The Holdovers Receives 5 Academy Award Nominations

This morning, the nominations for the 96th Oscars were announced, and The Holdovers—directed by Alexander Payne and written by David Hemingson—received five.

The title was nominated for Best Picture, Paul Giamatti for Best Actor, Da'Vine Joy Randolph for Best Supporting Actress, Hemingson for Best Original Screenplay, and Kevin Tent (ACE) for Best Film Editing.

In reference to his nomination, Giamatti said, "I'm genuinely flabbergasted by this morning's news. It's such an incredible honor to be acknowledged by the Academy like this. And such an amazing thrill to be a part of such a wonderful Hollywood tradition. I'm so happy for this beautiful film, for the entire cast and incredible crew, for the great folks at Focus, for our producer Mark Johnson, writer David Hemingson, and my Holdovers family, Da'Vine and Dominic. Alexander Payne has been an incredible friend and collaborator, and I will be forever grateful to him for giving me the kind of role every actor hopes to play. My love and thanks to everyone!"

Hemingson said, "I am thrilled and honored to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay alongside so many amazing films. I’m overjoyed for my good friends and fellow Holdovers, Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Kevin Tent. All love and glory to our director, the brilliant Alexander Payne, who made this dream a reality and without whom none of this would have happened. Dominic Sessa: you are a young genius with perfect hair, and I love you. Thanks to Mark Johnson, Focus Features and Miramax, and massive thanks to the Academy for warmly embracing our story of three broken people, stranded on a snowy island, who find love and form a family."

Regarding the Best Picture nomination, producer Mark Johnson said, "I am truly humbled to find our movie The Holdovers honored with so many nominations in one of the strongest years for movies in some time. Alexander Payne’s singular vision compelled us all to forge a complicated movie that embraces what we all have in common with one another and sends the audience out into the light of both forgiveness and compassion. We cannot thank the Academy enough for taking to heart a movie that reminds us of what it is to be both painfully and gloriously human."

And Tent shared these sentiments, as well, saying, "There is truly nothing better than being nominated by one’s peers. I am incredibly grateful and thrilled beyond belief. Working with Alexander Payne is hands down the best. Our ongoing collaboration truly means the world to me. I know I speak for the whole Holdovers family when I say we couldn’t be prouder of our film, how it’s been received, and now embraced by the Academy."

The Holdovers follows a curmudgeonly instructor (Paul Giamatti) at a New England prep school who is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually he forms an unlikely bond with one of them — a damaged, brainy troublemaker (newcomer Dominic Sessa) — and with the school’s head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam (Da’Vine Joy Randolph).