Christopher Nolan Snubbed! Does the Academy Hate the 'Inception' Director?

He has directed some of the most critically acclaimed, visually arresting movies of our time and has been celebrated by his colleagues, but this morning Christopher Nolan's name was a notable snub on the list of Best Director Oscar nominees.

Nolan -- a three-time Directors Guild of America nominee for 'Memento,' 'The Dark Knight' and 'Inception' -- has yet to be recognized in the director category by the Academy. Sure, his movies often score nominations galore; 'Inception,' for example, is up for eight awards this year, including Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay. But for some reason, the Academy continues to ignore him as a directing contender. Now our friend from Moviefone, Sharon Knolle, dives deeper.

Could it be because his inventive movies are typically also enormous blockbusters? Doubtful. Enormous box-office success didn't prevent Steven Spielberg from joining the nominees' circle early in his career (for 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind,' 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' and 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,' all popcorn flicks). And it certainly hasn't hurt two-time-winner James Cameron.

The Academy does have something of a history of snubbing commercial directors. After all, despite his early nominations, it took Spielberg until 1993's 'Schindler's List' to actually win a directing Oscar, and wildly popular director Alfred Hitchcock never won an award in the category. However, it's still surprising that Nolan got the shaft with 'Inception.' It's not like he hasn't been racking up the kudos for the Leonardo DiCaprio film. First came a Golden Globe nomination, then one from Directors Guild of America; back home, the London-born Nolan also reeled in his first BAFTA nomination for Achievement in Direction. Yet no love from the Academy.

Of course, Nolan is no stranger to Academy snubs. 'The Dark Knight' earned a well-deserved Oscar win for the late Heath Ledger as well as seven other nominations, but its omission from the Best Picture slot was perceived as a major snub at the time -- not to mention the Best Director category. 'Batman Begins,' by the way, was nominated only for Best Cinematography; 'The Prestige' also received a nod for Art Direction, and 'Memento' earned nominations only for Best Original Screenplay and Film Editing.

The 'Dark Knight' slight moved Nolan's brother Jonathan (who co-wrote 'Memento' with him) to respond with an e-mail to fans: "Any nominations for a comic book movie is a thing of beauty no matter how you slice it, and that takes the sting out a bit. Besides, I've been to the big show before, and, like any of these things, it's a little disappointing. Did you know it's not even an open bar once the show starts? At least this time I would have remembered to bring a little cash so I could buy myself a drink after losing."

So, what will it take for Nolan to be recognized by the Academy for his directing skills? Does he need to make a movie about Facebook, World War II or blue aliens to stand a chance? Or does he simply have to hang in there for 20 or 30 more years until the Academy finally decides it's his time? Or could it be that the Academy just confused Nolan's 'Inception' with one of the many popular Internet memes relating to the movie?

Academy Nominates Surprising Music Industry Acts

Most of the focus Tuesday morning surrounded the big name nominees for this year’s Academy Awards – Portman, Bening, Firth, Bale and more – but amongst this year’s first-time Academy Award nominees were some surprising familiar faces from the music industry.

Trent Reznor, the lead singer of Nine Inch Nails, along with Atticus Ross, were nominated for their Original Score for “The Social Network,” which many consider the duo the front-runners to win. Just last week, Reznor and Ross won a Golden Globe award for their score for the film.

“When David approached us to write the score for ‘The Social Network,’ we were intrigued and excited to see what we could bring to the project – but truly couldn’t imagine it would lead to an Oscar nomination. We are extremely grateful to the Academy and very proud to have contributed to David’s vision,” Reznor and Ross said in a joint statment to Access Hollywood on Tuesday.

Reznor seems to have found a second career in scoring films for director David Fincher – next up, he’ll be scoring Fincher’s U.S. remake of “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.”

They’ll be competing against Hollywood legend Hans Zimmer for his score for Christopher Nolan’s “Inception,” and A.R. Rahman, who won two years ago for both Original Score and Best Song (“Jai Ho”) for “Slumdog Millionaire.” Rahman is back this year, re-teaming with Danny Boyle with his score for “127 Hours.” Also up in this category are John Powell for “How to Train Your Dragon” and Alexandre Desplat for “The King’s Speech.”

A surprising absence in the Original Score category was French DJ duo Daft Punk, who did the soundtrack for “Tron: Legacy.” Some critics point out that they might not have qualified because some of their score used music from the franchise’s original film, making it not entirely “Original.”

