The Oscar nominations Monday anointed "Mank" as this season's leader, and saved multiple nods for other widely tipped frontrunners such as "Nomadland" and "The Trial of the Chicago 7."
But there were plenty of surprises and records among the Academy's picks, from diversity landmarks to the venue itself. Here are five takeaways from the Academy Award nominations announcement:
1. Who's the lead?
It is a debate that has plagued movie sets since the Oscars began—which A-lister is billed as the lead actor, and which must swallow their pride and settle for "supporting"? Bizarrely, for Judas and the Black Messiah, it would seem neither actor is the star.
Both Globe-winning Daniel Kaluuya and LaKeith Stanfield were nominated as best supporting actor for their portrayals of Black civil rights activist Fred Hampton and FBI informant William O'Neall. Unlike other ceremonies, the Oscars place actors in the category for which they receive the most votes.
"Only Oscar voters could watch a film about two black men and decide both must be supporting characters," tweeted the Telegraph's film critic Robbie Collin.