2011 Oscars: ‘The King’s Speech’ leads
Following the nominations, Rush – who won the best actor Oscar in 1996 for Shine – said it was “very exciting to have your work honoured by your industry peers”. He said The King’s Speech had “struck such a rich resonant chord with audiences of all ages”. His movie faces strong competition for best movie […]
Following the nominations, Rush – who won the best actor Oscar in 1996 for Shine – said it was “very exciting to have your work honoured by your industry peers”. He said The King’s Speech had “struck such a rich resonant chord with audiences of all ages”. His movie faces strong competition for best movie from The Social Network, True Grit, Black Swan, The Fighter, Inception, The Kids Are All Right, 127 Hours, Toy Story 3 and Winter’s Bone.
For best actor, Firth goes up against Javier Bardem, for Biutiful, Jeff Bridges, for True Grit, and James Franco for 127 Hours. Jesse Eisenberg – who played Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network – is also nominated. In a statement, the star said: “To be nominated for this award, especially alongside these other actors, is truly astonishing and a great honour for me.”
Nominations tally
* The King’s Speech – 12
* True Grit – 10
* Inception – 8
* The Social Network – 8
* The Fighter – 7
* 127 Hours – 6
* Black Swan – 5
* Toy Story 3 – 5
* The Kids Are All Right – 4
* Winter’s Bone – 4
* Alice in Wonderland – 3
* Biutiful – 2
* Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 – 2
* How to Train Your Dragon – 2
Golden Globe winner Natalie Portman, for ballet thriller Black Swan, is up for best actress alongside Annette Bening, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Lawrence and Michelle Williams. The supporting actress Oscar could prove the most competitive among the acting prizes. Melissa Leo, who won the Globe for The Fighter, faces strong challenges from co-star Amy Adams while 14-year-old newcomer Steinfeld – who missed out on a Globe nomination for True Grit – has received a nod.
In a successful year for Britons, other nominees include Welsh-born Christian Bale – up for supporting actor for boxing film The Fighter – and director Mike Leigh, for his Another Year original screenplay. Leigh said he was “thrilled to bits” with his seventh Oscar nomination. Danny Boyle, who dominated the Oscars in 2009 with Slumdog Millionare, is up for best adapted screenplay for rock-climbing film 127 Hours.
Meanwhile, John Hawkes for Winter’s Bone, Jeremy Renner for The Town, and Mark Ruffalo for The Kids Are All Right complete the best supporting actor list. The directing category, won by Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker last year – a first for a woman – is all male this year.
The King’s Speech’s Tom Hooper competes with Darren Aronofsky for Black Swan, David O Russell for The Fighter, the Coen brothers for True Grit and David Fincher for The Social Network. Fincher said he was “very grateful and humbled” by his film’s nominations saying its success “belongs to many people”. As well as best film, Toy Story 3 is named as a contender for best animation – as was Up last year. The Gruffalo, narrated by Bonham Carter, is up for best short animation. Christopher Nolan’s Inception, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, picked up eight nods, but failed to make any of the acting categories.
The nominations for the ceremony, which were held in Los Angeles, were revealed by actress Mo’Nique and Academy president Tom Sherak. The Oscars take place on 27 February.