16 Nominations and a Stake in the Heart of Nostalgia: Why Coogler’s Creative Gamble is 2026’s Biggest Success Story

Opinion by Donggeon Kim (Grade 11)

Hollywood often likes to play it safe. As of the past few years, reboots and sequels have dominated the box office, notably with films such as Inside Out 2, Jurassic World Rebirth, and Zootopia 2. As this trend continues, it feels as though the movie-making industry is more interested in playing it safe than being creative and original. From repetitive sequels like Avatar: Fire and Ash, to live-action remakes of classic movies like the recently announced Moana, it feels as though the film business is designed to avoid risks at all costs.

However, this year, it seems that Ryan Coogler’s Sinners is breaking the mold. With a record-setting 16 Oscar nominations, higher than the likes of La La Land and Titanic, Sinners is sweeping the board and making a major statement that originality and fresh ideas don’t need to rely on the past to succeed in modern-day Hollywood. 

Sinners’ success at the Oscars shows that originality can still dominate the conversation in an industry long accused of recycling old ideas. Unlike many high-profile releases this year, Sinners doesn’t rely on pre-existing characters or familiar IPs. Its story, visuals, and performances feel fresh and daring, proving that innovation can still capture attention in a landscape saturated with recycled ideas.

With constant remakes and nostalgia-driven projects, Sinners stands out because it challenges the audience with something new: Not only does it delve into themes of racism and the power of music, but it does so with eloquence, while also blending in the horror genre with the inclusion of vampires. 

That’s another reason why Sinners’ success at the Oscars is so important. Horror traditionally has been devalued as a genre made for cheap thrills rather than artistic value, despite the fact that many horror films have the power to explore fear, guilt, trauma, and social tension just as well as many dramas today.

However, recently horror films have been starting to gain more traction at the Oscars, such as with The Substance and Nosferatu receiving nominations. However, through its record-breaking achievement and domination in major categories, Sinners sends a signal to the world that horror can be more than just jump scares and gore, and that the genre can be psychologically complex and filled with rich themes. 

Yet, most importantly, Sinners shows that expectations can be defied, both with its originality and horror genre, showing that breaking barriers doesn’t have to come at the cost of success. Hollywood often justifies its reliance on nostalgia by claiming that audiences won’t show up for new ideas, yet with Sinners taking the 7th spot on the box office list, and making $368 million worldwide against a budget of $90-100 million, the film proves that viewers are willing to take risks and challenge their expectations.

By pushing back against nostalgia culture and Hollywood genre prejudice, Sinners acts as proof that innovation in storytelling can thrive, setting a bold new step for cinema to come forward.