The contenders in one of the most open Oscar races in years were announced today, with science fiction spectacular Gravity and crime caper American Hustle leading the pack with ten nominations each.
Both films are up for Best Picture alongside powerful historical epic 12 Years A Slave, which is hotly tipped by many critics to walk away with the lions share of the major awards in March. Other nominees for the main prize are Philomena, for which star Judi Dench has also received a Best Actress nomination, Captain Phillips, Dallas Buyers Club, Her, Nebraska and The Wolf of Wall Street.
While a few clear favourites have already been drawn up by various media outlets in the Best Picture category, the race for Best Director has proven much more intriguing. British filmmaker Steve McQueen stands a great chance of landing the prize for 12 Years A Slave, however Alfonso Cuaron must also be considered a strong candidate having helmed the groundbreaking special effects masterpiece Gravity. Landing a nomination for The Wolf of Wall Street, the iconic Martin Scorsese is something of a dark horse in a race which also includes American Hustle’s David O. Russell and Nebraska‘s Alexander Payne.
Notably American Hustle has become only the fifteenth film in history to score nominations in all four of the acting categories, but here too the race is quite open. In the Best Actress category Amy Adams receives her fifth Oscar nomination for her role in the crime drama, but she faces stiff competition from Gravity star Sandra Bullock. Leonardo DiCaprio and Matthew McConaughey both achieved Golden Globe glory for their respective roles in The Wolf of Wall Street and Dallas Buyers Club but their main competition is shaping up to be British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor for his powerhouse performance in 12 Years A Slave.
There were some surprise omissions in the main categories this year. There was no room for biopic Mandela: The Long Walk To Freedom, although the U2 soundtrack ‘Ordinary Love’ receives a nomination for Best Song having already triumphed at the Golden Globes. Perhaps the biggest shock is Tom Hanks being left out of the Best Actor race despite receiving plaudits from many critics calling his title role in Captain Phillips his best work in years. Of course it was no surprise at all to see Meryl Streep collect her eighteenth acting nomination for her role in August: Osage County. The American national treasure needs just one more win to tie with Katharine Hepburn as the most successful actress in Academy Award history.
Other noteworthy nominations include Palestinian drama Omar in the Best Foreign Language Film category and a nod for Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa for Best Make-Up.
Full Nominations
Best Picture
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street
Best Director
Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
Alexander Payne, Nebraska
David O Russell, American Hustle
Martin Scorsese, The Wolf of Wall Street
Best Actor
Christian Bale, American Hustle
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club
Best Actress
Amy Adams, American Hustle
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock, Gravity
Judi Dench, Philomena
Meryl Streep, August: Osage County
Best Supporting Actor
Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
Bradley Cooper, American Hustle
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave
Jonah Hill, The Wolf of Wall Street
Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
Best Supporting Actress
Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle
Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
June Squibb, Nebraska
Best Adapted Screenplay
12 Years a Slave
Before Midnight
Captain Phillips
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street
Best Original Screenplay
American Hustle
Blue Jasmine
Dallas Buyers Club
Her
Nebraska
Best Animated Feature
The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Ernest and Celestine
Frozen
The Wind Rises
Best Animated Short
Feral
Get a Horse!
Mr Hublot
Possessions
Room on the Broom
Best Cinematography
The Grandmaster
Gravity
Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska
Prisoners
Best Costume Design
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
The Grandmaster
The Great Gatsby
The Invisible Woman
Best Documentary Feature
20 Feet from Stardom
The Act of Killing
Cutie and the Boxer
Dirty Wars
The Square
Best Documentary Short
Cavedigger
Facing Fear
Karama Has No Walls
The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life
Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall
Best Editing
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Best Foreign Language Film
The Broken Circle Breakdown (Belgium)
The Great Beauty (Italy)
The Hunt (Denmark)
The Missing Picture (Cambodia)
Omar (Palestine)
Best Live Action Short
Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn’t Me)
Avant Que de Tout Perdre (Just Before Losing Everything)
Helium
Pitaako Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?)
The Voorman Problem
Best Make-Up
Dallas Buyers Club
Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa
The Lone Ranger
Best Music
The Book Thief
Gravity
Her
Philomena
Saving Mr Banks
Best Production Design
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Gravity
The Great Gatsby
Her
Best Song
‘Alone Yet Not Alone’, Alone Yet Not Alone
‘Happy’, Despicable Me 2
‘Let It Go’, Frozen
‘The Moon Song’, Her
‘Ordinary Love’, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
Best Sound Editing
All is Lost
Captain Phillips
Gravity
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Lone Survivor
Best Sound Mixing
Captain Phillips
Gravity
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Inside Llewyn Davis
Lone Survivor
Best Visual Effects
Gravity
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Iron Man 3
The Lone Ranger
Star Trek Into Darkness
