'Birdman,' 'Grand Budapest Hotel,' With 9 Nominations Each, Lead Oscar Race

Birdman and The Grand Budapest Hotel topped the list of nominations – with nine each — announced today by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. They were followed by The Imitation Game with eight Oscar nominations and American Sniper and Boyhood, with six each.

Birdman, a film about a movie superhero actor who has flamed out, earned a best picture nomination, as well as a best actor nomination for Micheal Keaton and a best director nod for Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu.

The Grand Budapest Hotel, set in 1930s-era Europe, received Oscar nominations for best picture; its director, Wes Anderson, was nominated for best director.

The Imitation Game, the biopic about mathematician Alan Turing, earned nominations for best actor (Benedict Cumberbatch), best picture, and best director (Morten Tyldum).

American Sniper, the Clint Eastwood-directed film about U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle starring Bradley Cooper, received nominations for best actor (Cooper) and best picture. Boyhood, director Richard Linklater's movie that was filmed over 12 years, received a best picture nomination, as well as a nod for Linklater for his direction.

The list of Best Picture Nominees: American Sniper, Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Imitation Game, Selma, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash.

The list of nominees for Actress in a Leading Role: Marion Cotillard (Two Days, One Night), Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything), Julianne Moore (Still Alice), Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl), Reese Witherspoon (Wild).

The list of nominees for Actor in a Leading Role: Steve Carrell (Foxcatcher), Bradley Cooper (American Sniper), Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), Michael Keaton (Birdman), Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything).

The nominations for best director: Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu (Birdman), Richard Linklater (Boyhood), Bennett Miller (Foxcatcher), Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel), Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game).

The winners will be announced Feb. 22.

For a full list of Oscar nominations, click here, and check our Monkey See blog.