The Visual Effects Society announced their film and television nominations today for the 21st Annual VES Awards. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power smashed expectations and leads all television nominees with a total of 7 nominations. Awards will be handed out February 15.

The Rings of Power is competing against themselves in two categories and is the only show nominated with films like Avatar: The Way of Water in one category:

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

House of the Dragon: “The Black Queen”
Prehistoric Planet: “Ice Worlds”
Stranger Things 4: “The Piggyback”
The Boys: “Payback”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn
(Jason Smith, Ron Ames, Nigel Sumner, Tom Proctor, Dean Clarke)

OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

Andor: “Reckoning; Ferrix
The Book of Boba Fett: “In the Name of Honor; Mos Espa
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adar“, Númenor City
(Dan Wheaton, Nico Delbecq, Dan LeTarte, Julien Gauthier)
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adrift”, Khazud Dûm
(James Ogle, Péter Bujdosó, Lon Krung, Shweta Bhatnagar)

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities: Graveyard Rats
Stranger Things 4: Hawkins Destructive Fissures
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn”, Volcano Destruction
(Kurt Debens, Hamish Bell, Robert Kelly, Gabriel Roccisano)
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn“, Water and Magma
(Rick Hankins, Aron Bonar, Branko Grujcic, Laurent Kermel)

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN AN EPISODE

House of the Dragon: “The Black Queen”, Dance of Dragons
Love, Death and Robots: “Night of the Mini Dead”
The Book of Boba Fett: “From the Desert Comes a Stranger”, Luke Alike
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn”, Tirharad Cavalry Charge
(Sornalingam P, Ian Copeland, Nessa Mingfang Zhang, Yuvaraj S)

OUTSTANDING SPECIAL (PRACTICAL) EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL PROJECT

Avatar: The Way of Water: Current Machine and Wave Pool
Black Adam: Robotic Flight
Mad God
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adrift”, Middle Earth Storm
(Dean Clarke, Oliver Gee, Eliot Naimie, Mark Robson)

Congratulations to the visual effects team from The Rings of Power for their well-earned nominations!