History was made Thursday morning when the 98th Academy Awards nominations were announced. 

“Sinners,” the vampire film set in 1932 in the Mississippi Delta, produced, written, and directed by Ryan Coogler — and produced by Coogler, his wife Zinzi Coogler, and Sev Ohanian — broke the record for most Oscar nominations with a total of 16.

This also marks the first time a Black filmmaker from Oakland has been nominated for Best Director.

The 16 nominations included nods for acting, score, and best picture: 

Actor in a Leading Role, Michael B. Jordan

Actor in a Supporting Role, Delroy Lindo

Actress in a Supporting Role, Wunmi Mosaku

Casting, Francine Maisler

Cinematography, Autumn Durald Arkapaw

Costume Design, Ruth E. Carter

Directing, Ryan Coogler

Film Editing, Michael P. Shawver

Makeup and Hairstyling, Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine and Shunika Terry

Original Score, Ludwig Göransson

Original Song, “I Lied to You,” music and lyrics by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig Göransson

Best Picture, Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian and Ryan Coogler, producers

Production Design, Hannah Beachler, production design; Monique Champagne, set decoration

Sound, Chris Welcker, Benjamin A. Burtt, Felipe Pacheco, Brandon Proctor and Steve Boeddeker

Visual Effects, Michael Ralla, Espen Nordahl, Guido Wolter and Donnie Dean

Original Screenplay, Ryan Coogler

“Sinners” surpassed the previous record of 14 nominations held by “All About Eve” (1950), “Titanic” (1997), and “La La Land” (2016).

Director Ryan Coogler and director of photography Autumn Durald Arkapaw on the set of the Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Sinners.” Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

This isn’t the first time Coogler’s projects have received Academy Award nominations. 

In 2019, Coogler’s film “Black Panther” was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, and won three, for Best Costume Design, Best Original Score and Best Production Design. In 2021, “Judas and the Black Messiah,” which Coogler coproduced, was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture, and won for Best Supporting Actor (Daniel Kaluuya) and Best Original Song. In 2023, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Original Song for “Lift Me Up,” which Coogler co-wrote; and won for Costume Design.

Grammy-award-winning Oakland singer-songwriter Raphael Saadiq received his second Oscar nomination for Best Original Song for “I Lied to You,” co-written with Miles Caton & Ludwig Göransson. In 2018, Saadiq was nominated in the same category for “Mighty River,” which he co-wrote, from the film “Mudbound.”

English-American actor Delroy Lindo, who has lived in Oakland since the mid-1990s, scored his first ever nomination for playing Delta Slim in the vampire film. 

The Cooglers have deep East Bay roots

The Cooglers speak during a special screening of “Sinners” at the Grand Lake Theatre on April 16, 2025 in Oakland. Credit: Casey Flanigan/imageSPACE for Warner Films

Coogler, an East Bay native, was born in Oakland, raised in Richmond, and attended St. Mary’s College High School in Berkeley. He went to Saint Mary’s College of California in Moraga, where he left after less than a year when the school discontinued its football program, transferring to California State University, Sacramento. He went on to pursue an MFA at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. 

It was in 2004, during his time at Saint Mary’s College of California, that Coogler found he had a knack for writing. His creative writing professor, the author Rosemary Graham, was the first to notice Coogler’s aptitude for weaving rich narratives.

“There was definitely a strong storytelling skill that was very evident, and it was highly visual in the piece that he handed in,” Graham said. “And neither of us has it. I searched my office high and low before I retired from Saint Mary’s so we can’t refer to the text from 22 years ago, but I just remember there being a lot of emotion.” 

Earlier this month, Coogler brought Graham to the National Board of Review Awards, where the two walked the red carpet together and reminisced about his early days as a writer. Over the years, Coogler has frequently acknowledged the impact Graham had on his decision to pursue filmmaking.

“He has multi-dimensional characters, strong family themes, and the social history is woven in artfully,” Graham said. “Especially in ‘Sinners,’ we really see that.”

Coogler’s wife and business partner, Zinzi Coogler, has also been an influential force behind his success.

Zinzi, who was born and raised in Oakland, attended San Lorenzo High School and  later California State University, Fresno, where she was a top cross country runner. The two met as college athletes when Ryan Coogler was playing football at Cal State Sacramento. 

“In 2003, I saw a young girl kicking everybody’s ass on the track. I didn’t get her number that day. I built up my courage and got it at the next track meet,” Coogler said at the 8th annual Critics’ Choice Association, where he was named Best Director for “Sinners.” “She changed my life. She made me a better football player, a better student, a better person. She made me a better filmmaker when we figured out that that’s what we was gonna do. She was there on every set, always in the background, never getting credit. And in this movie, she was my boss, and it was fucking awesome. I think she’s the biggest reason why this movie is so good.” 

When they were both in college, Coogler began writing screenplays in Microsoft Word, which proved difficult for the budding filmmaker. 

During a 2018 interview with New York’s Hot 97 Morning Show, he recalled how Zinzi “scrapped together some cheese” and bought him Final Draft, the industry-standard screenwriting software.

In 2021, the duo co-founded Proximity Media alongside Ohanian, who first joined Coogler as co-producer for the film “Fruitvale Station.” 

The 98th Oscars, hosted by Conan O’Brien, will air live on Sunday, March 15, 4 p.m. Pacific Time on ABC and Hulu.

Miles Caton as Sammie Moore in “Sinners.” Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Wunmi Mosaku as Annie and Michael B. Jordan as Stack in “Sinners.” Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Lola Kirke as Joan, Jack O’Connell as Remmick and Peter Dreimanis as Bert in “Sinners.” Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

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