The A24 Gamble: Can Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim’s ‘You Can See Everything’ Break the Oscar Glass Ceiling?

When A24 began accepting private equity infusions several years ago, industry skeptics whispered that the studio’s signature creative license—the very engine behind its meteoric rise—would inevitably be compromised. The narrative was that "scaling up" would necessitate a transition toward safe, cookie-cutter blockbusters, stripping the studio of its idiosyncratic identity.

In practice, the opposite has occurred. A24 has successfully leveraged its increased resources to amplify its penchant for the bizarre and the singular. Whether it was the conceptual, internet-culture-inspired horror of Backrooms or the bombastic, period-piece oddity Marty Supreme, the studio has proven that its audience’s appetite for "weird" is not a niche market, but a massive one. Both films smashed internal box office records, solidifying A24’s position as a powerhouse that can monetize high-concept art.

However, the true test of the studio’s evolution is playing out on the 2026 awards circuit. While A24 has a slate of traditional, star-studded contenders—including a Julianne Moore-led musical comedy and a queer-coded reimagining of Big Daddy—the project currently dominating festival conversation is, perhaps surprisingly, a documentary. You Can See Everything, a probing, enigmatic look at the rise and fall of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, has become the company’s most discussed property, sparking a conversation that reaches far beyond the usual documentary circles.

The Mystery of the "Secret" Premiere

The aura surrounding You Can See Everything is largely of its own making. When news broke that a mystery film would be unveiled at the 2026 Telluride Film Festival, the industry was already primed for speculation. By the time it was revealed to be a collaboration between cult-favorite auteur Nathan Fielder and documentarian Lance Oppenheim, the anticipation had reached a fever pitch.

The secrecy paid off. The film’s premiere was, by all accounts, an electrifying event, leaving critics and audiences questioning the boundaries of the medium. The buzz was so intense that it prompted a radical question: Is this the film that finally breaks the documentary curse and lands a Best Picture nomination?

Chronology of a Campaign

The path to an Oscar campaign is rarely linear, but for You Can See Everything, the roadmap has been aggressive.

• September 2026: The surprise premiere at Telluride leaves critics stunned, with early word describing it as a "glitch in the matrix."
• Late September/Early October 2026: Following the Telluride success, the film makes a splash at the 64th New York Film Festival at Alice Tully Hall. Attendees witness a growing consensus that the film’s narrative structure is unlike anything previously attempted in the documentary space.
• Mid-October 2026: Reports begin to circulate that A24 is pivoting its primary focus toward a Best Picture campaign. This strategic move is not merely about prestige; it is a defensive maneuver against the perceived limitations of the Academy’s Documentary Branch.
• December 2026 (Projected): The critical juncture. The announcement of the Best Documentary Feature shortlist will be the first major indicator of whether the film has the institutional support to survive the Academy’s traditional vetting process.

The Structural Hurdles of the Academy

To understand why A24 is pushing for Best Picture rather than settling for a Best Documentary nomination, one must look at the "fusty" internal politics of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

IndieWire’s Anne Thompson has noted that documentaries face a unique, structural disadvantage. The Academy is divided into branches, and the Documentary Branch is notoriously insular. More importantly, the largest branch of the Academy—the Actors branch—seldom votes for documentaries. Because documentaries rarely utilize traditional casting or narrative acting in the way scripted films do, they often fail to capture the imagination of the voting body that holds the most sway.

Even in branches like Directing and Writing, where cross-pollination is more common, documentaries struggle. The prominent directors and writers who could champion these films are often siloed within the documentary guild, limiting their influence in the broader categories. While a casting director or a makeup artist might theoretically watch a documentary, they are far more likely to focus their time and energy on the scripted films they are most familiar with—and which, in many cases, they helped produce.

Historical Precedents and the "Fahrenheit 9/11" Lesson

The history of documentaries at the Oscars is littered with cautionary tales. While films like Collective and Flee have successfully navigated the waters of multiple categories—the latter even securing nominations for Best International Feature, Best Documentary Feature, and Best Animated Feature—they are the exceptions that prove the rule.

The most famous attempt to bypass the documentary category was Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11. Coming off the massive success of Bowling for Columbine, Moore opted out of the documentary race entirely, hoping to force the Academy to recognize his film as a "Best Picture" contender. Despite the massive box office numbers and the film’s undeniable cultural footprint, the gamble failed. The film did not receive a Best Picture nomination, and the move remains a stark reminder of the Academy’s resistance to shifting the goalposts.

Implications for Fielder’s Future

There is also the question of whether Nathan Fielder, despite his massive cult following, has the mainstream appeal required to sustain a Best Picture run. His previous experiment, the Showtime series The Curse, was largely ignored by the Emmys, despite being critically lauded. This suggests a disconnect between the "breathless media coverage" surrounding Fielder’s work and his actual standing with the broader, more traditional voting bodies.

If You Can See Everything succeeds, it will be because the film is, as early reviewers have suggested, a "glitch in the matrix"—a project so singular that it forces the Academy to reconsider its own rules. If it fails, it may serve as a final lesson that even the most innovative documentary, backed by the most savvy studio, cannot easily overcome the institutional inertia of an awards body that prefers the comfort of the scripted narrative.

The Road Ahead: A December Reckoning

As we approach the winter awards season, the industry is holding its breath. The strategy A24 has employed is high-risk, high-reward. By bypassing the traditional route and leaning into the Best Picture narrative, they are banking on the idea that You Can See Everything is not just a film, but an event.

If the film secures a spot on the Best Documentary Feature shortlist in December, it will be the first tangible proof that the Academy is willing to engage with the film on its own terms. Should it fail to make that list, the "Best Picture" campaign may quickly be revealed as a strategic miscalculation.

For now, the film remains a lightning rod for debate. Whether or not it takes home the golden statuette, You Can See Everything has already accomplished what A24 set out to do: it has ensured that the conversation about the future of cinema is happening on their terms. The question remains: is the Academy ready to join that conversation, or will it remain trapped in the traditional, scripted past?