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James Franco and Wonder Woman among major Oscar snubs

January 28, 2018 19:54·
Actress Judi Dench arrives at the Royal Film Performance and world premiere of the film

Actress Judi Dench arrives at the Royal Film Performance and world premiere of the film"The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, at Leicester Square Lond

As per usual, the lineup is full of shocking snubs and pleasant surprises. With 13 nominations, "The Shape of Water" received the most nominations, and it has been labeled American Film Institute's Film of the Year, which bodes well for its chances.

Award shows in the run-up to this year's Oscars have been dominated by women's issues.

Others in the coveted top category are dark satire "Get Out", Daniel Day-Lewis's apparent final film "Phantom Thread" - he has announced his retirement - and Pentagon Papers thriller "The Post". "Get Out" received a nomination for best picture, and Daniel Kaluuya is one of five actors competing in the leading role category.

"The Shape of Water" earned nominations for director Guillermo del Toro, who shares an original screenwriting nod with Vanessa Taylor, and stars Sally Hawkins (actress) Richard Jenkins (supporting actor) and Octavia Spencer (supporting actress) and for editing, cinematography, costume design, score, production design, sound editing and sound mixing. But it's good to see that Greta Gerwig's wondrous female-fronted coming-of-age comedy Lady Bird and Jordan Peele's racially charged horror comedy Get Out haven't just picked up token best screenplay nods.

I, Tonya, Mudbound, The Florida Project, The Disaster Artist, and The Big Sick were all notably missing from this year's crop of Oscar noms for Best Picture.

The dark drama is one of the favourites for best picture, and winning that without a best director nomination certainly isn't impossible - Ben Affleck managed it with Argo in 2013. This also marks the first time a narrative Netflix film has been nominated, underscoring the ongoing evolution of streaming services.

"It's fantastic for women and given the year that we've had, I think those nominations are popping out even stronger". If you've seen most of the nominees already and only need to catch up on one or two, Cinemark is selling individual tickets for best picture nominated films starting on January 26.

Wonder Woman sadly did not get nominated at all as people wanted Gal Gadot to at least get a "Best Actress" nod.

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Sam Rockwell, Best Supporting Actor nominee - and Golden Globe and SAG award victor - for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, told Deadline, "I was in bed".

Frances McDormand is tipped to be this year's victor for her role as a grieving mother in Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri.

While The Disaster Artist was previously expected to perform well at the awards, sexual harassment allegations against director James Franco appear to have led to his being locked out of nominations.

No In a Heartbeat in Animated Short Film.

Visual Effects: "Blade Runner 2049", "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2", "Kong: Skull Island", "Star Wars: The Last Jedi", "War for the Planet of the Apes".

"As I was told, I got really emotional, you know, because everybody just poured their whole heart and soul into doing this film and I'm so happy for [director] Greta [Gerwig] and Saoirse [Ronan] and the whole movie", said Metcalfsaid.

While there probably was not really a time when quality was the only standard, one can not deny that the Academy Awards raise a larger banner for diversity this year.

The announcements are being seen as an opportunity for the industry to support female filmmaking, with the #MeToo and Time's Up campaigns against sexual misconduct and gender inequality a mainstay of the 2018 awards circuit.

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