Cillian Murphy awards history: Has he been nominated for an Oscar before Oppenheimer?

Oppenheimer, Cillian Murphy, and almost anything else related to the film has been the name of the game this awards season. With all the attention the epic biographical drama has been getting and the fact that the Oscars 2024 ceremony is this evening, we're wondering if the actor has ever been recognized by the Academy Awards.

Cillian Murphy has actually never been nominated for an Oscar. This of course means he wouldn't have ever won one either. He's a very talented actor, though this does kind of make sense. While on TV he was the lead and a big star on Peaky Blinders, most of his film roles have all been more supporting than the lead. So I don't think the Academy was snubbing him to be honest.

He's actually worked with director Christopher Nolan, who is also the filmmaker of Oppenheimer, on five other movies. Those are the three Batman films, Inception, and Dunkirk. Though as mentioned before, these were minor roles for the actor. But as he was finally cast as the lead in a Christopher Nolan movie, the director had these sweet words for Murphy when he received his script, per Variety:

"Dearest Cillian. Finally, a chance to see you lead… Love, Chris."

Murphy has also stated that he told Nolan if he's available, he'd always do a part for him. Though "deep down secretly," he was "desperate to play a lead for him." Well, now he has and a very big role too! The talent is getting a lot of attention and more. Honestly with the way Murphy has been sweeping all the awards this season like at the Golden Globes, SAG Awards, and more, I'm expecting the actor to finally win his first Oscar! I have a lot of faith he's going home the victor this evening. And for his role in Oppenheimer, he deserves it.

This year, he's been nominated in the Best Actor category against Bradley Cooper for Maestro, Colman Domingo for Rustin, Paul Giamatti for The Holdovers, and Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction. Winning your first Oscar is a real big deal, and we've seen how talented actors like Leonardo DiCaprio were snubbed for so many years until he finally got one. Hopefully Murphy won't have to wait that long and will be able to take home a statuette tonight!

Oppenheimer has been nominated in a total of 13 categories including Best Picture, Best Cinematography, Christopher Nolan for Best Director, and Best Production Design. Murphy's co-stars Robert Downey Jr. and Emily Blunt are up for Best Supporting Actor/Actress in their respective categories. The awards ceremony airs tonight, March 10, 2024 starting at 7 p.m. ET on ABC.

The Oscars 2024 awards ceremony airs tonight, March 10, 2024 at 7 p.m. ET on ABC. Stream on Hulu the next day. For a full list of nominees, head over to the Academy Awards website.