Academy Award Nominations 2019: "Roma," And "The Favourite"​ Lead

BEVERLY HILLS , CA — The black-and-white foreign-language film "Roma" joined the period film "The Favourite" to lead the 2019 Academy Awards with 10 nominations each Tuesday morning. And "Black Panther" broke ground, becoming the first comic-book-based movie ever nominated for best picture.

It was one of several Academy Award firsts in a year where foreign films and period films dominated the nominations. "Roma" tied the record for the most nominations ever received by a foreign language film. This year marked the first time ever that two films were nominated for best foreign-language film, best director and best picture: "Roma" and "Cold War." And Yalitza Aparicio became only the second Mexican actress to garner a best actress nomination.

But as usual, there were surprises and snubs. Bradley Cooper earned an acting nod for "A Star Is Born" but wasn't included in the Best director category even though the film was nominated for best picture. Similarly, Peter Farrelly was passed over in the directing category even though his film "Green Book" earned a best picture nod. Both filmmakers earned directing nominations from the Directors Guild of America and the Golden Globes.

The other nominees for best picture are "BlacKkKlansman," "Bohemian Rhapsody," and "Vice." Of the wide-ranging group of films, the "Green Book" enters the race having won a Golden Globe for best musical/comedy film. One of several period pieces in the running, it is the the story of a rough and tumble white New York nightclub bouncer who becomes a bodyguard for a black pianist during a tour through the 1960s Deep South. It's considered by many to be a Oscar front-runner. It won the top prize at the recent Producers Guild of America awards -- an honor that often foreshadows success on Oscar night.

"Roma" is another film that took critics by storm. Writer/director Alfonso Cuaron's drama follows the life of a domestic worker in 1970s Mexico, and it won the best-picture prize at the Critics' Choice Awards. The 10 nominations for "Roma" tied the record of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" for most Oscar nominations received by a foreign- language film. Cuaron, in particular, was honored for his work on the filming, garnering him four nominations including writing, directing, producing and cinematography.

Cuaron received four overall nominations for "Roma," for his work producing and directing the film, along with best original screenplay and best cinematography. This year marks the first time that two directors of films nominated for best foreign-language picture -- "Roma" and "Cold War" -- have been nominated for best director.

In the acting categories Christian Bale is considered a front-runner in the best actor category while the often-nominated Glenn Close has a chance to finally take home the top prize for actresses.

Christian Bale has earned buzz for his shape-shifting role as Vice President Dick Cheney in "Vice," having already scored Golden Globe and Critics' Choce Awards. Rami Malek also already collected a Golden Globe for his performance as Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody." Bradley Cooper was nominated for best actor for his work in "A Star is Born," although he was snubbed in the best director category. Also scoring best-actor nods were Willem Dafoe for "At Eternity's Gate" and Viggo Mortensen for "Green Book."

Bale is the only nominee in the category to already have an Oscar. He won a supporting-actor trophy in 2010 for "The Fighter."

Glenn Close, also a Golden Globe and Critics' Choice winner, led the nominees for best actress for her role as the suffering spouse of a Nobel Prize honoree in "The Wife." Globe winner Olivia Colman also scored a nod for her lead role in "The Favourite." Yalitza Aparicio was nominated for her role as a Mexican domestic worker in "Roma," along with Lady Gaga for her work alongside Cooper in "A Star is Born" and Melissa McCarthy for her lead role in "Can You Ever Forgive Me?"

Close has six previous Oscar nominations, but she has never won. She was nominated for best actress for the films "Fatal Attraction," "Dangerous Liaisons" and "Albert Nobbs."

Mahershala Ali is the front-runner for best supporting actor for his portrayal of pianist Don Shirley in "Green Book." Ali has already collected Golden Globe and Critics' Choice awards for his work in the film. He will compete for the Oscar with Adam Driver for "BlacKkKlansman," Sam Elliott for "A Star is Born," Richard E. Grant for "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" and Sam Rockwell for "Vice."

Rockwell won the supporting-actor Oscar last year for "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri." Ali won the same prize three years ago for "Moonlight."

Regina King, another Golden Globe and Critics' Choice Award winner for her work in the romance "If Beale Street Could Talk" topped the list of supporting-actress nominees. Also vying for the prize will be Amy Adams for "Vice," Marina de Tavira for "Roma" and Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz for "The Favourite."

For Adams, the nomination is the sixth Oscar nod of her career, but she has never won. Weisz won a supporting-actress Oscar in 2005 for "The Constant Gardener," while Stone was named best actress in 2016 for "La La Land."

"Roma" was also nominated for best foreign-language film, along with "Cold War" (Poland), "Capernaum" (Lebanon), "Never Look Away" (Germany) and "Shoplifters" (Japan).

Nominated for best animated feature film were "Incredibles 2," "Isle of Dogs," "Mirai," "Ralph Breaks the Internet" and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse."

The nominations were announced by actors Kumail Nanjiani and Tracee Ellis Ross at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, in an event live-streamed on the internet.

The Oscar ceremony is scheduled for Feb. 24 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The ceremony is still without a host after the withdrawal of comedian Kevin Hart, who dropped out following criticism of past homophobic comments for which he has since apologized.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report; Photo: Oscar statues in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)