The vampire horror film Sinners has broken the record for the most Oscar nominations received by a single film, after being nominated for 16 of Hollywood's most coveted honours.

The film beat the previous record of 14 nominations, and emerged ahead of its nearest rival this year, Leonardo DiCaprio's thriller One Battle After Another, which is up for 13 awards.

Sinners' contenders include its star Michael B Jordan and his British co-stars Wunmi Mosaku and Delroy Lindo. Other stars up for trophies include Timothee Chalamet, who is hoping for third time lucky after two previous nominations, and Irish actress Jessie Buckley, who is the frontrunner to win best actress for Hamnet.

However, there was no space for her co-star Paul Mescal, who starred opposite Buckley as William Shakespeare in Hamnet; while Wicked: For Good and its stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande missed out completely.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony in Hollywood on 15 March.

The leading films:

  • Sinners - 16
  • One Battle After Another - 13
  • Marty Supreme - 9
  • Frankenstein - 9
  • Sentimental Value - 9
  • Hamnet - 8

Sinners has exceeded expectations and bucked the trend that normally means horror films don't perform well at award ceremonies.

The film stars Michael B Jordan as twin brothers who return home to Mississippi in the 1930s to set up a juke joint, which is set upon by blood-sucking vampires. Its nominations include best actor for Jordan, best supporting actress for British-Nigerian star Wunmi Mosaku, best director for Ryan Coogler, and the top prize, best picture.

According to BBC Radio 1 film critic Ali Plumb, the last time anything to do with a horror won best picture was The Silence of the Lambs in the early 1990s. He praised Sinners for receiving a broad series of accolades and stated, it's more than just a horror. BBC culture editor Katie Razzall highlighted the film's unique blend of themes, stating: Who knew that combining vampires, KKK racists, ex-gangster twins, Mississippi delta folklore and blues history would pay off so spectacularly?