Golden Globe Nominations Are In, ‘Gravity,’ Cuarón, Vergara Take Home Nods

Alfonso Cuarón’s space odyssey “Gravity,” which soared in the box office this fall, is getting recognition from the Hollywood Foreign Press with four nominations.

The nominations were announced Thursday morning in Los Angeles by actors Olivia Wilde, Zoe Saldaña and Aziz Ansari.

Cuarón, who is Mexican, earned a best director nomination along with the movie’s leading lady, Sandra Bullock, for best actress in a drama. “Gravity” was also nominated for best drama and best original score.

Colombian bombshell Sofía Vergara garnered a nomination for best supporting actress in a TV series, miniseries or movie – fifth time in a row – for her work in ABC’s hit comedy “Modern Family.” The show was also nominated for best comedy TV series.

Newcomer actor, Guatemalan Oscar Isaac, was also nominated for best actor in a motion picture, comedy or musical for his portrayal of Llewyn Davis in Coen brothers' “Inside Llewyn Davis.”

“Gravity” tied the Somali pirate thriller “Captain Phillips” with four nominations, while the leading films were the historical epic “12 Years a Slave” and the con artist caper “American Hustle,” with seven nominations each.

Hailed by critics as the movies’ most unblinking portrait of a slaver, “12 Years A Slave” verified its front-runner status with nominations including best film drama, best actor in a drama for Chiwetel Ejiofor and best director for Steve McQueen.

"American Hustle" dominated on the Globes' other category side: comedy or musical. The fictionalized story of the FBI's Abscam investigation in the late 1970s earned nominations for best comedy movie, Christian Bale for best actor in a comedy, Jennifer Lawrence for best supporting actress in a comedy and David O. Russell for best director.

Also in the mix are Alexander Payne's father-son road trip "Nebraska," with five nominations, including best actor for Bruce Dern.

This year's comedy competition could be the strongest field ever for the Globes. Aside from "American Hustle," the group includes Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street," Alexander Payne's "Nebraska," Spike Jonze's "Her" and the Coen brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis."

The last film of 2013 to screen, Scorsese's three-hour financial industry extravaganza had been one of the biggest question marks this awards season. Along with the best picture nomination, it earned one for Leonardo DiCaprio's leading performance.

Along with "12 Years a Slave," the dramatic best picture category was rounded out by "Captain Phillips," "Gravity," "Philomena" and "Rush."

Cuaron's innovative 3-D spectacle "Gravity," should be a bigger Oscar heavyweight at the Academy Awards, which honor technical categories that the Globes don't. With more than $630 million in worldwide box office, "Gravity" also figures to be the populist favorite.

Most notably shutout was "Lee Daniels' The Butler," the Civil Rights history told through a long-serving White House butler played by Forest Whitaker.

This year's comedy competition — usually a mixed bag compared to the dramatic categories — could be the strongest field ever for the Globes. Aside from "American Hustle," the group includes Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street," Alexander Payne's "Nebraska," Spike Jonze's "Her" and the Coen brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis."

The soulful futuristic romance "Her" and '60s Greenwich Village folk tale "Inside Llewyn Davis" both reaped three nominations, including nods for its stars: Isaac for "Llewyn Davis" and Joaquin Phoenix for "Her."

The last film of 2013 to screen, Scorsese's three-hour financial industry extravaganza had been one of the biggest question marks this awards season. After being snubbed Wednesday by the Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations, it earned a nomination for Leonardo DiCaprio's performance as an out-of-control Wall Street trader, along with the best picture nomination.

The 77-year-old Dern rounds out best actor in a comedy for his performance as a taciturn Montana man who believes he's won a mailing sweepstakes. He's joined on the dramatic best actor side by another 77-year-old veteran, Robert Redford. The actor, who hasn't ever won an acting Oscar, was nominated by the Globes for his nearly unspoken performance as a man shipwrecked in the Indian Ocean in "All Is Lost."

In the dramatic best picture category, "12 Years a Slave" was joined by "Captain Phillips," ''Gravity," ''Philomena" and "Rush." Most notably shutout was "Lee Daniels' The Butler," the Civil Rights history told through a long-serving White House butler played by Forest Whitaker.

The awards and their boozy telecast are known for a desire to attract stars, even if their films aren't quite up to snuff. (It will be a long time before the HFPA, a collection of about 85 largely freelance journalists, lives down its nominations for Johnny Depp's "The Tourist.") This year's ceremony on Jan. 12 will again be hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, who led last year's broadcast to 19.7 million viewers, a significant bump for the Globes. They often serve a preamble to the more prestigious Oscars, which will be held March 2.

This year's Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award will be given to Woody Allen, who, long a absentee from award shows, isn't expected to attend. His latest film "Blue Jasmine," a portrait of a bitter, fallen socialite played by Cate Blanchett, won nominations Thursday for Blanchett and Sally Hawkins.

The last two years, one of the Globes' best-picture winners went on to top the Academy Awards. Last year, the Globes awarded Ben Affleck's "Argo" best picture for drama. The year before that, the silent film ode "The Artist" won best picture for a comedy.

Though the Globes are often known for idiosyncratic choices (last year "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" received three nominations), their 2013 picks contained few oddities.

Disney's making-of "Mary Poppins" tale "Saving Mr. Banks," a possible Oscar contender, fared poorly Thursday, earning only a nomination for Emma Thompson's lead performance as "Poppins" author P.L. Travers. While the Texas HIV drama "Dallas Buyers Club" was rewarded with expected nominations for Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, it failed to land any others.

McConaughey, Redford and Ejiofor are joined in best actor by Tom Hanks for "Captain Phillips" and Idris Elba, who plays the late Nelson Mandela in "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom."

A film that could have easily been a theatrical release, Steven Soderbergh's Liberace drama "Behind the Candelabra," topped the Globes' television nominations. The HBO film helped lead the cable network to a leading nine nominations.

The digital platform Netflix, though, emerged as a new challenger with six total nods. The subscription service's first major foray into original programming, the political thriller "House of Cards," tied "Candelabra" with four nominations. "House of Cards," produced by David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey, is also a product of filmmakers who turned to the small screen. HBO leads all television networks with nine Globe nominations.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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