This is the fist time in quite a while that there wasn't a Marvel Studios release to earn an Academy Award nomination in the visual effects category -- but that doesn't mean that there were no comic book movies in the short list for that category. Early 2020 releases like Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn and Bloodshot managed to make it into the category, one of a few Academy Awards spots that are typically populated by crowd-pleasing blockbusters. The other nominees on the short list include Love and Monsters, Mank, The Midnight Sky, Mulan, The One and Only Ivan, Soul, Tenet, and Welcome to Chechnya.