‘La La Land’ was nominated for 14 Academy Awards, tying the record for the most Oscar nominations held by ‘All About Eve’ and ‘Titanic.’
The musical scored nods in the best picture, best director and lead acting categories, among others, and its record-setting haul solidifies it as the front-runner heading into the 89th Academy Awards on Feb. 26.
‘Moonlight’ and ‘Manchester by the Sea’ are considered chief competitors to ‘La La Land’ for best picture. The Academy nominated nine movies for its top honor, including ‘Arrival,’ ‘Fences,’ ‘Hacksaw Ridge,’ ‘Hell or High Water,’ ‘Hidden Figures’ and ‘Lion.’
Casey Affleck is currently considered the front-runner to win best actor for his role in ‘Manchester by the Sea.’ He was nominated alongside Andrew Garfield in ‘Hacksaw Ridge,’ Ryan Gosling in ‘La La Land,’ Viggo Mortensen in ‘Captain Fantastic’ and Denzel Washington in ‘Fences.’
Emma Stone, the star of ‘La La Land,’ is the favorite to win best actress. She was nominated with Isabelle Huppert in ‘Elle,’ Ruth Negga in ‘Loving,’ Natalie Portman in ‘Jackie’ and Meryl Streep in ‘Florence Foster Jenkins.’ Ms. Streep holds the record for most Oscar nominations; this is her 20th.
The best director category provided the day’s biggest surprise. Mel Gibson, who was all but banished from Hollywood after making sexist and anti-Semitic remarks in 2006, was nominated in the category for his war movie ‘Hacksaw Ridge.’
Other nominees included Denis Villeneuve for ‘Arrival,’ Damien Chazelle for ‘La La Land,’ Kenneth Lonergan for ‘Manchester by the Sea’ and Barry Jenkins for ‘Moonlight.’