In the Original Song category, popular British singer Dido, along with her brother and frequent producing partner DJ Rollo Armstrong, received a nod for writing the lyrics to “If I Rise” from “127 Hours,” for which Rahman composed the music.

They’ll be competing against Hollywood frequents Randy Newman (“We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3”) and Alan Menken and Glenn Slater (“I See The Light” from “Tangled”), as well as Tom Douglas, Troy Verges and Hillary Lindsey for “Coming Home” from “Country Strong.”

Access has reached out to Dido & Rollo for reaction to their nominations. We hope to hear from them soon and we’ll update if we hear back!

James Franco Made Sex Tape at 19, Promises No Lip-Syncing at The Academy Awards

James Franco strives to be controversial. So when Newsweek gathered some of the country's most respected actors to discuss their craft, Franco outdid his peers by referencing a sex tape he made as a teenager.

"Anybody who has made a home sex tape knows what feels best doesn't always look best," Franco said. "I remember when I was 19 doing that, and then watching it back and thinking, 'Oh, that looks horrible. So you have a lot of respect for those actors in pornography, because they are really not just doing it, they're really selling it!"

The actor continued, comparing the work of porn stars to that of A-list Hollywood stars. "It's the same thing with a kiss," he said. "It's not just the kiss that feels best, it's an image. Something different is happening if it's a good kiss."

At an Oscar roundtable alongside Natalie Portman, Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Michelle Williams, Franco admitted to being on Facebook "for like 2 seconds." He quit shortly thereafter because he has "different kinds of people in my life, and I just hated the idea that they were all going to mix on my page. I didn't want professors hearing form my stupid friends."

Franco went on to address the pictures of him sleeping during one of his grad school classes at Columbia, saying, "All my classmates do it, but nobody wants to post their pictures. I don't really mind. It's not like a performance. I'm there because I want to be. They can depict it however they want."

The 32-year-old also said there "will be some singing and dancing" at the upcoming Academy Awards, and while he wouldn't reveal any of the numbers he and Anne Hathaway might be performing, he promised "no lip-synching."

The 83rd Annual Academy Awards: Socially Gritty Swan Song?

Despite the pretty-people-infuriating antics of Ricky Gervais, the oh-my-god-did-she-just-say-that? creepiness of Natalie Portman, and the vaguely racist ranting of Robert DeNiro, the most notable thing about this year's Golden Globes was who was NOT there.

Namely, the complete lack of anyone from"True Grit" in any of the categories, even though critics have been falling over themselves to heap praise on the Coen Brothers' western since its release. Will the 83rd annual Academy Awards do right by the Brothers? We can't imagine why they wouldn't. Of course, we'll find out Tuesday morning, as the nominations will be announced live at 8:40 AM (ET).

The quirky directing pair become Oscar darlings with their last western - "No Country for Old Men" - not to mention that "True Grit" stars last year's best actor winner Jeff Bridges, bright newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, and the perennially-admired Matt Damon. And pay attention, trivia buffs, because if Bridges is nominated and wins, it would mark the first time* two Best Actor winners have won for playing the same character (John Wayne won the top prize for his Rooster Cogburn in 1970). It's an Oscar slam dunk…maybe.

The addition of "True Grit" to the mix would, at very least, give the race a dark horse that could potentially knock off the current favorite: David Fincher's "The Social Network." The Facebook origin story cleaned up at the Globes, and it certainly has Oscar momentum. The movie's only current competition seems to be Darren Aronofsky's "Black Swan," which is the film responsible for Portman's cringe-worthy Best Actress acceptance speech. Unless, of course, "No Strings Attached" becomes Portman's "Norbit" (Just ask Eddie Murphy how an ill-timed movie release can derail an Oscar train).

Rounding out the favorites heading in to the Kodak Theater is "The King's Speech," which catapulted the criminally underrated (but perhaps not for long) Colin Firth to a Best Actor Globe. "The King's Speech" also just snagged the Producer's Guild Award, adding more oomph to its Oscar push.

The rest of the field will likely be pulled from the Mark Wahlberg/Christian Bale drama "The Fighter" (which earned co-star Melissa Leo a Supporting Actress Globe), the Christopher Nolan sci-fi headspinner "Inception," the no-brainer for Best Animated Feature "Toy Story 3," the family drama "The Kids Are Alright" (yes, Hollywood Foreign Press, it's a drama. Not a comedy), Danny Boyle's hiking cautionary tale "127 Hours," and maybe, just maybe, they'll throw a bone to Ben Affleck's Boston-based crime thriller "The Town."

