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Many of this year's acting nominees were not new to the honor. Meryl Streep, who got a nod for Best Actress for the Devil Wears Prada, has been nominated 14 times before - and has won twice. Helen Mirren, nominated for Best Actress for The Queen, has gotten two nominations in the past, but for Best Supporting Actress. Best Actor nominee for Venus, Peter O'Toole has been nominated seven times and has never won. Kate Winslet, up for Best Actress for Little Children, has been nominated four times prior to this year - twice for Best Actress and twice for Best Supporting Actress. Martin Scorsese has been nominated for the sixth time for Best Director for The Departed. Despite his critical acclaim, he has never won the award.
Frontrunners include Jennifer Hudson for Best Supporting Actress in Dreamgirls, Eddie Murphy for Best Supporting Actor for Dreamgirls, the aforementioned Helen Mirren for Best Actress in The Queen and Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland. All of these actors won the Golden Globe for the respective categories.
There was one surprise nominee: 10-year-old Abigail Breslin for Best Supporting Actress for Little Miss Sunshine. A few others weren't surprises, but were definitely the dark horses in the categories. Ryan Gosling won rave reviews for his performance in Half Nelson - for which he was nominated for Best Actor - but the film's lack of commercial success may be his downfall. Similarly Jackie Earle Haley, though lauded by critics, will be a long shot for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a convicted sex offender in Little Children. Alan Arkin was delightful in Little Miss Sunshine, but his chances of winning Best Supporting Actor are also slim.
The 79th Annual Academy Awards will air at 8 p.m. (EST) on ABC on February 25. Ellen DeGeneres will host the show. For a full list of nominees, click here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070123/ap_en_mo/oscar_nominations_list.
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