Glenn Close. Amy Adams. Diane Warren. There is a long list of talent who have earned a plethora of Oscar nominations but still never won. Chances are you don’t know his name, but Nathan Crowley was one of those people. That ended Sunday evening as the veteran Production Designer won his first Academy Award for his world-building opus in Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked.”
READ MORE: Nathan Crowley on boarding the Emerald Express train to “Wicked’” and “Touching Oz”
Crowley was previously nominated six other times in this category. In 2007, he was nominated for Christopher Nolan’s “The Prestige” but lost out to Eugenio Caballero‘s work on “Pan’s Labyrinth.” In 2009, he was robbed for Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” as Donald Graham Burt won for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” In 2015, his work on “Interstellar” lost to Adam Stockhausen‘s worthy designs. for “The Grand Budapest Hotel.” In 2018, he once again lost to a Guillermo del Toro film as his period recreations in “Dunkirk” didn’t match up to Paul Denham Ausberry‘s creations for “The Shape of Water.” The next year, his second venture into space, Damien Chazelle’s “First Man,” was behind Hannah Beachler’s Afrofuturistic designs for “Black Panther.” In 2021, he lost to Graham Burt again as “Mank” overshadowed his accomplishments in “Tenet.” 2025 was different.
This year saw Crowley overcome Judy Becker’s budgeted designs for “The Brutalist,” Suzie Davies’ Vatican reactions in “Conclave,” and Craig Lathrop’s gothic 19th-century horrors for “Nosferatu.”
Crowley shares the Oscar win with Lee Sandales, who wins their first statue after previously being nominated for Steven Spielberg’s “War Horse” and Sam Mendes’ “1917.”
This award season saw Crowley and Sandales win the equivalent BAFTA Award, Critics Choice Award, Art Directors Guild Award, and Set Decorators Society of America Award.
“Wicked” is now available to stream on Peacock.
