2012 Oscar nominations--“Hugo” leads pack with 11 nominations;
‘The help’s’ Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for best Atress and Best Supporting noms respectively
By Kam Williams
Don't be deceived by 'Hugo's' landing the most Oscar nominations, The Artist still remains the heavy favorite to win for Best Picture. The list of nominees doesn't include much in the way of major surprises other than perhaps the conspicuous absence of Ryan Gosling ('The Ides of March' and 'Drive') and Kristen Wiig ('Bridesmaids') in the lead acting categories, Albert Brooks ('Drive') in the supporting, David Fincher ('The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo') for Best Director, and 'The Adventures of Tintin' for Best Animated Feature.
Brad Pitt enjoys a slight early edge over George Clooney for Best Actor, and the same goes for perennial-nominee Meryl Streep over Viola Davis for Best Actress. But the odds can change, so watch for every studio to employ some subtle marketing strategies over the next few weeks to position their nominees as the most deserving.
As for the support roles, Golden Globe-winner Octavia Spencer might have a tough time repeating that feat against Janet McTeer, given the Academy's history of preferring British actresses in that category. By comparison, Supporting Actor is totally up for grabs, since four of the entrants, Nick Nolte, Christopher Plummer, Max von Sydow and Kenneth Branagh, have all been nominated multiple times before, but never won. Thus all qualify for the proverbial "body of work" vote.
The 84th Academy Awards will air live on ABC, on Sunday, February 26th at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT, and will be hosted by Billy Crystal.
COMPLETE LIST OF ACADEMY AWARD NOMINEES (partial list)
Actor in a Leading Role
• Demián Bichir in "A Better Life"
• George Clooney in "The Descendants"
• Jean Dujardin in "The Artist"
• Gary Oldman in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"
• Brad Pitt in "Moneyball"
Actor in a Supporting Role
• Kenneth Branagh in "My Week with Marilyn"
• Jonah Hill in "Moneyball"
• Nick Nolte in "Warrior"
• Christopher Plummer in "Beginners"
• Max von Sydow in "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close"
PHOTO: Viola Davis in "The Help"
Actress in a Leading Role
• Glenn Close in "Albert Nobbs"
• Viola Davis in "The Help"
• Rooney Mara in "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"
• Meryl Streep in "The Iron Lady"
• Michelle Williams in "My Week with Marilyn"
Actress in a Supporting Role
• Bérénice Bejo in "The Artist"
• Jessica Chastain in "The Help"
• Melissa McCarthy in "Bridesmaids"
• Janet McTeer in "Albert Nobbs"
• Octavia Spencer in "The Help"
Animated Feature Film
• "A Cat in Paris "Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
• "Chico & Rita "Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
• "Kung Fu Panda 2" Jennifer Yuh Nelson
• "Puss in Boots" Chris Miller
• "Rango" Gore Verbinski
Documentary (Feature)
• "Hell and Back Again" Danfung Dennis and Mike Lerner
• "If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front" Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman
• "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory" Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky
• "Pina" Wim Wenders and Gian-Piero Ringel
• "Undefeated" TJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Richard Middlemas
Documentary (Short Subject)
• "The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement" Robin Fryday and Gail Dolgin
• "God Is the Bigger Elvis" Rebecca Cammisa and Julie Anderson
• "Incident in New Baghdad" James Spione
• "Saving Face" Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
• "The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom" Lucy Walker and Kira Carstensen
Foreign Language Film
• "Bullhead" (Belgium)
• "Footnote" (Israel)
• "In Darkness" (Poland)
• "Monsieur Lazhar" (Canada)
• "A Separation" (Iran)
Music (Original Song)
• "Man or Muppet" from "The Muppets" Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
• "Real in Rio"from "Rio" Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown Lyric by Siedah Garrett
Best Picture
• "The Artist" Thomas Langmann, Producer
• "The Descendants" Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Producers
• "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close" Scott Rudin, Producer
• "The Help" Brunson Green, Chris Columbus and Michael Barnathan, Producers
• "Hugo" Graham King and Martin Scorsese, Producers
• "Midnight in Paris" Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, Producers
• "Moneyball" Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz and Brad Pitt, Producers
• "The Tree of Life" Nominees to be determined
• "War Horse" Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers
Short Film (Animated)
• "Dimanche/Sunday" Patrick Doyon
• "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg
• "La Luna" Enrico Casarosa
• "A Morning Stroll" Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe
• "Wild Life" Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby
+ Top Story
A Warner Bros. shareholder has accused the studio of allowing Morgan Freeman to co-opt a press tour for the studio's Dolphin Tale in order to push his political agenda rather than the movie, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"The story lends itself to a sequel. Not every film should be a sequel but I'm really honored that the audience is asking about it, tweeting about it ... But I do have the passion and the desire to explore the opportunity," she recently told Urban Daily.
Rohan Marley, the 39-year-old son of the late reggae icon Bob Marley and father to five of Lauryn Hill's six children, has just gotten engaged to model Isabeli Fontana, 28, of Brazil, she revealed to a magazine in her home country.
LIVE on stage at the Liacouras Center, May 18 – 20, it's Tyler Perry's Madea Gets a Job starring Tyler Perry. After an overwhelming demand for this stage appearance, the ol' broad gets back in action. It's laughter and superb entertainment out of this world!
Born in New Jersey on September 26, 1981, but raised in Waldorf, Maryland, Christina Milian is a versatile talent whose resume includes film, television, theater and music. She recently appeared in the television movie The Christmas Cupid and on CSI and enjoyed a recurring role as the voice of Esther on Family Guy.
On Monday May 7th WDAS 105.3 FM hosted an album release party with Patty Jackson as a part of Jackson's 30 years in broadcasting celebration. Listeners were invited to Warmdaddy's for a luncheon and sneak peak of Tank's latest album This is How I Feel, which officially hit stores on Tuesday May 8th.
And it looks like we'll be seeing more of Rhames on TV with news today that TNT has ordered a new medical drama series pilot from Emmy-winning writer-producer David E. Kelley and CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta, on whose book the project is based.
Join Reelblack as we celebrate the national theatrical release of co-writer/director Rel Dowdell's sophomore feature film, Changing The Game, with a special meetup in support of the film, followed by a Dutch treat luncheon with Mr. Dowdell.