SPOILER ALERT: This article contains major spoilers for “You Can See Everything,” now playing in theaters.
“You Can See Everything” may rewrite the rules of the Oscar season.
Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim’s A24 documentary, which follows the Theranos founder through the 34 days before she reported to prison and keeps rolling afterward, opened to a staggering $15 million over the weekend, a number most nonfiction films never see in a full run. It’s also boasting a record-setting 99 on Metacritic, 98% on Rotten Tomatoes and holding a 4.7 (out of 5) on Letterboxd and 9.4 on IMDb (as of Monday, Oct. 19). If the IMDb score holds, it will surpass the longstanding No. 1 “The Shawshank Redemption” (1994) as the highest-rated film of all time.
In addition to being eligible for best documentary feature at the 99th Academy Awards, the film will also be submitted across the board as seen on A24’s awards site: best picture (Nathan Fielder, Lance Oppenheim, Tatiana Bears, Maggie Ambrose and Jack Davis), director (Fielder and Oppenheim), production design (Alex DiGerlando and Rebecca Meis), cinematography (David Bolen), costume design (Katina Danabassis), film editing (Adam Locke-Norton), makeup and hairstyling (Stephanie Pasicov and Kerrie Smith), sound (Paul Hsu and Richard Carlos) and original score (Ari Balouzian).
Variety confirmed exclusively after the film made its surprise world premiere (and general existence became known) at the Telluride Film Festival that Amanda Seyfried, credited in the film as Elizabeth Holmes, is eligible for the Academy Awards in the acting categories. Seyfried, who also appears as herself while reprising her Emmy-winning turn as Holmes from “The Dropout,” will be campaigned in the supporting actress category. If she lands the nomination, it would be her second, following “Mank” (2020). She would get there for playing two people at once: herself and the woman she already won an Emmy statue for playing.
Fielder may also be eligible to submit as a performer, although he is credited as himself. If he was eligible and submitted, the logical home would be lead actor. No actor has ever been nominated for playing themself. The closest we came to seeing this was a person from another A24 film, “Sing Sing” (2023), which had cowriter and star Clarence Maclin vying for consideration in the best supporting actor race, but was ultimately overlooked.
Christopher Abbott, who also appears in the film as Holmes’ spouse, Billy Evans, in recreated scenes, is also eligible for acting consideration in the supporting actor category.
Sources close to the awards campaign say the acting push will center on Seyfried regardless.
No documentary has ever been nominated for best picture in 98 ceremonies. The zeitgeist says this one can be. The awards circuit that usually paves the way is another matter.
We are in uncharted waters.
Golden Globes: Not eligible based on current written rules, but there could be an avenue.
The Globes don’t recognize documentaries, which means no picture, no director and no Seyfried. The film cannot be submitted in any category. However, with the acting eligibilities lingering, sources share the group may consider it for this upcoming run. That doesn’t mean it can be eligible across the board. And then in that case, do they consider it a drama or comedy/musical?
Critics Choice Awards: Eligible across the board, including the acting races.
That makes Critics Choice the only major stop this season where the performances in “You Can See Everything” could get significant recognition before Oscar nominations.
Actor Awards: Not eligible but could they make an exception?
The ceremony formerly known as the SAG Awards does not recognize documentaries, since they aren’t narrative films, even with the narrative recreations woven throughout this one. Seyfried’s path to a supporting actress nomination looked like it would skip the precursor vote by her fellow actors. However, the committee that rules on films is said to be looking at the film to see if it can, in fact, be eligible.
BAFTA: Still a bit of a question mark but it doesn’t look promising.
The current rules and guidelines indicate the film can submit in the top categories, but sources say BAFTA may not go for it. Whether Seyfried and Fielder can enter the acting races is less clear. However, indications suggest it may ultimately be eligible for recognition if the voters choose to go for it.
Writers Guild of America: Not eligible.
The film has no credited screenplay, which isn’t unusual for a documentary but isn’t universal either. Michael Moore’s “Bowling for Columbine” famously won the WGA’s original screenplay prize more than 20 years ago. That won’t be the case here, so “You Can See Everything” won’t be eligible for the Oscars‘ original or adapted screenplay categories.
Directors Guild of America: Eligible in both top categories.
This is where it gets interesting. The DGA has a separate documentary category, and its top prize is labeled for directors of a theatrically released feature film. Questions began percolating because of RaMell Ross, whose “Hale County This Morning, This Evening” was nominated for documentary feature at the Oscars before his narrative debut, “Nickel Boys,” was entered in first-time feature director at the DGA, a category he went on to win.
This is Fielder’s first directorial credit for a documentary feature, but that isn’t the case for Oppenheim, who helmed “Spermworld” (2024) and “Some Kind of Heaven” (2020). Therefore, the film won’t be eligible for first-time feature director. However, Oppenheim makes his narrative feature directorial debut with the A24 thriller “Primetime” starring Robert Pattinson, Merritt Wever and Skyler Gisondo. He will be vying for one of the five slots in that category.
More importantly, under the forward-facing rules, Fielder and Oppenheim are eligible for the DGA’s top award in addition to the documentary prize. That means they could take a slot otherwise slotted for Christopher Nolan (“The Odyssey”) or the other directing duos in the race, including Los Javis (“La Bola Negra”) and Phil Lord and Chris Miller (“Project Hail Mary”).
ACE Eddies: Eligible
The guild that represents film editing separates theatrical feature films into four categories: drama, comedy, documentary and animated. Per the rules, “You Can See Everything” would have to choose a category to submit to. A similar situation occurred with Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s animated nonfiction film “Flee” (2021), which was submitted to the guild as a documentary and nominated by ACE Eddie.
ASC (American Society of Cinematographers): Eligible, but only as a documentary.
Per the rules for the highest award for cinematographers, “All Documentary Feature Films and Documentary Series Episodes must be submitted in the Documentary Award category.”
Producers Guild of America: Eligible for both the theatrical motion picture award and the documentary prize.
Add it up and you get a contender with no conventional map. Best picture winners typically announce themselves through the guilds, with a PGA win, a DGA nod, an Actor Awards ensemble slot and a Globe or two along the way. “You Can See Everything” likely won’t be at the Globes. The actors can’t nominate it. BAFTA would be a stop if the rules hold. That leaves the DGA, PGA and Critics Choice as the only places the film can win a top prize and signal whether it’s a historic nominee or something bigger.
And this raises a bigger question: What if the first documentary nominated for best picture goes all the way to the top prize?
A few studios are trying to frame the race as David vs. Goliath regarding how they can possibly topple Christopher Nolan’s billion-dollar sensation “The Odyssey.” What if this is actually Odysseus vs. Elizabeth Holmes?
A caveat that applies to all of the above: every voting body and guild writes its own rules, and any of them can convene a committee to revisit eligibility. So all of these are subject to change.
Holmes built a company on the promise that one test could see everything. Awards season has at least six major contests, and as of now, none of them can agree on what they’re actually looking at.