Hugo Leads Oscar Nominations

First Launched: The month of the month of january 24, 2012 9:18 AM EST Credit: Vital Caption Asa Butterfield in Vital Pictures HugoLOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Martin Scorseses Paris adventure Hugo leads the Academy awards with 11 nominations, incorporated within this best picture as well as the latest director slot for your Oscar-winning filmmaker. Also nominated to find the best picture Tuesday: the quiet film The Artist your family drama The Descendants the Sept. 11 tale Very Noisy & Incredibly Close the Deep South drama The Help the romantic fantasy Evening amount of time in Paris the sports tale Moneyball your family chronicle The Tree of Existence as well as the The Very First World War epic War Equine. The nominations setup a best-picture showdown involving the top films within the Golden Globes: best musical or comedy recipient The Artist and greatest drama champion The Descendants. The Artist went second with 10 nominations, incorporated within this writing and pointing nominations for French filmmaker Michel Hazanavicius, a best-actor recognition for Jean Dujardin together with a supporting-actress slot for Berenice Bejo. Because of helpful information change requiring films to obtain a particular volume of first-place votes, the most effective-picture area has only nine nominees instead of the ten that have been inside the running the ultimate couple of years. Dujardin, who won the planet to find the best actor in the musical or comedy just like a quiet-era star whose career goes kaput while using arrival of speaking pictures, will probably be facing Globe dramatic actor champion George Clooney for your Descendants, in which the Oscar-winning celebrity plays a parent trying to carry his Hawaiian family together carrying out a boating accident puts his wife in the coma. Other best-actor competitors are: Demian Bechir becoming an immigrant father in the Better Existence Gary Oldman as British spymaster George Smiley in Mess Tailor Soldier Spy and Kaira Pitt as Concord As gm Billy Beane in Moneyball. Globe individuals who win Meryl Streep (best dramatic actress as Margaret Thatcher inside the Iron Lady) and Michelle Williams (best musical or comedy actress as Lana Turner throughout my Week with Marilyn) acquired Oscar nominations to find the best actress. Two-time Oscar champion Streep padded her record since the most-nominated actress, raising her total to 17 nominations, five greater than Katharine Hepburn and Jack Nicholson, that are tied for second-place. Streep went two-for-four on her behalf account first nominations, winning supporting actress for 1979s Kramer versus. Kramer and greatest actress for 1982s Sophies Choice. But she's lost her last 12 occasions, as well as the Globe win on her behalf place-on personification of Thatcher seems like her best chance yet to destroy that losing streak. Along with Streep and Williams, best-actress nominees are: Glenn Close just like a 1800s Irishwoman masquerading just like a male butler in Albert Nobbs Viola Davis just like a black maid going public with tales of white-colored Southern companies inside the Help and Rooney Mara just like a traumatized, vengeful computer genius inside the Girl while using Dragon Tattoo. Octavia Spencers win within the Globes as supporting-actress for your Help, through which she plays a fiery maid whose mouth constantly can get her at risk, could leave her with front-runner status for a similar prize within the Oscars. The identical may hold true for supporting-actor nominee Christopher Plummer, who won a Globe for his role becoming an senior citizens father being launched as gay in Beginners. An esteemed film and stage actor, Plummer went nearly all his 60-year career unacknowledged within the Oscars until producing a supporting-actor nomination couple of years ago as Leo Tolstoy in the last Station. If he wins this time around around, the 82-year-old Plummer would end up being the earliest acting recipient ever Jessica Tandy now holds that position on her behalf best-actress win in Driving Miss Daisy at 80. Also in contention for supporting actor: Kenneth Branagh as Laurence Olivier throughout my Week with Marilyn Jonah Hill just like a statistics whiz in Moneyball Nick Nolte just like a derelict father making amends in Warrior and Max von Sydow just like a mute mystery guy in Very Noisy & Incredibly Close. Bejo, the romantic partner in the Artist creator Hazanavicius, was nominated on her behalf role just like a new star in the appear era inside the late 20's and early `30s. The Help co-star Jessica Chastain also was nominated on her behalf role as Spencers lonely, desperate boss. Also up for supporting actress are Melissa McCarthy as crude but caring part of the wedding in Bridesmaids and Jesse McTeer just like a lady showing up just like a male laborer in Albert Nobbs. McCarthy can be a rare funny lady competing within the Oscars, which rarely recognition performances in mainstream comedies for instance Bridesmaids. Copyright 2012 with the Connected Press. All rights reserved. These elements may not be launched, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Oz annual B.O. falls 3%

SYDNEY -- Overall Aussie B.O. slipped 3% to A$1.09 billion ($1.14 billion) in 2011 with U.S. pix taking a 82% share, according to statistics released by the Moving Pictures Distributors Assn. of Australia on Monday. Local pics slid to just 4% of total B.O. with one pic, "Red Dog," accounting for half of the takings; the feelgood pic about a dog in a rural community scored $22.3 million while overall local B.O. was $45 million. There were 44 local titles in the marketplace vs. 192 Stateside releases, the highest grossing of which was "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" with $39.6 million. Blighty's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" was the top pic overall with a boffo haul of $55.6 million. In a year where film was down, Screen Australian acting topper Fiona Cameron pointed to homevid as a highlight. "In 2011 there were 24 local films that completed their first release after screening in cinemas on video, online and television," said Cameron. "Together these films have achieved 72.7 million views thus far, above the annual average of 47.7 million viewings over the last three years." Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

