The nominations were revealed in an early morning ceremony at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science’s Samuel Goldwyn Theatre in front of several hundred media in Beverly Hills.

No Country for Old Men garnered nominations for brothers Joel and Ethan Coen in the best director category, as well as nods for best picture, supporting actor and adapted screenplay. The film, based on Cormac McCarthy’s novel, tells the story of a drug deal gone wrong. There Will Be Blood also earned a best picture nomination along with quirky comedy Juno, Atonement and Michael Clayton.

The acting categories saw several surprise entries, with Australian icon Cate Blanchett scoring a double nomination in the best actress and best supporting actress columns. Blanchett was nominated as best actress for Elizabeth: The Golden Age and as best supporting actress for her portrayal of Bob Dylan in I’m Not There. Blanchett’s rivals include British veteran Julie Christie for her performance as an Alzheimer’s sufferer in Away from Her and French star Marion Cotillard, dazzling as tragic chanteuse Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose. Other best actress nominees were Laura Linney for The Savages and Ellen Page for Juno.

In the men’s acting Oscars, British-born Daniel Day-Lewis is the clear favourite for his performance as a tyrannical oil prospector in There Will be Blood.

And the nominations are...

ACTOR

George Clooney

Michael Clayton

Daniel Day-Lewis

There Will be Blood

Johnny Depp

Sweeney Todd

Tommy Lee Jones

In the Valley of Elah

Viggo Mortensen

Eastern Promises

ACTRESS

Cate Blanchett

Elizabeth: The Golden Age

Julie Christie

Away from Her

Marion Cotillard

La Vie En Rose

Laura Linney

The Savages

Ellen Page

Juno

DIRECTOR

Julian Schnabel

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Jason Reitman

Juno

Tony Gilroy

Michael Clayton

Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

No Country for Old Men

Paul Thomas Anderson

There Will be Blood

MOTION PICTURE

Atonement

Juno

Michael Clayton

No Country for Old Men

There Will Be Blood

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Beaufort

Israel

The Counterfeiters

Austria

Katyn

Poland

Mongol

Kazakhstan

12

Russia