Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” continues to be the darling of award season, as the stunning biopic about the 16th President racked up 12 Oscar nominations this morning. Ceremony host Seth McFarlane and actress Emma Stone were on hand bright and early to announce all the nominations, and “Lincoln” lead the pack, Ang Lee’s adaptation of the best-selling book “Life of Pi” following closely behind with 12 nominations and “Les Miserables” and “Silver Linings Playbook” each earning 8.
The Oscars expanded the Best Picture category to 10 films three years ago, but the number fluctuates from year to year based on voting. This year, nine films have been deemed worthy to vie for the top spot: “Lincoln,” “Life of Pi,” “Les Miserables,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” “Argo,” “Amour,” “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” “Django Unchained” and “Zero Dark Thirty.” The Lincoln biopic, Ang Lee’s tiger flick and David O. Russell’s dark quirkfest will also compete with the lesser-known directors of “Amour” (Michael Haneke), and “Beasts of the Southern Wild” (Benh Zeitlin) in the Best Directing category. Shockingly, both Quentin Tarantino and Kathryn Bigelow got the Heisman.
“I am deeply honored and frankly a little overwhelmed by all of the nominations that ‘Life of Pi’ has received this morning,” said Lee in a statement. “So many talented people gave everything they had to this film, both in front of and behind the camera, and to see all of them receive this kind of recognition is something I am incredibly grateful for.”
In the acting categories, Daniel Day-Lewis is up against Bradley Cooper (“Playbook”), Denzel Washington (“Flight”), Joaquin Phoenix (“The Master”), and Hugh Jackman (“Les Mis”) for Best Actor. In the Best Actress category, the red-hot Jennifer Lawrence (“Playbook”) and Jessica Chastain (“Zero”) seem to be the ones to beat with Naomi Watts (“The Impossible”), Emmanuelle Riva (“Amour”), and Quvenzhané Wallis (“Beasts”) applying a full-court press.
Anne Hathaway was saved from embarrassment with her nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as the tragic Fantine in “Les Mis.” She faces Amy Adams, who scored her 4th Oscar nomination for “The Master,” Sally Field (“Lincoln”), Helen Hunt (“The Sessions”), and Jacki Weaver (“Playbook”).
The Best Supporting Actor Category is full of Hollywood heavyweights. In fact, all the nominees have won before. Robert DeNiro scored his sixth Oscar nomination for his performance as the superstitious Eagles fan in “Playbook.” He’ll face Alan Arkin (“Argo”), Philip Seymour Hoffman (“The Master”), Christoph Waltz (“Django Unchained”), and Tommy Lee Jones (“Lincoln”) on Oscar night. All we know is, when one of those dudes takes home the gold, the other 4 will be veeery good at convincing the camera that they are someone who is happy for the winner.
The biggest surprise of the nominations may have been all the love for “Beasts of the Southern Wild.” The much-loved indie film about a young girl in the Louisiana Bayou made a minor splash in theaters over the summer, but many believed it’d be forgotten come awards season. In addition to nominations for Best Picture and Best Director, the film’s tiny-but-powerful star, 9-year-old Wallis, was also nominated.
Of course, as is the case every year, there were snubs to go with the surprises. In addition to Tarantino and Bigelow, directors Ben Affleck and Tom Hooper (“The King’s Speech”) were also denied nominations despite their films being nominated for Best Picture. In addition, despite being respected actors who turned in solid performances, “Django” stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Samuel L. Jackson weren’t able to snatch up any recognition.
The complete list of nominees can be viewed here. The 85th Annual Academy Awards will air on ABC on February 24th. Stay tuned to Nicerazzi for all the big winners and red carpet fashion updates!