Nick Nolte & Kenneth Branagh: Oscar Nominees Luncheon

The Nick Nolte movie that earned him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination this year was Gavin O’Connor’s Warrior. In the photo, Nolte, among whose movies are The Deep, 48 Hrs., Hotel Rwanda, and Arthur, is seen at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Oscar Nominees Luncheon in Beverly Hills, California, on Monday, February 6, 2012. Meryl Streep can be seen applauding him in the – upper left – background. Nolte, by the way, turns 71 on Feb. 8. (Image: Greg Harbaugh / © A.M.P.A.S.)

Nick Nolte

Nick Nolte has two previous Academy Award nominations, both in the Best Actor category. His first was for the Barbra Streisand-directed melodrama Prince of Tides (1991), in which he plays a highly dysfunctional man with a troubled family history. Streisand is his therapist. Nolte’s second Oscar nod was for Paul Schrader’s Affliction (1998), in which he plays a highly dysfunctional man with a troubled family history. His character has no therapist in that one; the results are deadly.

In 1991, Nolte lost to Anthony Hopkins for his performance as a mad murderer in The Silence of Lambs. In 1998, he lost to Roberto Benigni for his performance as a devoted father in Benigni’s own La vita è bella / Life Is Beautiful, a Holocaust comedy-drama. Nolte’s Best Supporting Actor competition this year consists of Max von Sydow for Stephen Daldry’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Christopher Plummer for Mike Mills’ Beginners, Jonah Hill for Bennett Miller’s Moneyball, and Kenneth Branagh (as Laurence Olivier) for Simon Curtis’ My Week with Marilyn.

The 2012 Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 26, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. In the United States, the Oscarcast will be televised live by ABC.

Kenneth Branagh, Janet McTeer and Oscar statue.

Kenneth Branagh, Janet McTeer: Oscar Nominees Luncheon

Kenneth Branagh and Janet McTeer have a little chat while at the Oscar Nominees Luncheon held in Beverly Hills on Monday, Feb. 6, ’12.

Branagh is a Best Supporting Actor contender for Simon Curtis’ My Week with Marilyn, in which he plays Laurence Olivier directing/co-starring with Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams) in The Prince and the Showgirl. McTeer is a contender for her performance as a woman masquerading as a man in Rodrigo García’s Albert Nobbs, opposite fellow masquerader Glenn Close.

Kenneth Branagh is back

Kenneth Branagh was previously nominated for Oscars for the following:

• Best Actor and Best Director for Henry V (1989).
• Best Live Action Short Swan Song (1992), which he directed.
• Best Adapted Screenplay for Hamlet (1995), which he also directed and starred in alongside Julie Christie and Kate Winslet.

Perhaps not coincidentally, Laurence Olivier was a Best Actor nominee for Henry V (1946) and a Best Actor winner for Best Picture winner Hamlet (1948), both of which Olivier also directed. (He received a Best Director Academy Award nomination only for the latter.)

Back to 2012 … Kenneth Branagh’s Best Supporting Actor competitors are:

• SAG Award, BAFTA, and Golden Globe winner – and film veteran – Christopher Plummer (Stage Struck, The Sound of Music) for Mike Mills’ Beginners.
• Ingmar Bergman veteran Max von Sydow (Shame, The Virgin Spring) for Stephen Daldry’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.
• Hollywood veteran Nick Nolte (The Deep, The Prince of Tides) for Gavin O’Connor’s Warrior.
• Jonah Hill for Bennett Miller’s Moneyball.

Janet McTeer Best Supporting Actress competition

Albert Nobbs is Janet McTeer’s second Academy Award nod. Her previous one, as Best Actress, was for the mother-daughter comedy-drama Tumbleweeds (1999), co-starring Kimberly J. Brown. Warrior director Gavin O’Connor handled the proceedings.

McTeer’s 2012 Best Supporting Actress competitors are:

• Jessica Chastain and Octavia Spencer for Tate Taylor’s The Help.
• Bérénice Bejo for Michel Hazanavicius’ The Artist.
• Melissa McCarthy for Paul Feig’s Bridesmaids.

Kenneth Branagh and Janet McTeer photo: Todd Wawrychuk / © A.M.P.A.S.

Glenn Close, Michelle Williams, Kenneth Branagh and Janet McTeer: Oscar Nominees Luncheon reunion.

Kenneth Branagh, Janet McTeer, Glenn Close and Michelle Williams

Glenn Close, Kenneth Branagh, Michelle Williams, and Janet McTeer are pictured above while at the Oscar Nominees Luncheon. As to why Glenn Close looks so excited, your guess is as good as ours.

Cosmic or no, Glenn Close and Janet McTeer are, respectively, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress nominees for the same period movie, Albert Nobbs. Kenneth Branagh and Michelle Williams are, respectively, Best Supporting Actor and Best Actress nominees for the same period movie, My Week with Marilyn.

And that means Close and Williams are competing for the same Academy Award. Maybe the former looks so fired up because she is predicting a tie.

