Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart in The Twilight Saga: New Moon (top); James Cameron, Sam Worthington in Avatar (middle); Aaron Johnson, Anne-Marie Duff in Nowhere Boy (bottom)
James Cameron's Avatar hasn't been faring all that well with award-giving groups. Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker has been by far the most honored 2009 release. Avatar may not have that much of a chance at the Oscars, but it's probably the favorite at Britain's Empire Awards, a sort of more refined British version of the American-based People's Choice Awards.
Voted by the magazine readers, the Empire Awards have no categories for best screen kiss or best screen couple or best screen explosion and the like, and you actually have people like Carey Mulligan (An Education), Anne-Marie Duff (Nowhere Boy), Michael Caine (Harry Brown), and Katie Jarvis (Fish Tank) getting nominated, along with movies such as The Men Who Stare at Goats, The Hurt Locker, Thirst, Let the Right One In, and In the Loop.
In addition to the aforementioned stars, other acting nominees include Avatar's Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana, Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds), Robert Pattinson (The Twilight Saga: New Moon), Robert Downey Jr. (Sherlock Holmes), Emily Blunt (The Young Victoria), Aaron Johnson (Nowhere Boy), and Melanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds).
Kristen Stewart, BAFTA's Orange Rising Star winner, was surprisingly left out of the race.
The Empire Awards will take place in London on March 28. Voting ends on March 10. (You can vote here.)
Full list of Empire Award 2010 nominees:
BEST NEWCOMER
Carey Mulligan (An Education)
Aaron Johnson (Nowhere Boy)
Sharlto Copley (District 9)
Anna Kendrick (Up In The Air/ New Moon)
Katie Jarvis (Fish Tank)BEST THRILLER
Harry Brown
Public Enemies
Inglourious Basterds
The Hurt Locker
Sherlock HolmesBEST HORROR
Let The Right One In
Paranormal Activity
Zombieland
Thirst
Drag Me To HellBEST COMEDY
In The Loop
A Serious Man
The Hangover
Up In The Air
The Men Who Stare At GoatsBEST SCI-FI / FANTASY
Moon
Star Trek
Avatar
District 9
The Imaginarium of Doctor ParnassusBEST ACTOR
Sir Michael Caine (Harry Brown)
Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)
Robert Pattinson (New Moon)
Sam Worthington (Avatar)
Robert Downey Jr. (Sherlock Holmes)BEST ACTRESS
Anne-Marie Duff (Nowhere Boy)
Carey Mulligan (An Education)
Zoe Saldana (Avatar)
Emily Blunt (The Young Victoria)
Melanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds)BEST DIRECTOR
James Cameron (Avatar)
Neill Blomkamp (District 9)
JJ Abrams (Star Trek)
Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds)
Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)BEST BRITISH FILM
Harry Brown
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
An Education
Nowhere Boy
In The LoopBEST FILM
Avatar
Star Trek
District 9
Inglourious Basterds
The Hurt Locker
Photos: Avatar (Mark Fellman / 20th Century Fox); The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Kimberley French / Summit Entertainment); Nowhere Boy (Film4)