Academy Award

By tomoneil • Pete Hammond points out an interesting change in the rules for Oscar nominations: "Beginning this year, anyone who has ever been nominated at any time for an Oscar in a category outside of their own area will now be allowed to also nominate in that race too." As per Pete, "This means multi-h...

By Emily Christianson O'Neil's special interest is how the awards affect each other, particularly the top film prizes that can be viewed as one single gold derby with the Oscars as the finish line. Consider what happened to "Chariots of Fire," for example. In 1981, it emerged from obscurity to win awards at the Ca...

By tomoneil If "Nine" doesn't prove to be a strong best picture contender for Weinstein Co., then maybe "Inglourious Basterds" will emerge as a front-runner? Or maybe not. When Gold Derby heard how popular it is with Golden Globe voters and predicted it would win best picture at the Oscars, it triggere...

By tomoneil Oscars prediction: 'Inglourious Basterds' will win best picture Inside track on the Oscars' supporting actor race Oscars quiz: What film ties the record for most nominations? Inside track on the Oscars' best actor race Inside track on the Oscars' best picture and best director races

By tomoneil Golden Globes expand animation race to five nominees Quiz: What film ties the record for most Oscar nominations? Quiz: Who wrote the most best-picture winners at the Oscars? Inside track on the Oscars' best picture and best director races

By tomoneil Therefore, by process of elimination, it looks like Tarantino is the likely front-runner, which means "Inglourious Basterds" is probably ahead for the top Oscars too. DGA will have hiked influence over the Oscars this year since there's a major gap — five weeks — between the kudos this ye...

By tomoneil Golden Globes expand animation race to five nominees Quiz: What film ties the record for most Oscar nominations? Quiz: Who wrote the most best-picture winners at the Oscars? Inside track on the Oscars' best picture and best director races

By tomoneil At this point on the derby track, with many films like "Invictus" and "The Lovely Bones" still unseen, it appears that there are three Oscar front-runners for best supporting actor: Christoph Waltz ("Inglourious Basterds"), Christopher Plummer ("The Last Station") and Alec Baldwin...

By tomoneil The Golden Globe for best animated feature is so new that it's only been bestowed three times ("Wall-E," "Ratatouille," "Cars"). Each time there were only three nominees, just like at the Oscars during the last three derbies. But now that it looks like the Oscar category will expand to five...

By tomoneil Golden Globes expand animation race to five nominees Quiz: What film ties the record for most Oscar nominations? Quiz: Who wrote the most best-picture winners at the Oscars? Inside track on the Oscars' best picture and best director races

By tomoneil • The inaugural edition of the Governors Awards took place Saturday night in a ballroom not far from the Kodak Theatre where the academy holds the Oscars every year. Showcasing the honorary awards in a separate ceremony allowed the recipients -- absentee Thalberg winner John Calley and h...

By tomoneil While millions of moviegoers behold Woody Harrelson as a wild man shrieking warnings about the end of the world in "2012" right now, he's giving another showy performance in a small indie that could land him an Oscar nomination. "The Messenger" opened only in four theaters this past weeke...

By tomoneil Oscars to arrive late at the 'Precious' party? Inside track on the Oscars' best actor race Quiz: Who wrote the most best-picture winners at the Oscars? Inside track on the Oscars' best picture and best director races Quiz: What film nabbed the most Oscars without winning best picture?

By tomoneil POSSIBLE Sharlto Copley, "District 9" Robert Downey Jr., "Sherlock Holmes" Ben Foster, "The Messenger" Hal Holbrook, "That Evening Sun" Joseph Gordon-Levitt, "(500) Days of Summer" Tobey Maguire, "Brothers" James McAvoy, "The Last Station" Joaquin Phoenix, "Two Lovers"

By tomoneil OSCARS RACES Ooops -- strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations OSCARS QUIZZES What film nabbed the most Oscars without winning best picture?

By tomoneil Inside track on the Oscars' best picture and best director races Taylor Swift sweeps CMAs and makes history Ooops — strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations

By tomoneil We've submitted this film at the Oscars because we want it to be seen by the largest number of people," producer-director Andy Wilson tells Gold Derby. "If we get into the Oscars, it might make a big difference toward creating changes in the medical and insurance industries needed to save l...

