^{Credit: KPop Demon Hunters (Netflix, Sony Pictures Animation)}

According to Erik Anderson of AwardsWatch, 68 songs and 135 scores have been deemed eligible for consideration at the 98th Academy Awards. Of the submissions, there are 13 songs and 12 scores from animated films. It shouldn’t come as a surprise to see “Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters submitted in Best Original Song. Marcelo Zarvos’ score for the Sony/Netflix film is ineligible, however. Zarvos was previously omitted from the Hollywood Music in Media Awards, where Tom Howe won Original Score – Animated Film for Dog Man.

This isn’t uncommon with animated musicals at the Oscars. After Disney routinely won both music categories throughout the early 90s, the Music Branch began to crack down on scores from animated films and musicals in general. Christophe Beck’s score from Frozen was among the most notable scores deemed ineligible, although Beck was shortlisted for his work on Frozen II. While Beck wasn’t nominated, Germaine Franco managed to get in for her Encanto score a few years later. This suggested that the Music Branch might be becoming more lenient towards scores from musicals, but KPop Demon Hunters’ omission suggests there’s still a significant hurdle.

Although KPop Demon Hunters’ soundtrack has one banger after another, Netflix is avoiding a potential vote-split by only submitting “Golden.” Meanwhile, The Bad Guys 2 submitted two songs while Scarlet submitted three. Despite emerging as a Best Animated Feature contender with its recent Golden Globe nomination, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle has none of its songs nor its score listed here. Beyond animation, it’s worth noting that the Snow White remake has zero mentions in either music category, despite having a few new tunes from Oscar winners Pasek and Paul. The remake, which was widely panned and bombed at the box office, doesn’t even have an FYC page, leaving one to wonder if Disney submitted it in any categories.

Check out all of the animation submissions below:

Best Original Song:

Arco – “Clouds Away”

The Bad Guys 2 – “Goodlife”

The Bad Guys 2 – “Taking Everything”

Black Butterflies – “Immigrantes”

Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie – “Kaleidoscope”

In Your Dreams – “The Holding on and the Letting Go”

KPop Demon Hunters – “Golden”

Scarlet – “A Celebration Song”

Scarlet – “Nostalgia”

Scarlet – “Vastness”

The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants – “Big Guy”

The Twits – “Open the Door”

Zootopia 2 – “Zoo”

Best Original Score:

Arco by Arnaud Toulon

The Bad Guys 2 by Daniel Pemberton

Dog Man by Tom Howe

Elio by Rob Simonsen

Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie by Stephanie Economou

In Your Dreams by John Debney

A Magnificent Life by Stefano Bollani

Scarlet by Taisei Iwasaki

The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants by John Debney                                    

Stitch Head by Nick Urata

The Twits by Oli Julian

Zootopia 2 by Michael Giacchino

Shortlists for Best Original Song and Score will be announced on December 16, 2025.

Nick Spake is the Author of Bright & Shiny: A History of Animation at Award Shows Volumes 1 and 2. Available Now!