Ethan Hawke on First Best Actor Oscar Nomination and Leading 'The Weight' at Sundance 2026

With a decades-spanning career in film, Ethan Hawke has finally snagged his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor this year, and it's a long time coming. He has been nominated before for various awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor, but it was his provocative role in Richard Linklater's musical drama, Blue Moon, that secured his Best Actor nomination. He embodies the role of real-life American lyricist, Lorenz Hart, who was responsible for some of the most famous words behind "Blue Moon" or "The Lady is a Tramp." The film captures the later parts of his life, where Hawke delivers a raw and powerful performance, one that deftly resonated with audiences and critics alike.

Even after such a huge achievement, Hawke shows no signs of slowing down, as he leads another film that premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, The Weight. During the festival, he sat down with Collider's Perri Nemiroff at the Arby's Cinema Center, alongside the film's cast and crew, where he shared his surreal feelings about the nomination.

"It feels so special. I guess if I was to be totally honest, I've put in the hours, and there's times in my life where I got credit where I didn't deserve it, or I didn't feel I deserved it. 'Deserve' is a funny word. Lots of people deserve better than they think. I mean, it's a funny word. But I've dedicated my life. That's what I do. A lot of people do different things, but I've dedicated my life to making movies and to performance, and I love it. There's a kid in all of us that wants to make our mom proud, to make our friends proud, and when society decides to, say, give you that, it does, it feels really great. I know so many amazing actors who love it as much as I do, so I wish I could share it more. But I guess I have to absorb this moment and just say, yeah, it's incredibly meaningful."

Ethan Hawke Adds the Historical Adventure, 'The Weight', To His Filmography

The director calls it "an old-school analog adventure film."

Image via Sundance

Alongside his major career milestone, Hawke also sees the release of his newest historical adventure film, The Weight. Directed by first-time feature filmmaker Padraic McKinley, the film takes us back in time to the 1930s, when the Great Depression wreaked havoc across American families. Murphy (Hawke) is a veteran of the Vietnam War and a widower with a seven-year-old daughter who is taken from him after he gets incarcerated. In an effort to return to her, he takes on a dangerous job that involves smuggling gold through the Oregon wilderness, kicking off a grueling and perilous journey of survival.

During Sundance, Nemiroff sat with director McKinley and cast members Hawke, Julia Jones (Rez Ball), Sam Hazeldine (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power), and Austin Amelio (The Walking Dead) to discuss the physically taxing production of The Weight. They reminisce on the challenging aspects of filming the action adventure, the nuances of the characters they embodied, and what it was like sharing a set with the infamous Russel Crowe. McKinley further delves into how he works with time and budget constraints, while being inspired by the people around him when editing the script. Amelio also teases his role in the upcoming horror project, Hokum, which takes us to the supernatural underbelly of Ireland. You can watch the entire conversation in the video above, with a time index below to help navigate.

• 01:41 - The Weight Is an “Old-School Analog Adventure”
• 03:45 - How Ethan Hawke Inspired Changes to the Script
• 05:01 - Hawke Shares the “Secret Sauce” Behind The Weight
• 06:55 - The Stars Pinpoint Their Characters’ Strengths and Weaknesses
• 08:52 - Russell Crowe Was a “Powerful Force” on Set
• 13:00 - The Most Challenging Aspects of Filming
• 14:31 - What’s the Hardest Simple Task to Act Out?
• 16:30 - Ethan Hawke Reflects on His Fifth Oscar Nomination for Blue Moon
• 18:35 - Austin Amelio Teases the “Terrifying” Horror of Hokum
• 20:00 - The Weight’s Team Play Collider’s Bracket Challenge!

Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Arby’s, for making the Collider Studio happen at the Arby’s Cinema Center and keeping us all fed with their selection of curly fries, mozzarella sticks, and tastes of their new Italian Beef Dip, a new limited-time sandwich that brings Chicago-style flavors to its menu. In addition, thanks to our supporting partners, including Hendrick’s Gin, Sommsation - The Wine Company, Peroni USA, neau water, Bernier, and our producing partner Twenty35 Agency.

Release Date June 18, 2026

Runtime 112 minutes

Director Padraic McKinley

Writers Matthew Chapman, Shelby Gaines, Matthew Booi

Producers Simon Fields, Veronica Ferres, Nathan Fields, Maximilian Leo, Jonas Katzenstein, Ryan Hawke