^{Credit: Project Hail Mary (Amazon MGM Studios), Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures Animation)}

The 98th Academy Awards are in the books, but we already have a potential contender for the 99th Oscars. Project Hail Mary, based on Andy Weir’s sci-fi novel, has garnered an “A” Cinemascore and a 94% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It also topped the box office during its opening weekend, bringing in $80 million domestically and nearly $140 million worldwide. With a $200 budget, the film will need legs to prove profitable, although given the reception so far, it’s a Hail Mary that’ll likely pay off for Amazon MGM. Beyond the box office, Project Hail Mary could land with Academy members next year. 

The film is gaining Oscar buzz for Ryan Gosling’s lead performance, the special effects (particularly lead puppeteer James Ortiz’s work on Rocky), and the direction from Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. Lord and Miller previously shared in a Best Animated Feature victory for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. They were also nominated for their work on The Mitchells vs. the Machines and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. The duo could nab their first Best Director nomination for Project Hail Mary. If they do, Lord and Miller would be part of an exclusive group of filmmakers. 

Only three individuals have ever been nominated for Best Animated Feature and Best Director: George Miller, Wes Anderson, and Guillermo del Toro. Miller won Best Animated Feature for Happy Feet, while scoring a Best Director nomination for Mad Max: Fury Road. Between Best Animated Feature nominations for Fantastic Mr. Fox and Isle of Dogs, Anderson received his first Best Director nomination for The Grand Budapest Hotel. Anderson’s only Oscar win to date is Best Live-Action Short for The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. Del Toro stands out as the one person with Best Director and Animated Feature statuettes. He won Best Director for The Shape of Water and Best Animated Feature for Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio. 

Project Hail Mary isn’t the only science fiction film that’ll be vying for Oscar consideration over the following months. Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day hits theaters in June, while Dune: Part Three comes out in December. Project Hail Mary may have the disadvantage of being released earlier in the year. If Project Hail Mary has staying power like last year’s Sinners, though, it could very well be a serious Oscar player. Even if Lord and Miller don’t get into the Best Director race, they might be nominated as producers in the Best Picture category. Lord and Miller would thus join another select group. 

The only people with nominations for Best Picture and Best Animated Feature are George Miller, Wes Anderson, Guillermo del Toro, Jeremy Dawson, Steven Rales, Scott Rudin, and Jonas Rivera. Dawson, Rales, and Rudin have all shared nominations with Anderson. Rivera became one of the few animation producers to be nominated for Best Picture with Pixar’s Up. He’s since shared in Best Animated Feature wins for Inside Out and Toy Story 4. Whether or not Lord and Miller can become the next filmmakers to achieve this feat, they continue to demonstrate that the space between animation and live-action isn’t as distant as the industry makes them out to be. 

Now for the bigger question: At the Golden Globes, will Project Hail Mary compete as a drama or a comedy like The Martian?

Nick Spake is the Author of Bright & Shiny: A History of Animation at Award Shows Volumes 1, 2, and 3. Available Now!