By tomoneil Inside track on the Oscars' best picture and best director races Taylor Swift sweeps CMAs and makes history Ooops — strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations

By tomoneil At the Oscars, "Basterds" — which has the across-the-branches support that "Precious" lacks — has excellent shots to be nominated for best picture, director, screenplay, supporting actor, art direction, costumes, cinematography and film editing. That's eight nominations. It might...

By tomoneil Taylor Swift sweeps CMAs and makes history Ooops — strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars to arrive late at the 'Precious' party? Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts

By tomoneil Ooops — strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars to arrive late at the 'Precious' party? Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts

By tomoneil Ooops — strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars to arrive late at the 'Precious' party? Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Oscars predix: Who's ahead in the best actor derby?

By tomoneil Ooops — strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars to arrive late at the 'Precious' party? Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Oscars predix: Who's ahead in the best actor derby?

By tomoneil Ooops — strike '2012' off your Oscars best-picture list Oscars to arrive late at the 'Precious' party? Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Oscars predix: Who's ahead in the best actor derby?

By tomoneil Oscars to arrive late at the 'Precious' party? Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Oscars voter: Michael Jackson's 'This Is It' will be nominated for best picture

By tomoneil But can "Precious" win best picture? Quiz: What roles were nominated for both a Razzie and an Oscar? Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars voter: Michael Jackson's 'This Is It' will be nominated for best picture

By tomoneil • Sasha Stone offers up her first round of predictions for the always unpredictable Golden Globes: "We know that 'Nine' is assured to enter the race very strongly at that point, if it hadn’t already. This is not to be premature and assume it is in no matter what, but let’s just say it is in. The Gl...

By tomoneil Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Oscars predix: Who's ahead in the best actor derby? Oscars voter: Michael Jackson's 'This Is It' will be nominated for best picture

By tomoneil Oscars rewind: 'Slumdog Millionaire' tied for most European Film Awards nominations Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Oscars predix: Who's ahead in the best actor derby? Oscars voter: Michael Jackson's 'This Is It' will be nominated for best picture

By tomoneil For the full list of nominations, visit the European Film Academy website. Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Oscars predix: Who's ahead in the best actor derby? Oscars voter: Michael Jackson's 'This Is It' will be nominated for best picture

By tomoneil • Dave Karger thinks "Precious" has a shot at landing at least five Oscar nods -- best picture, director, actress, supporting actress and screenplay. And he thinks, "Once people get past the strange concept of [Mariah] Carey as an Oscar contender, they won’t be able to deny the power of her...

By tomoneil Oscars predix: Who's ahead in the best-actress derby Inglourious Basterds' goes for drama at the Golden Globes nuggets: Hugh Jackman hails new Oscar hosts | 'A Town Called Panic' calms Oscars toon race | Yea or nay to last-minute Oscar entries? Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts

By tomoneil Flashback: Oscars hosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin on 'SNL' Oscars predix for best pix from 16 experts Quiz: Can you spot the Oscars' nominee for best actor? Oscars quiz: Can you spot the only best actress nominee? Woody Allen: An Oscar for Adolf Hitler? Photo credit: NBC

By tomoneil In 2001, Goldstein issued his earliest odds on the best-picture race, betting on "Ali" in August — long before he saw it and seven months before the Oscar ceremony took place — with 4-to-1 odds. "Ali" wasn't even nominated; "A Beautiful Mind" triumphed.

By tomoneil OSCARS • Oscars' best-picture race: 12 front-runners • Gutsy Envelope gurus predict Oscar's best picture nominees • Governors Awards presenters to include trio of Oscar winners GOLDEN GLOBES • Will 'Avatar' be nominated for best picture at the Oscars?

By tomoneil Photo credits: Clockwise from top left, CBS, New Line Cinema, NBC, NBC Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

By tomoneil • Susan Wloszczyna drills down into the academy decision to double the number of best picture nominees and strikes paydirt in this must-read analysis. Her nominees for favorite gripe about this change are: First place is redefined; box office will trump quality; honorary honorees are u...

By tomoneil Oscar champs Jonathan Demme ("The Silence of the Lambs"), Anjelica Huston ("Prizzi's Honor") and Quentin Tarantino ("Pulp Fiction") as well as honorary Oscar winner Kirk Douglas are the first presenters announced for the inaugural Governors Awards on Nov. 14. The Academy of Motion Pic...

