9 Nominees for best-picture Oscar Nominations 2012

9 Nominees for best-picture Oscar Nominations 2012 - As expected, best-picture nominees included The Descendants, a Hawaii-set family saga starring George Clooney that won the Golden Globe for best drama, and the musical or comedy winner, The Artist, a silent film starring Jean Dujardin as an actor contending with the advent of talkies.

The others, besides Hugo, are The Help, a drama about a writer's interactions with African-American maids in the 1960s South; Midnight in Paris, Woody Allen's romantic comedy about a traveling family in France; Moneyball, the Brad Pitt-starring tale of a baseball statistics revolution; War Horse, Steven Spielberg's World War I epic; Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, a post-9/11 drama about a son coping with the loss of his father; and The Tree of Life, a philosophical tale of a Texas family, also starring Pitt.

Passed over were The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, J. Edgar, Shame, Young Adult, Bridesmaids and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

Best foreign-language nominees are Bullhead (Belgium), Monsieur Lazhar (Canada), A Separation (Iran), Footnote (Israel) and In Darkness (Poland).

Best documentary features nominees: Hell and Back Again, If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front, Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory, Pina, and Undefeated.

For best animated movie, the contenders are A Cat in Paris, Chico & Rita, Kung Fu Panda 2, Puss in Boots and Rango.

The awards show will be telecast on ABC Feb. 26, with comedian Billy Crystal returning to host for the first time in eight years.

Here are the nominees in other major categories:

Best-actor:

Demian Bichir, A Better Life

George Clooney, The Descendants.

Jean Dujardin, The Artist.

Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

Brad Pitt, Moneyball.

(Passed over: Leonardo DiCaprio, J. Edgar, and Michael Fassbender, Shame.)

Best-actress:

Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs.

Viola Davis, The Help.

Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady.

Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn.

(Passed over: Tilda Swinton, We Need To Talk About Kevin, Charlize Theron, Young Adult.)

Supporting actor:

Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn.

Jonah Hill, Moneyball.

Nick Nolte, Warrior.

Christopher Plummer, Beginners.

Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.

Supporting actress:

Berenice Bejo, The Artist.

Jessica Chastain, The Help.

Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids.

Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs.

Octavia Spencer, The Help.

Best director:

Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris.

Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist.

Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life.

Alexander Payne, The Descendants.

Martin Scorsese, Hugo.

(Passed over were four directors of other best-picture nominees: Stephen Daldry, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close; Bennett Miller, Moneyball; Steven Spielberg, War Horse; and Tate Taylor, The Help.)

For the full list of nominees, go to www.oscars.com. Gallery Celebrity - 2012 Oscar Nominations - Academy Award Nominees