“Anora” (film written, produced, directed and edited by Sean Baker) follows a rough-around-the-edges sex worker named Ani (Mikey Madison) and Vanya Zakharov (Mark Eydelshteyn), the hedonistic son of a Russian oligarch, and their impulsive Vegas marriage’s repercussions.
After its premiere at the 77th Cannes Film Festival in May of last year, “Anora” received the renowned Palme d’Or – the highest prize awarded to a director of the Best Feature Film at the festival. It was acquired and released theatrically by NEON, grossing over six times its budget worldwide.
In late 2024, the arthouse hit went on to receive a string of nominations and wins at the Gotham Awards, Astra Film Awards, national film critic association awards in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Toronto, New York and more. The National Board of Review and the American Film Institute named “Anora” one of the top 10 films of 2024.
However, the “Anora” winning streak appeared to be waning in January 2025. It abruptly went home empty-handed at the 82nd Golden Globe Awards after receiving six nominations for Best Motion Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director and Best Screenplay. Despite “Anora” winning Best Picture at the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, people still noted its narrowing path to the Oscars.
Nevertheless, Mikey Madison continued to charm Hollywood with her down-to-earth interviews, light-hearted stories and warm personality (a direct contrast to her character Ani). According to Esquire, Mikey thinks she is “a good girl, really, and I’ve always been a good girl. I’ve never broken the rules or done bad things, and it’s so interesting to play characters who have, because I feel like I’ve been able to experience it with this safety net underneath me.”
NEON’s marketing campaign emphasized Madison’s heart of gold amidst the “Emilia Pérez” scandal and “The Brutalist” artificial intelligence backlash. While stories about resurfaced tweets and AI circulated around two of the most Oscar-nominated films of the year, Mikey Madison discussed a poignant moment on the “Anora” set. According to Variety’s Award Circuit Podcast, Madison listened to an old voicemail left by her father to get into the right headspace for Ani’s soul-crushing final scene.
“I listened to it before filming,” Madison said. “I don’t think I’ve ever used something so personal for a scene before. But it felt necessary. That scene, what Ani goes though, needed to feel completely real.”
Aptly so, NEON shifted into the next phase of marketing by promoting the all-encapsulating phrase for both Madison and Ani: “Follow your heart.”
With this new surge of popularity, “Anora” roared alive. On February 8 and 9, the movie swept at the prestigious Director’s Guild of America Awards, Producers Guild of America Awards and Writers Guild of America Awards. At the British Academy Film Awards, Mikey Madison beat out Demi Moore (nominated for her performance in the body horror “The Substance”) for the Best Actress in a Leading Role. “Anora” also won the BAFTA Best Casting award, highlighting the outstanding ensemble like Yura Borisov, Karren Karagulian, Aleksei Serebryakov and Vache Tovmasyan.
At the Independent Spirit Awards on February 22, “Anora” won Best Feature, Best Director and Best Lead Performance. And although it didn’t take anything home at the Screen Actors Guild Awards over the weekend, it’s still a favorite for the upcoming 97th Academy Awards on March 2, with seven nominations. According to The Hollywood Reporter’s math, “Anora” stands as the front-runner for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay.
“Anora” is one of the most awarded films of the year, with 276 nominations and 126 wins — 26 of those being for Best Picture at various award competitions. However, the Oscars race is far from over, with intense competition in multiple categories.
Although films that swept CCA, PGA and DGA awards in the past have gone on to win best picture at the Academy Awards (“Oppenheimer,” “Argo,” “No Country for Old Men,” “The Shape of Water”) others haven’t been so lucky (“La La Land,” “Brokeback Mountain,” and “Saving Private Ryan”). Simply put, nothing is guaranteed.
Disclosure: Author Ainsley Ferrell interns with NEON — who acquired “Anora’s” distribution rights — but has not worked within “Anora’s” promotion or NEON’s Oscar campaign.