But what about Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher in another (sort of) period movie, The Iron Lady?

Glenn Close: Six Oscar nominations

Albert Nobbs is Glenn Close’s sixth Oscar nomination. She was shortlisted five times in the ’80s, then all but disappeared from Oscar view. Close’s nominations were for the following:

• Best Supporting Actress for The World According to Garp (1982).
  Director: George Roy Hill.
  Cast: Robin Williams. Mary Beth Hurt. John Lithgow. Glenn Close.
• Best Supporting Actress for The Big Chill (1983).
  Director: Lawrence Kasdan.
  Cast: Kevin Kline. Tom Berenger. Glenn Close. JoBeth Williams. Kevin Costner. Mary Kay Place. William Hurt. Jennifer Tilly. Jeff Goldblum.
• Best Supporting Actress for The Natural (1984).
  Director: Barry Levinson.
  Cast: Robert Redford. Kim Basinger. Glenn Close.
• Best Actress for Fatal Attraction (1987).
  Director: Adrian Lyne.
  Cast: Michael Douglas. Glenn Close. Anne Archer.
• Best Actress for Dangerous Liaisons (1988).
  Director: Stephen Frears.
  Cast: Glenn Close. John Malkovich. Michelle Pfeiffer. Keanu Reeves. Swoosie Kurtz. Uma Thurman. Mildred Natwick.

Glenn Close, Michelle Williams, Kenneth Branagh, and Janet McTeer Oscar Nominees Luncheon image: Todd Wawrychuk / © A.M.P.A.S.

First-timer Gary Oldman

First-time Oscar nominee Gary Oldman is shaking hands with fellow first-timer John Rosengrant. Oldman has been shortlisted in the Best Actor category for Tomas Alfredson’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy; Rosengrant is in the running in the Best Visual Effects category for Shawn Levy’s Real Steel, starring Hugh Jackman.

Oldman was also shortlisted for the BAFTA Awards, but lost to fellow Oscar competitor Jean Dujardin for Michel Hazanavicius’ The Artist.

Third-timer Michelle Williams

My Week with Marilyn Best Actress nominee Michelle Williams, for her part, has been nominated for two previous Academy Awards.

• Best Supporting Actress as gay sheepherder Heath Ledger’s wife in Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain (1995).
  Winner: Rachel Weisz in Fernando Meirelles’ The Constant Gardener.
• Best Actress for Derek Cianfrance’s drama Blue Valentine, co-starring Ryan Gosling.
  Winner: Natalie Portman in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan.

As for Gore Verbinski, he directed Best Animated Feature nominee Rango, whose chief voice actor is Johnny Depp – the star of Verbinski’s franchise-launching blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

The 2012 Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 26, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. In the U.S., the Oscarcast will be broadcast live by ABC.

Michelle Williams, Gary Oldman, and Janet McTeer Oscar Nominees Luncheon group photo: Greg Harbaugh / © A.M.P.A.S.

Kenneth Branagh, Jonah Hill, Brad Pitt

Kenneth Branagh, Jonah Hill, and Brad Pitt at the Oscar Nominees Luncheon in Beverly Hills on Monday, February 6, 2012. Branagh and Hill are Best Supporting Actor contenders for, respectively, Simon Curtis’ My Week with Marilyn (in which Branagh plays Laurence Olivier) and Bennett Miller’s Moneyball. Pitt is a Best Actor nominee for Moneyball. (Image: Todd Wawrychuk / © A.M.P.A.S.)

Kenneth Branagh was previously nominated for Henry V (1989) as Best Actor and Best Director, for the live-action short film Swan Song (1992), and for the adapted screenplay of Hamlet (1995), which he also directed/starred in, along with Julie Christie and Kate Winslet. Perhaps not so coincidentally, Laurence Olivier was a Best Actor nominee for Henry V (1946) and Hamlet (1948), both of which Olivier also directed. Hamlet was the year’s Best Picture winner, while Olivier took home the Best Actor Oscar.

Jonah Hill is a first-time Academy Award nominee. Brad Pitt was a Best Actor nominee for David Fincher’s fantasy The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) and a Best Supporting Actor nominee for Terry Gilliam’s sci-fier/psychological drama Twelve Monkeys (1995).

Branagh and Hill’s 2012 competitors are SAG Award and Golden Globe winner Christopher Plummer for Mike Mills’ Beginners, Ingmar Bergman veteran Max von Sydow for Stephen Daldry’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and Hollywood veteran Nick Nolte for Gavin O’Connor’s Warrior.

Pitt’s Best Actor competition consists of The Artist‘s Golden Globe (Comedy/Musical), BAFTA, and SAG Award winner Jean Dujardin (who has been auditioning for various villainous roles in Hollywood movies); Demián Bichir for Chris Weitz’s A Better Life; Golden Globe winner (Drama) George Clooney for Alexander Payne’s The Descendants; and Gary Oldman for Tomas Alfredson’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

The 2012 Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 26, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. In the United States, the Oscarcast will be broadcast live by the ABC Television Network.

