This photo provided by courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox shows, Leonardo DiCaprio as Hugh Glass, in a scene from the film, "The Revenant," directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. The 88th annual Academy Awards nominations will be announced beginning at 5:30 a.m. PST on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016, at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, Calif. The Oscars will be presented on Feb. 28, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Courtesy Twentieth Century Fox via AP)
The Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) - The brutal frontier saga "The Revenant" leads the 88th annual Academy Awards with 12 nominations, while the acting categories were again filled entirely by white performers.
The strong showing for "The Revenant," including a best actor nod for Leonardo DiCaprio, follows its win at the Golden Globes. It sets director Alejandro Inarritu for a possible back-to-back win following his best-picture winning "Birdman" last year.
George Miller's "Mad Max: Fury Road" followed with 10 nominations, including best picture. Ridley Scott's sci-fi epic "The Martian" landed 7 nominations, including best picture, but no best director nod for Scott.
Eight films were nominated for best picture. The other five were: Tom McCarthy's investigative journalistic procedural "Spotlight," Steven Spielberg's Cold War thriller "Bridge of Spies," Adam McKay's Michael Lewis adaptation "The Big Short," the mother-son captive drama "Room" and the '50s Irish immigrant tale "Brooklyn."
Left on the outside were Todd Haynes' acclaimed lesbian romance "Carol" and the N.W.A biopic "Straight Outta Compton."
The acting nominees, which notably omitted Idris Elba for "Beasts of No Nation" and Benicio Del Toro for "Sicario," gave the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences an awkward repeat of the "OscarsSoWhite" backlash that followed last year's acting nominees.
Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs has since redoubled efforts to diversify the academy's membership, and slated Chris Rock to host this year's Feb. 28 ceremony.
Alongside DiCaprio, the nominees for best actor are: Matt Damon ("The Martian"), Michael Fassbender ("Steve Jobs"), Eddie Redmayne ("The Danish Girl") and Bryan Cranston ("Trumbo").
The best actress field is led by favorite Brie Larson for "Room," along with Jennifer Lawrence ("Joy"), Cate Blanchett ("Carol"), Saoirse Ronan ("Brooklyn") and Charlotte Rampling ("45 Years").
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Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP
In this photo provided by Twentieth Century Fox, Matt Damon as Astronaut Mark Watney finds himself stranded and alone on Mars, in "The Martian." The 88th annual Academy Awards nominations will be announced in 24 categories beginning at 5:30 a.m. PST on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016, at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, Calif. The Oscars will be presented on Feb. 28, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Twentieth Century Fox via AP)
The Associated Press
This photo provided by Paramount Pictures shows, Jeremy Strong, from left, Rafe Spall, Hamish Linklater, Steve Carell, Jeffry Griffin and Ryan Gosling in the film, "The Big Short." The 88th annual Academy Awards nominations will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016, at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, Calif. The Oscars will be presented on Feb. 28, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Jaap Buitendijk/Paramount Pictures via AP)
The Associated Press
In this image released by A24 Films, Brie Larson, left, and Jacob Tremblay appear in a scene from the film, "Room." The film was nominated for an Oscar for best picture on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016. The 88th annual Academy Awards will take place on Sunday, Feb. 28, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (A24 Films via AP)
The Associated Press
This photo provided by Fox Searchlight shows Saoirse Ronan, left, and Emory Cohen in a scene from the film, "Brooklyn." The film was nominated for an Oscar for best picture on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016. The 88th annual Academy Awards will take place on Sunday, Feb. 28, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Kerry Brown/Fox Searchlight via AP)
The Associated Press