Oscar Dark Horses Enter the Race

While some people--myself included--may have called it, there were three names on the Oscar nominees list today that likely caught a few people off guard. Javier Bardem bested the likes of Robert Duvall and Ryan Gosling to earn a Best Actor nod for his work in "Biutiful," perhaps thanks to the help of vocal fans like Sean Penn and Julia Roberts. And John Hawkes--who I've been pushing for all season--scored a Supporting Actor nomination for his work in "Winter's Bone," over Matt Damon and Andrew Garfield. This wasn't a huge shock, as he was recognized by the SAG Awards, generally a good indicator of Oscar nominations, but he was never a sure thing. Perhaps the biggest surprise was Jacki Weaver's Supporting Actress nomination for "Animal Kingdom"--while many critics have been very vocal in their support and she did land a Golden Globe nom, many expected her slot to go to Mila Kunis for "Black Swan" or Lesley Manville for "Another Year."

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