Oscar Nominees Luncheon 2012 group photo: Meryl Streep, George Clooney et al.

Oscar Nominees Luncheon 2012: Group photo

Dozens of nominees for the 2012 Academy Awards pose for a (very, very, very large) group photo at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Oscar Nominees Luncheon, held in Beverly Hills on Monday, Feb. 6, ’12. (Click on the image to enlarge it.)

Seated (left to right): Matthew Butler. Julie Anderson. Kira Carstensen Tsunami. Mark Bridges. Demián Bichir. Lon Bender. Michael De Luca. Danfung Dennis. Rebecca Cammisa. Joe Berlinger. Bérénice Bejo. Letty Aronson. Max von Sydow. Kirk Baxter. J.C. Chandor.

2nd row (left to right): Erik Aadahl. Ron Bochar. Deb Adair with guest. Amanda Forbis. Stan Chervin. Glenn Close. Jean Dujardin. George Clooney. Chris Columbus. Marshall Curry. Ludovic Bource. Terry George. Patrick Doyon. Gigi Causey. Erik Nash. Jeff Cronenweth. Viola Davis. Siedah Garrett. Dave Giammarco. Lisy Christl. Nick Dudman. Enrico Casarosa. Sam Cullman. Kenneth Branagh. Scott Benza.

3rd row (left to right): Peter Devlin. Jim Burke. Brandon Oldenburg. William Joyce. Eugene Gearty. Victor Ray Ennis. Dan Lemmon. Alain Gagnol. Jean-Loup Felicioli. Scott Farrar. John Frazier. Oorlagh George. Sarah Green. Nat Faxon. Brunson Green. Swen Gillberg. Stefan Gieren. Dede Gardner. Robert Gould. Mark Coulier. Robin Fryday. Dante Ferretti. Rick Carter. Laurence Bennett. Michael Barnathan.

4th row (left to right): Daniel Barrett. Emmanuel Lubezki. Daniel Junge. Grant Heslov. Sergio Mendes. Rachael Horovitz. Nick Nolte. Amanda Knight. Alberto Iglesias. Ren Klyce. Thomas Langmann. Michel Hazanavicius. Richard Hymns. Jeffrey Haboush. John Rosengrant. Gary Oldman. Janet McTeer. Matthew Mungle. Dan Lindsay. Lynn Johnston. Peter McDonald. Chris Miller. Alex Henning. Jonah Hill. Bret McKenzie. Ben Grossman. Tom Fleischman.

5th row (left to right): Graham King. Janusz Kaminski. Bill Pohlad. Philip Stockton. Thelma Schoonmaker. Rob Legato. Kathleen Kennedy. John Logan. Mike Lerner. Stephanie McMillan. Jim Rash. David Parker. Anne Seibel. Christopher Tellefsen. Lisa Tomblin. Guillaume Schiffman. Ethan Van der Ryn. Angus Wall. Ed Novick. Andy Nelson. Annie Mumolo. T.J. Martin. Arianne Phillips. Sandy Powell. Eimear O’Kane. Melissa McCarthy. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy. Andrew Bowler. Greg Butler.

Back row (left to right): J. Roy Helland. Richard Middlemas. Brad Pitt. Meryl Streep. Rooney Mara. Fernando Trueba. Wendy Tilby. Jennifer Yuh Nelson. Max Zähle. Michael Semanick. Kevin Tent. James Spione. Beau Willimon. David Vickery. Gore Verbinski. Michelle Williams. Aaron Sorkin. Stephen Tenenbaum. Octavia Spencer. Peter Straughan. Greg Russell. Dan Taylor. Lucy Walker. Jim Taylor. Martin Scorsese. Steven Spielberg. Hallvar Witzø. R. Christopher White. Steven Zaillian.

See also: “Oscar Nominees Luncheon 2011 Group Photo: Annette Bening, Natalie Portman, et al.”

2012 Oscar Nominees Luncheon group photo: Greg Harbaugh / © A.M.P.A.S.

2012 Best Picture nominees

This year’s Best Picture nominees are:

• Alexander Payne’s The Descendants, with George Clooney and Shailene Woodley.
• Steven Spielberg’s War Horse, with Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, and Tom Hiddleston.
• Martin Scorsese’s Hugo, with Asa Butterfield, Chloë Grace Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Jude Law, and Sacha Baron Cohen.
• Bennett Miller’s Moneyball, with Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, and Robin Wright.
• Michel Hazanavicius’ The Artist, with Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, and John Goodman.
• Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life, with Brad Pitt, Jessica Chastain, and Sean Penn.
• Stephen Daldry’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, with Sandra Bullock, Tom Hanks, and Max von Sydow.
• Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris, with Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Marion Cotillard, Adrien Brody, and Kathy Bates.
• Tate Taylor’s The Help, with Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Bryce Dallas Howard, Mary Steenburgen, Sissy Spacek, Cicely Tyson, Mike Vogel, and Chris Lowell.

The 2012 Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 26, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. In the U.S., the Oscar show will be broadcast live on ABC.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (A.M.P.A.S.) website.