By tomoneil • Jeff Wells embeds the new trailer for "Green Zone" and wonders why Universal bumped this new pic by Oscar nominee Paul Greengrass ("United 93") to March. Theorizes Jeff, "They figured the Academy would never nominate two Iraq War movies for best picture, and that 'The Hurt Locker' was to...

By tomoneil This year, there will be 10 nominees instead of the usual five, of course, so maybe this could be it for "This Is It"? Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

By tomoneil • "Dustbin Baby," "Rhestr Nadolig Wil," "The Sarah Jane Adventures" and "US5" vie for top drama series at the BAFTA Children's Awards. "Bolt," "Coraline," "High School Musical 3," and "Ice Age 3" compete for best feature film. The kudos celebrating the best in children's media will be han...

By tomoneil The growing trend toward adding more entertainment to award shows just took a curious twist. The Golden Globes announced that Ricky Gervais will host the show Jan. 17, marking the first time that the award ceremony has had an emcee since 1995. John Larroquette ("Night Court," "The John Larr...

By tomoneil However, the Gotham Awards nominations did help to boost the Oscar hopes of its best-picture nominee "The Hurt Locker," which is getting a full-throttle academy campaign. The other top three Gotham nominees are not so Oscar lucky: "Amreeka," "Big Fan" and "The Maid."

By tomoneil LonePirate — Robert DeNiro, "Everybody's Fine" MicheBel — "The Messenger": best picture, best actor, best supporting actor, best screenplay, best editing (IMHO). Ben Foster is absolutely fantastic. He has an incredible monologue that just screams: Hand this man an Oscar!

By tomoneil This brings the list of entries that we know about to 15. According to academy rules, if there are eight to 15 entries, there can only be three nominees in the race, which has been the case seven of the past eight years of the category's existence. Only in 2002 were they're five nominees. So far th...

Related articles from Cinematical, Animated Views and more.

By tomoneil • Now that the European Film Awards have announced their nominees for best documentary, Anne Thompson checked in A.J. Schnack of All These Wonderful Things to survey the Oscar doc derby too. "We both feel that the doc race is wide open this year, with fewer obvious front-runners," she says. TH...

By tomoneil However, that may be a big plus for its Oscar hopes. Hollywood voters have always been accused of having blind veneration for Marxism even after the rise of Stalinism and Maoism and the fall of the Iron Curtain. Five years ago Meryl Streep won an Emmy for her fawning portrayal of a heroic Eth...

By tomoneil What both films have in their favor is a key plus in competition: celebrated directors/writers — Joel and Ethan Coen ("A Serious Man") and Jason Reitman ("Up in the Air"). The Coens recently won best picture for "No Country for Old Men," of course, beating Reitman's "Juno." "Up in the Air" ha...

By tomoneil Pixar's 10th flick, "Up," is getting a joyous reception at the Cannes Film Festival. It's the fanciful tale of a grumpy old man (voice of Ed Asner) who ties thousands of balloons to his house so he can travel in comfort and see South America. Four previous Pixar flicks won best animated featur...

By tomoneil Who's ahead to be nominated at the Tony Awards? Drama Desk nominations Should the Drama Desk revamp its awards? Billy' vs. green goliath at Outer Critics Circle nominations Tony nominations to be announced on May 5 Inside track: Tony Awards' derby for best play

By tomoneil The Dove Awards turned into the anti-Oscars by inviting Miss California, Carrie Prejean, to attend its ceremony Thursday night. Technically, she was there to introduce a performance by the band MercyMe, but was she really invited because the Gospel Music Assn. wished to offer its suppor...

By tomoneil ANSWER: Believe it or not, one showbiz award is now the biggest winner of another. Over the last few years the Academy Awards telecast has surpassed the Emmy record held by "Frasier" (37). Emmy quiz: Who's the youngest winner? Photos: CBS, ABC, NBC

By tomoneil Matt Damon says Oscars usually get it wrong Quiz: Which movie won the most Oscars without winning best picture? Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

By tomoneil Oscars quiz: Who's the youngest winner of best actress? Quiz: Who got demoted at the Oscars? What you can spy up on the Oscars bridge Oscars censored in 53 Asian nations Quiz: Which gals did Oscar jilt the most? Cheers and boos for the Oscars show Live blogging the Oscars

