As award season nominations are approaching, shortlists of nominees are also announced. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has revealed its shortlists for 2022 Oscar nominees in several categories, including Best Original Song. In the category, 15 songs have been selected after an initial 84 were listed. They include Jay-Z’s Guns Go Bang” from The Harder They Fall, Beyoncé’s “Be Alive” from the Will Smith-led King Richard and Billie Eilish’s Bond theme “No Time to Die.” Other songs include Sparks “So May We Start?” from Annette, Brian Wilson and Jim James’ “Right Where I Belong” from Brian Wilson: Long Road Promised, Ariana Grande and Kid Cudi “Just Look Up” from the star-studded Don’t Look Up, Jennifer Hudson’s “Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)” from the Aretha Franklin biopic Respect and U2’s “Your Song Saved My Life” from Sing 2.

Eilish is also on the shortlist for Best Documentary Feature for The World’s a Little Blurry via AppleTV+ alongside Questlove’s Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) and Todd Haynes’ Velvet Underground documentary.

The legendary Hans Zimmer also made the shortlist twice for Best Original Score. He is listed for his work on the Dune and No Time to Die. Johny Greenwood of Radiohead made the shortlist twice as well for the films The Power of the Dog and Spencer, both of which leading actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Stewart are in the running for the Best Actor and Actress at the Oscars. Other shortlist names include Alexandre Desplat for The French Dispatch, Nicholas Britell for Don’t Look Up and Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe for Candyman. 

The finalists will be announced on February 8 with the official ceremony taking place on March 27. With the new surge of positive COVID cases, it has not been revealed if the ceremony will have a live audience.

Photo Credit: Brett Padelford