Academy Award nominations could see repeat of OscarsSoWhite

The nominees for best director are Adam McKay, “The Big Short”; George Miller, “Mad Max: Fury Road”; Alejandro G. Iñárritu, “The Revenant”; Lenny Abrahamson, “Room”; Tom McCarthy, “Spotlight”.

If you haven’t caught any of the Best Picture nominees yet, “The Big Short”, “Spotlight” and “The Revenant” are in theaters now, while “Room” is coming back to theaters this Friday.

The best actress category is the most fearsome this year, with Larson, who many feel is the front-runner, going head to head with Saoirse Ronan in “Brooklyn”, Cate Blanchett in “Carol”, Charlotte Rampling in “45 Years”, and 2013’s best actress victor Jennifer Lawrence in “Joy”.

Other notable names who missed out on nominations: screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, whose screenplay for “Steve Jobs” was overlooked; Quentin Tarantino, who received neither a directing nor a screenwriting nomination for “The Hateful Eight”; and Helen Mirren, who didn’t make the cut for best supporting actress.

The Oscar nominees for best supporting actor are: Christian Bale, “The Big Short”; Tom Hardy, “The Revenant”; Mark Ruffalo, “Spotlight”; Mark Rylance, “Bridge of Spies”; Sylvester Stallone, “Creed”. Netflix, which has previously scored nominations for documentaries, fell short in its first bid for fiction film nods.

The Oscar nominations were announced early Thursday in Beverly Hills, California.

Chris Rock will be hosting the 88th Academy Awards, airing on ABC at 7 p.m. EST, 4 pm PST on Sunday, February 28.

LGBT-themed films Carol and The Danish Girl were among the movies getting Academy Award nominations, which were announced January 14. Perhaps the biggest surprise: With “Carol” not in the mix, this is the first time in eight years that Harvey Weinstein doesn’t have a best picture nomination. Amanda Nevill, chief executive of the BFI, said: ‘What is so thrilling about today’s Oscar nominations is seeing British films and talent included across nearly every category, showing that Academy voters have recognised what we already know – Brits excel across all areas of filmmaking, from our celebrated on-screen talent to the creatives.

The 41-year-old actor received his fifth Oscar nomination today for “The Revenant”, and this year he is favored to win.

No actors of colour were nominated in the best acting or supporting acting categories this year, despite a backlash last year over a lack of diversity in the 2015 awards.

As goes the best-picture Oscar, so usually goes the prize for best director – as it should.

Like a year ago, there was an absence of performers of color. “They are: “Anomalisa”, “Boy and the World”, “Inside Out,” Shaun the Sheep Movie” and “When Marnie Was There”. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”, nabbed 5 nominations…but not best picture.

Will Smith for “Concussion”, Michael B. Jordan for “Creed”, Benicio del Toro for “Sicario”, many young actors from “Straight Outta Compton”, and Idris Elba for “Beasts of No Nation” were all left on the outside looking in.

– Speaking of composers, Thomas Newman’s original score for “Bridge of Spies” is his 13th nomination. And though Leonardo DiCaprio looks a shoo-in for the Best Actor Oscar, Fassbender is likely to provide the stiffest opposition.

In this photo provided by Twentieth Century Fox, Matt Damon as Astronaut Mark Watney finds himself stranded and alone on Mars, in “The Martian”.