By tomoneil Can 'Watchmen' win over the Oscars? Cheers and boos for the Oscars show Live blogging the Oscars Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

By tomoneil Kris Tapley of InContention.com: "This is the best Oscar telecast I’ve ever seen." Guy Lodge of InContention.com called it: "a muted, largely tasteful, faintly insular ceremony." Live blogging the Oscars Oscars are the Emmys' biggest winner

By tomoneil Lead actress winner Kate Winslet ("The Reader") won supporting actress with the Screen Actors Guild as well as the Golden Globes before being bumped up to lead actress and winning the BAFTA. Oscar nominations follow guild awards as a guide

By tomoneil Ben-Hur" is not only a past Oscars champ (best picture, 1959), but it's tied with "Titanic" and "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" as the biggest winner ever (11 awards). Did "The Godfather: Part II" deserve to win best picture? Photo: MGM

By tomoneil Nominated for 11 awards at the 1974 Oscars, "The Godfather: Part II" won six: best picture, director (Francis Ford Coppola), supporting actor (Robert De Niro), screenplay (Francis Ford Coppola, Mario Puzo), music score and art direction. In the best picture derby, it beat Coppola's ot...

By tomoneil By winning best picture at the BAFTA Awards, "Slumdog Millionaire" just became the second film, after "American Beauty," to sweep the top prizes from all of these awards: Golden Globes, National Board of Review, Critics Choice and the four guilds — producers, directors, writers and ac...

By tomoneil Considering how restrictive the Oscars are about membership, let's guess that no more than half of that BAFTA gang also belongs to the Oscar academy. My guess is that means that there's probably an overlap of 1,000 voters between the two voting groups, which both have between 5,000 and 6,0...

By tomoneil OSCARS • Can any Oscars rival beat 'Slumdog Millionaire' for best picture? • Jessica Biel emcees sci-tech Oscars • More secrets leaked about Oscars telecast • Jennifer Hudson triumphs at Super Bowl • Will Super Bowl win with Emmy voters?

By tomoneil Photos: TriStar, Chess Records Etta James versus Beyonce; Divas duel #2 Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

By tomoneil • John Patrick Shanley is assured of collecting at least one prize at the upcoming WGA Awards. A nominee for adapting his Tony Award-winning play "Doubt" for the screen, Shanley will be feted with the honorary Ian McClellan Hunter prize for lifetime achievement at the Feb. 7 awardsfest. VAR...

By tomoneil See complete list of SAG nominees Oscars Quiz: Who Wrote the Most Best Picture Winners? Oscar Nominations Pooh-Pooh Kate Winslet's Campaign for 'The Reader' Oscar Nominations Follow Guild Awards as a Guide See a complete list of Oscar nominees

By tomoneil • Tina Fey trashed The Envelope's forum posters in her Golden Globe acceptance speech! • Tina Fey accepts our apology on behalf of The Envelope forum posters. • Will Kate Winslet's upset at the Golden Globes trip up the Oscars derby? • Will the Golden Globes winners repeat at the Oscars? • 'W...

By tomoneil Dave Karger and I hooked up yesterday at Entertainment Weekly's office in New York to noodle the top three Oscar races. Here's our take on the best-picture race and Dave's intriguing theory that we may know who's ahead based upon combing the top 10 lists of AFI, Critics Choice and the Nation...

By tomoneil EW's Dave Karger points to some fascinating Oscars tea leaves: "The top 10 lists from the AFI, National Board of Review, and Broadcast Film Critics Association combined [are] the most reliable bellwether of eventual Academy success." He cites examples from recent years that nail many O...

By tomoneil While snooping among the ranks of the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. today, it became quite clear that "Slumdog Millionaire" is destined to win best drama picture next Jan. 11. Considering it recently won the National Board of Review and is the current fave of The Envelope's Oscar pundits to...

By tomoneil That big National Board of Review victory today by "Slumdog Millionaire" means Heath Ledger is no longer a slam dunk to win the Oscar for best supporting actor. If I and other Oscarologists are right and "Slumdog" wins the top Academy Award, remember this: Best picture champ usually takes...

By tomoneil If "Slumdog Millionaire" is really the new "Chariots of Fire" — a little indie flick about champion underdogs that wins best picture at the Oscars — then it just hit a kudos jackpot by being named best picture of 2008 by the National Board of Review. In 1981, the National Board of Review was th...