‘Birdman,’ ‘Budapest Hotel’ lead Oscar noms
Clint Eastwood, right, for best director for "American Sniper," which stars best actor nominee Bradley Cooper.
David Oyelowo, left, for best actor for his portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr., as well as director Ava DuVernay, for "Selma."
"The Lego Movie" for best animated feature film.
The announcement of this season’s Oscar nominations from Beverly Hills on Thursday offered its share of expected honorees ("Boyhood," "Birdman," "The Grand Budapest Hotel") and plenty of other unexpected ones. Who was "in" that observers thought would be "out," and vice versa? Here are a half-dozen of the most notable snubs and surprises.
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» The "Selma" (near) shutout. OK, so it got original song and did squeeze out a best picture nomination. But Ava DuVernay didn’t get nominated for director, and David Oyelowo, regarded by many as having given the best performance of the year for his turn as Martin Luther King Jr., was nowhere to be found amid a strong actor list. Considering the civil rights drama is one of the most well-reviewed films of the year, its absence in many of the major categories easily represents one of the year’s biggest snubs.
» Clint Eastwood.Eastwood has been surging for his war drama "American Sniper," landing a director’s Guild nomination and a National Board of Review win. And Oscar voters liked "American Sniper, " giving it screenplay, actor and picture nominations. But when it came to director, it held off on Eastwood and instead went with the dark horse Bennett Miller, helmer of "Foxcatcher." It looked like an Eastwood comeback was afoot, taking him back to the regular Oscar appearances of "Million Dollar Baby" and "Mystic River" from just a decade ago. Oscar voters said no go.
» Marion Cotillard. Amy Adams is a perpetual Oscar favorite. Jennifer Aniston is a Hollywood darling. Neither ended up in a thin field for actress. Instead, Marion Cotillard, in the French-language workplace drama "Two Days, One Night," from the Dardenne Bros., pulled off the trick. Cotillard is something of an academy darling — she took a best actress statuette away from Julie Christie in 2007 with her turn in "La Vie en Rose."
» Laura Dern. Outside of Reese Witherspoon, there hasn’t been much love for "Wild." Scratch that after Thursday as Dern scooped up a supporting actress nod for her turn as an ethereal mother in the Cheryl Strayed adaptation. Dern takes slots that at previous ceremonies have gone to the likes of Jessica Chastain and Naomi Watts. It’s Dern’s first nomination in more than two decades — "Ramblin’ Rose" was the last, in 1992.
» "Life Itself." Steve James earned one of the most famous Oscar snubs ever when his seminal "Hoop Dreams" didn’t make the short list. He can claim the dubious honor once more after "Life Itself," his poignant documentary about Roger Ebert, was left off the list despite being tipped by many as a favorite. It was 20 years ago the "Hoop Dreams" snub happened. James will get to celebrate with another acclaimed movie getting nowhere with Oscar voters.
» "The Lego Movie." It was considered one of the best, and most groundbreaking, animated movies in years, and has won a host of critics’ and other groups’ awards. Yet the film’s meta, pop-cultural humor didn’t come through for Oscar voters, as the movie didn’t end up amid the five slots for animated film. "Congrats to ‘Everything Is Awesome,’ though currently the title of the song doesn’t seem especially accurate!" director Chris Miller tweeted of his film’s (far less satisfying) song nomination. Then again, snubs matter, but only so much. "Rear Window," "Red River" and "The Princess Bride" didn’t win any Oscars either.
87TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATIONS
PICTURE
» "American Sniper"
» "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» "Boyhood"
» "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» "The Imitation Game"
» "Selma"
» "The Theory of Everything"
» "Whiplash"
ACTOR
» Steve Carell, "Foxcatcher"
» Bradley Cooper, "American Sniper"
» Benedict Cumberbatch, "The Imitation Game"
» Michael Keaton, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» Eddie Redmayne, "The Theory of Everything"
ACTRESS
» Marion Cotillard, "Two Days, One Night"
» Felicity Jones, "The Theory of Everything"
» Julianne Moore, "Still Alice"
» Rosamund Pike, "Gone Girl"
» Reese Witherspoon, "Wild"
SUPPORTING ACTOR
» Robert Duvall, "The Judge"
» Ethan Hawke, "Boyhood"
» Edward Norton, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» Mark Ruffalo, "Foxcatcher"
» J.K. Simmons, "Whiplash"
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
» Patricia Arquette, "Boyhood"
» Laura Dern, "Wild"
» Keira Knightley, "The Imitation Game"
» Emma Stone, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» Meryl Streep, "Into the Woods"
DIRECTING
» Alejandro G. Inarritu, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» Richard Linklater, "Boyhood"
» Bennett Miller, "Foxcatcher"
» Wes Anderson, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» Morten Tyldum, "The Imitation Game"
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
» "Ida"
» "Leviathan"
» "Tangerines"
» "Timbuktu"
» "Wild Tales"
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
» Jason Hall, "American Sniper"
» Graham Moore, "The Imitation Game"
» Paul Thomas Anderson, "Inherent Vice"
» Anthony McCarten, "The Theory of Everything"
» Damien Chazelle, "Whiplash"
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
» Alejandro G. Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris Jr. and Armando Bo, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» Richard Linklater, "Boyhood"
» E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman, "Foxcatcher"
» Wes Anderson (screenplay) and story by Wes Anderson and Hugo Guinness, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» Dan Gilroy, "Nightcrawler"
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
» "Big Hero 6"
» "The Boxtrolls"
» "How to Train Your Dragon 2"
» "Song of the Sea"
» "The Tale of the Princess Kaguya"
PRODUCTION DESIGN
» "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» "The Imitation Game"
» "Interstellar"
» "Into the Woods"
» "Mr. Turner"
CINEMATOGRAPHY
» "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» "Ida"
» "Mr. Turner"
» "Unbroken"
SOUND MIXING
» "American Sniper"
» "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» "Interstellar"
» "Unbroken"
» "Whiplash"
SOUND EDITING
» "American Sniper"
» "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
» "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies"
» "Interstellar"
» "Unbroken"
ORIGINAL SCORE
» "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» "The Imitation Game"
» "Interstellar"
» "Mr. Turner"
» "The Theory of Everything"
ORIGINAL SONG
» "Everything Is Awesome" from "The Lego Movie"
» "Glory" from "Selma"
» "Grateful" from "Beyond the Lights"
» "I’m Not Gonna Miss You" from "Glen Campbell … I’ll Be Me""
» "Lost Stars" from "Begin Again"
COSTUME DESIGN
» "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» "Inherent Vice"
» "Into the Woods"
» "Maleficent"
» "Mr. Turner"
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
» "CitizenFour"
» "Finding Vivian Maier"
» "Last Days in Vietnam"
» "The Salt of the Earth"
» "Virunga"
DOCUMENTARY (SHORT SUBJECT)
» "Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1"
» "Joanna"
» "Our Curse"
» "The Reaper (La Parka)"
» "White Earth"
FILM EDITING
» "American Sniper"
» "Boyhood"
» "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» "The Imitation Game"
» "Whiplash"
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
» "Foxcatcher"
» "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
» "Guardians of the Galaxy"
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
» "The Bigger Picture"
» "The Dam Keeper"
» "Feast"
» "Me and My Moulton"
» "A Single Life"
LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
» "Aya"
» "Boogaloo and Graham"
» "Butter Lamp (La Lampe Au Beurre De Yak)"
» "Parvaneh"
» "The Phone Call"
VISUAL EFFECTS
» "Captain America: The Winter Soldier"
» "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes"
» "Guardians of the Galaxy"
» "Interstellar"
» "X-Men: Days of Future Past"
