’s executive producers.

Both the music and Zoe Saldaña's singing are really lovely, although it's not better than Barbie.

That's it for today's bonus post. Stay tuned for more Saturn Awards posts after I celebrate Festivus tomorrow.

*I found math errors in Deadline's previous two Saturn Awards nominations articles, so I know to look.