Best and biggest picture As with last year, two best picture nominees stand head and shoulders above the rest in box office receipts. As of late January, “Dune: Part Two” and “Wicked” had grossed $715 million and $710 million, respectively, as the only nominees to break $100 million.

Box office success doesn’t always translate to winning best picture, though. Here are this year’s nominees and what they’ve grossed so far. Some, like “A Complete Unknown,” were released as late in the year as December, giving them less time to earn. 

WOMEN IN FILM

For 23 years, Martha Lauzen, founder and executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University, has conducted research on the representation and employment of women on screen and behind the scenes in film and television.

In . front of the camera

Lauzen released the report “It’s a Man’s (Celluloid) World: Portrayals of Female Characters in the Top Grossing U.S. Films of 2024” in January. For the first time in recent history, the percentage of top-grossing films featuring female protagonists equaled the percentage of films with male protagonists at 42%, while 16% of films featured ensembles. Protagonists were defined as the characters from whose perspective the story is told.  

The percentage of female protagonists was the highest since the study has taken place. Lauzen cautions, “It is important to note that because this number assesses the top 100 films with female protagonists, small fluctuations alter the number dramatically." 

Major characters

In 2024, females accounted for 39% of major characters, up slightly from 38% in 2023, and the highest proportion recorded.

There were no nonbinary or transgender characters in major roles. 

The percentage of females as major characters has been relatively stable since 2016, increasing or decreasing by 1 to 3 percentage points from year to year. The low was in 2002 at 27%.

Speaking characters

In 2024, 37% of speaking characters in the top films were female, the highest proportion ever in the study and up 2% from 2023; 63% were male. The percentage of female characters in speaking roles has fluctuated by 1 to 3 percentage points from year to year.  

Behind the camera

Lauzen’s 2024 report noted the following: "70% of films employed 10 or more men in key behind-the-scenes roles, but only 8% employed 10 or more women. Women directed and wrote some of the year’s buzziest films, including 'The Substance' and 'Babygirl.' But their directors, Coralie Fargeat and Halina Reijn, remain exceptions, not the rule. The stunning successes enjoyed by high-profile women in the last few years — including Greta Gerwig, Jane Campion and Chloé Zhao — have not translated into opportunities for greater numbers of women. Visibility for a few has not generated employment for many."