Oscar winner Nomadland hits Disney Plus this Friday

While it was certainly one of the strangest Academy Awards ceremonies to date (a year without cinemas will do that), 2021’s Oscars was marked by some long overdue firsts. Not only was director Chloé Zhao only the second woman in history to win Best Director, she was also the very first woman of colour to take the award for her down-to-earth drama Nomadland.

If you didn’t catch the Oscar winner (or any of the nominees) when it was first released, you’re not alone. Even when Australian cinemas did open their doors again, sitting in closed space surrounded by strangers was still a risk many of us didn’t want to take. Thankfully, studios and distributors have been fast-tracking movies to digital streaming services in response to cinema closures and this Friday (30 April), Disney is doing just that with this year's Oscar winner.

Here's how to watch Nomadland online in Australia from Friday the 30th of April.

From Friday the 30th of April, Nomadland will be available to stream on Disney Plus as part of the service’s more mature Star content. Star doesn’t cost you any extra but its introduction did bring with it a significant price hike for Disney Plus subscriptions, increasing from $8.99 to $13.99 per month.

Disney Plus also removed its free trial option back in 2020 right before it released Hamilton. So there’s no trial period, meaning you’ll pay $13.99 whether you cancel by the end of your first month or not.

Nomadland stars Frances McDormand (someone well acquainted with Academy Awards) in the lead role as Fern, a recent widow from Nevada who loses her factory job and decides to part with most of her material possessions and hit the road. The film explores her journey as a van-driving nomad (someone with no fixed dwelling) and her relationship with the people she meets along the way, many of who are played by real-life nomads with no previous acting experience.

If you’re a Marvel fan, Zhao is currently directing one of Disney’s next big properties, Eternals (starring Kumail Nanjiani, Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden and Gemma Chan) which is supposed to release this year but don’t hold your breath.

Looking for something else to stream tonight, check out all the free trials from streaming providers in Australia below.