Oscars, 84th Academy Awards | featured news

The nominations for the 84th Academy Awards are out and below is the full list. This year, nine films are contending for BEST PICTURE instead of the usual five. Hugo leads all contenders with 11 nominations; The Artist has 10 nominations; Moneyball and War Horse both have 6 noms; The Descendants and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo tie with five noms; The Help and Midnight in Paris have four each.

'The Artist' gains momentum as critics' and indie groups hand out early citations. As the fall season's first wave of film awards and nominations roll in, the Oscar picture continues to be a murky mass of contenders and question marks.

One day after Eddie Murphy stepped aside as host, the Academy named a replacement with Oscar experience, moving quickly to fill another key role that had been vacated this week.

Less than 24 hours after Brett Ratner resigned as producer of the 2012 Oscars after making an anti-gay slur, his handpicked host Eddie Murphy has quit.

Brett Ratner is out as producer of the 84th Academy Awards show. It's been a tumultuous several days for Ratner, who, amongst several offenses, used a gay slur when asked a question about filmmaking. The director said that "rehearsing is for fags" in a Q&A session following a screening of his new film, "Tower Heist," at L.A.'s Arclight Cinemas.

France has chosen "La guerre est declaree" ("War is declared") to represent it at next year's Oscars.

The rumors became a reality Tuesday: Eddie Murphy will host the 84th Academy Awards, which will be telecast Feb. 26 on ABC, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced.