This morning, the nominations for the 94th annual Academy Awards were announced, honoring the best in film for 2021.

As always, there were some nominations that were expected and a few that were genuinely surprising. And this year, the Oscars rallied around Montana in a big way.

We posed the question out there back in December, and we're one step closer to it being a reality - will a Montana movie win Best Picture at the Oscars this year?

The Power of the Dog Scored 12 Oscar Nominations

That's right, The Power of the Dog - which takes place in 1925 Montana, though it was filmed in New Zealand - has been nominated for twelve Academy Awards, making it the most-nominated film of the year. Those nominations include Best Picture, Best Director for Jane Campion, Best Actor for Benedict Cumberbatch, Best Supporting Actress for Kirsten Dunst, Best Supporting Actor for both Jesse Plemons and Kodi Smith-McPhee, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Sound, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing, and Best Cinematography.


That also makes The Power of the Dog the first film directed by a woman to have more than ten Oscar nominations.

And believe it or not, there's some extra love for Montana in here too, as Missoula's own J.K. Simmons was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Being the Ricardos. Here he is singing about Montana trains with his brother.

The Power of the Dog is a clear contender to win Best Picture, and while a lot can happen between now and the actual ceremony, I'm predicting that it may just win this thing. The Oscars take place on Sunday, March 27th.

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