How to watch the Oscars 2022 Best Picture nominees in the US and UK

How to watch Oscar nominees 2022
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

The 2022 Oscar nominations have just been revealed,  and from glitzy musicals to big-budget sci-fi to intimate Japanese drama, members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have delivered a diverse range of nominees for the top prize of Best Picture. 

Unlike in 2021 when just eight movies made the cut, this year the Academy have delivered 10 nominations. – and most of them can be watched from the comfort of your own home. 

Below, we'll tell you how and where to watch each of the Oscar Best Picture nominees in 2022 across both the US and UK, across theaters, streaming services and on-demand platforms. 

Belfast

Belfast, nominated for Best Picture in 2022

(Image credit: Focus Features)

What is it?

Directed by Kenneth Branagh and based on his own childhood, Belfast chronicles the life of and daily struggles of a working-class Northern Irish Protestant family. 

Told from the perspective of nine-year-old Buddy, the film is set at the start of The Troubles, a development which leaves the family with a choice of whether to stay in Belfast or leave and start a new life in England

The film features music by Belfast native Van Morrison, including eight classic numbers and a new song he’s written for the movie. 

How to watch it: It’s currently in theaters in the UK, but came out in November 2021 Stateside, so will have left most theaters by now. In the US, it's available to watch as a premium rental on platforms like Amazon Prime Video. 

Dune

Timothée Chalamet in Dune

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

What is it?

Denis Villeneuve takes charge of this epic adaptation of Frank Herbert’s classic sci–fi drama. 

It tells the story of Paul Atreides, the eldest son of a wealthy family, who becomes ruler of the planet Arrakis. After his father is murdered by rebels who stage a coup to take control of Arrakis, Paul vows to take his revenge.

How to watch it: The film is available for premium rental across a range of platforms in both the UK and US. 

Don't Look Up

Don't Look Up, nominated for Best Picture in 2022

(Image credit: Netflix)

What is it?

Adam McKay writes and directs this starry comedy-drama, which follows two low-level astronomers who are forced to go on a media tour as they try to warn humankind of a planet-killing comet hurtling towards Earth.  

How to watch it: This one is a Netflix original, and is available to watch now on the streamer. 

Drive My Car

Drive My Car, Belfast, nominated for Best Picture in 2022

(Image credit: Culture Entertainment)

What is it?

An adaptation of novelist Haruki Murakami’s short story, this Japanese drama follows Yusuke, a renowned stage actor and director. 

Still grieving after his wife’s unexpected death, Yusuke receives an offer to direct a play in Hiroshima. There, he begins to face the haunting mysteries his wife left behind.

How to watch it:  For US readers, the film is still in theaters and you can find out where it's playing on the movie's official website. UK readers can go and see Drive My Car in select theaters now, and rent the film on the more art house-oriented rental platforms like BFI Player. 

The Power Of The Dog

The Power Of The Dog, Belfast, nominated for Best Picture in 2022

(Image credit: Netflix)

What is it?

Jane Campion helms this intense and troubling Western. It stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Phil Burbank, a domineering but charismatic rancher, who wages a war of intimidation against his brother's new wife and her teenage son. 

How to watch it: A Netflix original, this one is available to watch now worldwide. 

West Side Story

West Side Story, nominated for Best Picture in 2022

(Image credit: 20th Century Fox)

What is it?

Steven Spielberg’s new take on the Broadway classic, the first film adaptation of which won the Best Picture Oscar back in 1962.

This new take stars Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler as star-crossed lovers Tony and Maria, who find themselves on opposite sides of a vicious gang war. 

How to watch it: It’s been confirmed that the film will arrive on Disney+ on March 2, but it’s also still in a handful of theaters. 

CODA

CODA, nominated for Best Picture in 2022

(Image credit: Apple TV)

What is it?

A tender comedy/drama that follows the travails of Ruby, a hearing teenage girl who is the child of deaf adults.

The family runs a small fishing business in rural Massachusetts, which is in trouble financially. That poses a dilemma for Ruby, who has the chance to pursue her dream by going away to study music, but doesn’t want to leave her family. 

How to watch it: CODA is available to watch now on Apple TV. 

King Richard

Will Smith in King Richard, nominated for Best Picture 2022

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

What is it?

Will Smith leads the way in this affectionate biopic of Richard Williams, the father of tennis superstars Venus and Serena. The film documents Williams’ relentless drive to forge his daughters into world-class tennis players, and his struggle to get the sport’s gatekeepers to take notice of them. 

How to watch it: In the US and UK, it’s available for premium rental across a range of platforms. 

Licorice Pizza

Licorice Pizza

(Image credit: MGM)

What is it?

Paul Thomas Anderson directs this quirky coming-of-age drama. 

Set in California in 1973, the film chronicles the unlikely friendship between 15-year-old Gary Valentine and 25-year-old Alana Kane, a photographer's assistant. As they grow up, the pair's lives seem strangely intertwined.

How to watch it: The film is still in its theatrical run in both the US and UK, so you can go and see it now. 

Nightmare Alley

Nightmare Alley

(Image credit: Searchlight Pictures)

What is it?

Guillermo Del Toro oversees this vaudevillian horror, which is set in 1940s New York. It follows Stanton Carlisle, a down-on-his-luck carnival worker, who reinvents himself as a psychic act for the wealthy elite – a career move that has very dark consequences. 

How to watch it: US viewers can enjoy Nightmare Alley on either HBO Max and Hulu, while UK viewers can still only see it in theaters at the moment. 

Tom Goodwyn
Freelance Entertainment Writer

Tom Goodwyn was formerly TechRadar's Senior Entertainment Editor. He's now a freelancer writing about TV shows, documentaries and movies across streaming services, theaters and beyond. Based in East London, he loves nothing more than spending all day in a movie theater, well, he did before he had two small children…