But absences were also stuck on repeat. That story line should have a new twist this time, though, when Chris Rock – who famously labeled Hollywood “a white industry” – hosts the February 28 ceremony.
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“The Revenant” topped all films with 12 nominations, including best picture, setting up best director nominee Alejandro Iñárritu for a potential repeat of last year’s “Birdman” success.
George Miller’s post-apocalyptic sequel “Mad Max: Fury Road” followed with 10 nominations, including best picture and best director for Miller.
Sylvester Stallone also made Oscar history for his Best Supporting Actor nomination as Rocky Balboa in Creed.
Naji, the writer and director of Jordanian film “Theeb”, nominated for best foreign language film, told Agence France-Presse.
“Some worthy movies were left out, most notably “Straight Outta Compton”,” notes Fandango.com’s Dave Karger. “It’s fantastic to see people react so positively”, he added about the film. The academy could have chosen two more films for best picture, but chose to stick with eight.
Of the Academy’s effort to increase diversity, Isaacs said “We have got to speed it up”. “Talking gets to the doing, and we are going to do”. I feel incredibly honored to be recognized among the other incredible women in this category. “I realized how special that is and I didn’t expect that to happen to me”, he said.
Alongside DiCaprio and Damon, the best actor nominees were: Michael Fassbender (“Steve Jobs”), Redmayne (“The Danish Girl”) and Bryan Cranston (“Trumbo”). One big name not nominated is Johnny Depp for his role as Whitey Bulger in Black Mass.
Best actress in a leading role has some familiar Oscar winners of the recent past: Cate Blanchett, “Carol”; Brie Larson, “Room”; Jennifer Lawrence, “Joy”; Charlotte Rampling, “45 Years”; Saoirse Ronan, “Brooklyn”. Even the best supporting actor and actress categories announced Thursday were all white.
Best known for comedies like Talladega Nights and Stepbrothers, Adam McKay didn’t seem like the obvious director to adapt The Big Short, Michael Lewis’ 2009 book about the investors who saw the big housing market crash coming. “We were screaming like idiots in the pitch black with the smell of waffles in the room”. In a statement, DiCaprio, who’s expected to land his first Oscar in his fifth nomination, called making “The Revenent” “one of the most rewarding and collaborative experiences of my life”. The most nominations was received by “The Revenant” with 12 nods.
“Beasts Of No Nation” starring Idris Elba was another notable film and performance shut out of the competition. The odds of an Inarritu repeat, though, are against him.
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Deniz is the Franco-Turkish director of Mustang, which is among the nominees for best foreign language film.
