Oscar Nominations 2021: 7 Ups & 8 Downs

5. The White Tiger Sneaks Into Best Adapted Screenplay

One of the more interesting surprises this year was seeing Ramin Bahrani's acclaimed Netflix drama The White Tiger secure a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination, while the likes of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Mauritanian, News of the World, and indie darling First Cow were edged out.

With Borat Subsequent Moviefilm already sneaking into the slate, there didn't seem to be much room for another left-field nominee, and yet, here it is.

Though this is absolutely a case of the nomination basically being the win for Bahrani given that he has zero chance of actually winning, it's still neat to see his fine efforts rewarded, and the film's global streaming release no doubt helped it build a head of steam.