According to In Contention's Kris Tapley, the strangeness of these nominations might have to do with the incredibly early deadline voters were sidelined with this year, though I'm still puzzled. Absolutely no love for Ridley Scott's, "The Martian" (though that will surely change come tomorrow's announcement from the Golden Globes), and a complete last minute surge from Helen Mirren, with TWO nominations for utterly forgettable roles.
"Spotlight" only managed two nominations: one in the predicted ensemble category, and another for Rachel McAdams who has been largely absent from precursor awards thus far. "Trumbo," featuring Mirren and Bryan Cranston, received three nominations after being critically shrugged off and forgotten about.
"Room" didn't manage an ensemble nomination, but it did land two for Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay. The latter really needed this to be taken seriously in a very crowded field. If he gets in tomorrow with the Golden Globes, I think he's in for an Oscar nomination. And "Beasts of No Nation" showed strength as well. Netflix must be breathing a sigh of relief. Again, if it shows up tomorrow with the Globes, it should be taken seriously as a viable contender.
I think a lot of these nominations are largely irrelevant, however, and based purely on early buzz and the campaigning.
See the full list of nominees below.
