Martin Scorsese's 3D picture Hugo and Michel Hazanavicius's silent film The Artist lead the nominations in the 84th Academy Awards, with both movies up for Best Picture and Best Director, among other awards. Other top Oscar nominees include The Descendants, up for Best Picture, Director and Best Actor for George Clooney, and Moneyball, which got nods for Best Picture and Best Actor for Brad Pitt. Meryl Streep, Viola Davis and Glenn Close all received nominations for Best Actress as widely anticipated, along with Rooney Mara for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Michelle Williams for My Week with Marilyn.
Perhaps the most surprising nomination is Melissa McCarthy, who is being honored for her broad, hilarious supporting role in hit comedy Bridesmaids. Fellow comic actor Jonah Hill is also up for a supporting actor nomination, but for his dramatic turn opposite Pitt in Moneyball.
The nominations in the top categories for the 84th Annual Acamedy Awards are as follows:
BEST PICTURE
The Artist
Thomas Langmann, Producer
The Descendants
Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Producers
Extremely Loud and 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
BEST ACTOR
Demian Bichir
A Better Life
George Clooney
The Descendants
Jean Dujardin
The Artist
Gary Oldman
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt
Moneyball
BEST ACTRESS
Glenn Close
Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis
The Help
Rooney Mara
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep
The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams
My Week with Marilyn
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kenneth Branagh
My Week with Marilyn
Jonah Hill
Moneyball
Nick Nolte
Warrior
Christopher Plummer
Beginners
Max Von Sydow
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Berenice Bejo
The Artist
Jessica Chastain
The Help
Melissa McCarthy
Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer
Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer
The Help
BEST DIRECTOR
The Artist
Michel Hazanavicius
The Descendants
Alexander Payne
Hugo
Martin Scorsese
Midnight in Paris
Woody Allen
The Tree of Life
Terrence Malick
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
A Cat in Paris
Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
Chico and Rita
Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
Kung Fu Panda 2
Jennifer Yuh Nelson
Puss in Boots
Chris Miller
Rango
Gore Verbinski
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Man or Muppet"
The Muppets
Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
"Real In Rio"
Rio
Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown, Lyric by Siedah Garrett