One thing we do know for certain is that new hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco will be pretty and charming and boring and will ensure that no comedian is ever given the job ever again. This is serious business, folks. This is not the forum to make fun of Tim Allen's lack of a non-Toy Story career, now is it? Smile, hand out trophies, and make jokes that only agents get. That's it.

Movies 'King's Speech' Gets 14 U.K. Academy Nominations

Made-in-England favorite "The King's Speech" leads the race for the British Academy Film Awards, Britain's equivalent of the Oscars, with 14 nominations announced Tuesday, including best picture.

Colin Firth is the best-actor front-runner for his performance as stuttering monarch King George VI, with Geoffrey Rush nominated for best supporting actor as the unconventional speech therapist who treated him. Helena Bonham Carter is up for best supporting actress for playing the king's wife, the Queen Mother Elizabeth.

The film faces strong competition from psychosexual ballet thriller "Black Swan," which has 12 nominations, and mind-bending saga "Inception," with nine. Endurance story "127 Hours" and Coen brothers Western "True Grit" have eight nominations each.

"The King's Speech," which shows the monarch struggling to find his voice as his nation faces its greatest test during World War II, has struck a popular chord with its humanizing depiction of the British royal family, drawing ovations from audiences at some screenings.

The modestly budgeted production, which has already earned more than $50 million at the box office in the U.S. and Britain, was partly funded by the U.K. Film Council, a government body that has been abolished by Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative-led coalition.

Firth, 50, won a best-actor trophy at Sunday's Golden Globes in Los Angeles, and the latest nomination gives him extra momentum going into the Oscars. A win would be Firth's second BAFTA in a row -- he took the acting prize last year for "A Single Man."

"The Social Network," the story of the founding of Facebook, has six nominations including best picture; Aaron Sorkin's screenplay; and David Fincher's direction. Jesse Eisenberg received a best actor nomination for his turn as Facebook's college-student founder Mark Zuckerberg.

As well as "The King's Speech" and "The Social Network," the best-picture nominees are "Black Swan," "Inception" and "True Grit."
The separate category of best British film pits "The King's Speech" against "127 Hours," "Another Year," "Four Lions" and "Made in Dagenham."

The best-actor contenders are Firth, Eisenberg, James Franco for "127 Hours," Javier Bardem for "Biutiful" and Jeff Bridges for "True Grit."

Annette Bening and Julianne Moore are both best-actress nominees for "The Kids Are All Right," along with Natalie Portman for "Black Swan," Noomi Rapace for "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and Hailee Steinfeld for "True Grit."

Best-director nominees are Fincher for "The Social Network," Tom Hooper for "The King's Speech," Danny Boyle for "127 Hours," Darren Aronofsky for "Black Swan" and Christopher Nolan for "Inception."

Elusive graffiti artist Banksy is nominated for outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer for directing the faux documentary "Exit Through The Gift Shop."

Pete Postlethwaite, who died earlier this month, is nominated posthumously in the best supporting actor category for his role as an Irish-American gangster in "The Town."

The British awards, known as BAFTAs, will be handed out at London's Royal Opera House on Feb. 13, two weeks before the Academy Awards in Hollywood, and are considered an important indicator of likely Oscar success.

Last year, Iraq war drama "The Hurt Locker" won six BAFTAs, including best picture -- then repeated the feat at the Oscars.

Mark Ruffalo Wants Academy Voters to 'Grow A Pair'

Mark Ruffalo is up in arms over last night's Golden Globes, but Ricky Gervais isn't the one to blame.

Even though Ruffalo's movie 'The Kids Are All Right' won the Golden Globe for Best Comedy, Reuters reports that the actor is none too pleased the film's female director Lisa Cholodenko, and all other female directors, were shut out of the Directors Guild feature film nominations.

"I would just like to say to the (motion picture) academy members: why don't you grow a pair and vote for Lisa Cholodenko as well!" Ruffalo said backstage.

Ruffalo's costar Annette Bening, who won a Golden Globe for best performance in a comedy, agreed.

"I thought [Cholodenko] deserved all those nominations as well," she said. "Very often, good directors aren't calling attention to themselves in their filmmaking. Oftentimes, they're less recognized by because of that."