Blanchett among Oscars nominees

Dimension-hopping adventure Everything Everywhere All at Once has topped the list of films nominated for this year’s Academy Awards as voters chose several crowd-pleasing hits to compete for the best picture prize.

Everything Everywhere, a science-fiction movie about an exasperated woman trying to finish her taxes, landed 11 nominations, including best picture and four acting nods.

Australian Cate Blanchett was nominated for best actress for her portrayal of a manipulative orchestra conductor in Tar, as was Michelle Yeoh for her starring role in Everything Everywhere.

Acting nominees also included Austin Butler for his portrayal of rock legend Elvis Presley, and Colin Farrell, who starred as a farmer obsessed with restoring a friendship in Banshees.

Other films vying for best picture include Avatar: The Way of Water, James Cameron’s sequel that currently ranks as the sixth-highest grossing movie of all time.

Top Gun: Maverick and Elvis, two of the northern hemisphere summer’s biggest blockbusters, also made the cut alongside Steven Spielberg’s coming-of-age film The Fabelmans, The Bansehees of Inisherin, Tar, Triangle of Sadness, Women Talking and All Quiet on the Western Front.

Winners of the industry’s highest honours will be unveiled at a March 12 ceremony hosted by comedian Jimmy Kimmel and aired live on Walt Disney Co’s ABC network.

The Oscars and other entertainment awards shows have been struggling to attract TV viewers, particularly younger ones who spend time on TikTok and YouTube.

Last year’s Academy Awards show, when Will Smith slapped presenter Chris Rock before winning best actor, drew about 15.4 million TV viewers, the second-smallest audience ever.

A range of nationalities is represented on the 2023 acting list, with nominations for performers from Australia, Cuba, Ireland and Malaysia – along with the United Kingdom and the United States.

Ireland is particularly well-represented and accounts for a quarter of all 20 acting nominations – with nods for Kerry Condon, Farrell, Brendan Gleeson and Barry Keoghan (The Banshees Of Inisherin) plus Paul Mescal (in the coming-of-age drama Aftersun).

Winners will be voted on by the roughly 10,000 actors, producers, directors and film craftspeople who make up the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

with PA