Tuner traffic gone with vacationers

Broadway's The month of january slide ongoing in Week 33 (Jan. 9-15), with particularly dramatic drops one of the tuners most just a few tourist biz. But even while vacationers went home, playgoers switched to make the most of a less-crowded Occasions Square atmosphere and winter ticket deals.Numerous non-musicals saw a sales uptick, using the greatest increase reported at "The Mountaintop" ($636,651), the Martin Luther King Junior. tale that likely also achieved positive results in the MLK holiday weekend. "Relatively Speaking" ($359,460), "Stick Fly" ($303,386) and "Chinglish" ($222,233) were among individuals to log gains.Numerous tuners, meanwhile, saw their B.O. fall, with "Mary Poppins" ($790,802) shedding a lot more than $250,000 and "The Phantom from the Opera" ($779,751) and "Chicago" ($481,836) lower by a lot more than $100,000 each.Among musicals, among the sturdiest showings from the frame what food was in "Porgy and Bess" ($853,017), even though a few days incorporated the production's heavily comped opening evening in addition to some press previews.Even though modified version from the Gershwin musical has stirred debate among purists, and gained reviews which were all around the map, sales to date have proven solid, particularly for any production opening at the time from the annual winter slump.Meanwhile, both "Follies" ($878,826) and "On the Obvious Day You Can Observe Forever" ($627,972) rose, with momentum likely supplied by the imminent closing of every.The lack of lately shuttered tuners "Billy Elliot" and "Lysistrata Johnson" led towards the Broadway cume's overall decline, as did a hefty drop at "War Equine" ($613,711), due to a reduced performance week at this show.Total Rialto sales slid around $3 million to $20.9 million for that 29 shows around the boards. Attendance deflated by around 20,000 to 229,469, or 81% from the Street's overall capacity.The 20 musicals made $17,359,006 for 83.1% from the Broadway total, with attendance of 182,538 as well as an average compensated admission of $95.10.The nine plays made $3,542,340 for 16.9% from the Broadway total, with attendance of 46,931 as well as an average compensated admission of $75.48. Contact Gordon Cox at gordon.cox@variety.com

The Expendables 2 is a PG-13

[brightcove]1330616608001[/brightcove]If this was introduced that Chuck Norris could be joining the cast from the Expendables 2, action fans rejoiced in the injection of grit for an already badass selection.However, it appears the primary impact of Norris' participation is to alter the film's certificate from an R to some PG-13, because of his refusal to sign up inside a film that contains any bad language."In Expendables 2, there is lots of vulgar dialogue within the script," describes Norris. "Because of this, many youthful people wouldn't have the ability to watch this. However I don't play in movies such as this.InchInchBecause of which i stated I will not take part in when the hardcore language isn't removed," he ongoing. "Producers recognized my conditions and also the movie is going to be classified within the group of PG-13."Now, considering that this interview originated from a Polish newspaper, we thought there may have been something lost in translation. However, Sly Stallone themself dropped a line to AICN basically verifying this news.InchThe film is fantastic with Van Damme submiting an inspired performance," states Stallone. "Our final fight is a for that age range. The PG-13 rumour holds true, before your visitors pass judgement, believe me when I only say this film is big in each and every way and provides on every level." "This movie touches on many feelings which you want to tell the largest audience possible, BUT, have no fear, this Bbq of Grand scale Ass Bashing won't leave anybody hungry."The Expendables 2 opens in america on 17 August 2012, having a United kingdom release date set to reach right after. And this time around, it may sound like you'll have the ability to take your Gran along...

ABC News bolsters int'l plan

ABC News is bringing in some fresh faces and reassigning others, deepening its international coverage. The Alphabet is sending three digital correspondents further abroad: Canadian journo Muhammad Lila is headed to Pakistan for his first assignment with ABC News, where he will file from Islamabad on that country, Afghanistan and the surrounding region; Gloria Riviera will move from London to Beijing; and Kirit Radia, who previously covered the U.S. State Department, is headed to Moscow. The division announced similar hires in November, bringing on Kelly Cobiella in London and Bazi Kanani in Nairobi -- all are experienced journos and all are in areas with existing ABC News presence. Given the tepid primary season, politics may not reign supreme this year, and 2011's glut of high-profile foreign stories have given every TV news operation a reason to boost international newsgathering. ABC is also bringing on Mark Greenblatt from affiliate KHOU, where he worked as an investigative reporter and won awards including a national Emmy award. Greenblatt will relocate to Gotham from Houston. News division prexy Ben Sherwood announced the hires/reassignments on Tuesday. The Alphabet's news division has been the subject of much scrutiny as it brings on Katie Couric, moves Christiane Amanpour back to international, and returns George Stephanopoulos to "This Week." With that kind of change afoot and new branding just rolled out, staffing up can only be a good sign at a division that underwent large-scale layoffs not long ago. Contact Sam Thielman at sam.thielman@variety.com