Oscar awards: La La Land leads with 14 nominations

Competing against La La Land and Moonlight for best picture will be Manchester by the Sea, Arrival, Lion, Fences, Hell or High Water, Hidden Figures and Hack saw Ridge, which also drew a nomination for its director, Mel Gibson, officially ending his 10-year status as a Hollywood pariah. Filling out the directing field were Damien Chazelle (La La Land), Denis Villeneuve (Arrival), Barry Jenkins (Moonlight) and Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea). 

Among the major races unveiled, Ryan Gosling (La La Land), Viggo Mortensen (Captain Fantastic), and Andrew Garfield (Hacksaw Ridge), will join Casey Affleck, who plays a handyman in Manchester by the Sea, and Denzel Washington, the lead in Fences, as nominees for best actor. 

There were surprises. Arrival starring Amy Adams as a linguist tasked with communicating with aliens, emerged as one of the most-honoured films, but Adams failed to receive a nod for best actress. Instead, her slot likely went to the newcomer Ruth Negga for her understated performance in Loving . Joining her were Isabelle Huppert from the French film Elle , Emma Stone from La La Land, Natalie Portman from Jackie and Meryl Streep from Florence Foster Jenkins. 

Supporting actor nominees will include Jeff Bridges from Hell or High Water, Mahershala Ali from Moonlight, Dev Patel from Lion , Lucas Hedges from Manchester by the Sea and Michael Shannon from Nocturnal Animals. 

Meanwhile, Viola Davis ( Fences), Naomie Harris (Moonlight), Nicole Kidman (Lion), Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures) and Michelle Williams (Manchester By The Sea), will battle it out for the Best supporting actress trophy. 

For the first time, the Academy did not unveil its nominations at a news conference. Instead, the nominations were read in a presentation broadcast on Oscars.com where one can access the full list.