AWARD SEASON: The Academy Award nominations

Phew, what a week to take off. Lots to catch up on, so let's get started.

Of course the biggest news of the week was the announcement of the Academy Award nominees.

After streaking through the Guild nominations, The Dark Knight was left in the dust by the Academy voters when it came to the big awards, with the exception of the sure bet nomination of Heath Ledger for Best Supporting Actor.

Likewise, Wall-E couldn't dig himself out of the animated category to compete for the big award either.

Instead, we have Golden Globe-winner Slumdog Millionaire up against The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (which picked up the most nominations of any film this year), Frost/Nixon, Milk and The Reader.

All five films' directors--Danny Boyle, David Fincher, Ron Howard, Gus Van Sant and Stephen Daldry--are up for Best Director.

Richard Jenkins (The Visitor), Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon), Sean Penn (Milk), Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) and Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) will vie for Best Actor.

Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married), Angelina Jolie (Changeling), Melissa Leo (Frozen River), Meryl Streep (Doubt) and Kate Winslet (The Reader) are up for Best Actress.

For a few list of the nominees, click here.

Jericho returning... again

In an interview with IF Magazine published Wednesday, Executive Producer and Director Jon Turteltaub said a film version of his canceled series Jericho is in the works.

“We’re developing a feature for Jericho,” Turteltaub said. “It would not require you to have seen the TV show, but it get into life after an event like this on a national scale. It would be the bigger, full on American version of what’s going on beyond the town in Jericho.”

He continued that the cast will return for the movie, although he provided scant other details.

Jericho debuted on CBS during the 2006 season, telling the story of a small in Kansas after 23 American cities are attacked by nuclear weapons. Unfortunately, the first season ended not only with falling ratings, but with one of the biggest cliffhangers ever as the townspeople rush out to battle a neighboring community with the gunfire continuing as the scene faded to black.

CBS canceled the series only to be met with a huge fan response, 40,000 pounds of nuts mailed to the studio's headquarters, referencing a favorite line from the finale. CBS agreed to bring the show back for a truncated second season--seven episodes--to continue the survivors' story.

Jericho returned in the spring of 2008 as a midseason replacement while the networks were recovering from the effects of the writers' strike. While the show didn't earn a third season--it was canceled again during the summer--the show had a much more satisfying conclusion.

In the weeks following its second canceling, rumors had the show moving to the Sci-Fi Channel, but when no word emerged, the show was thought dead for good.

This week's news is interesting, if only to see how they plan on retooling the story in a way to attract new viewers while pleasing the fans that saved the show the first time. The second season ended with a clear direction for the story should a third be approved, and I have to wonder if the great storytelling we received in those seven episodes will be forgotten.

Only time will tell...

Fox and Keanu making Cowboy Bebop film

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Twentieth Century Fox is moving forward with its live action adaptation of the anime series Cowboy Bebop with Keanu Reeves.

The series, which ran on Tokyo TV in 1998-99 and debuted on Cartoon Network in 2001, follows a series of spacefaring bounty hunters, including Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Faye Valentine, Ed and Ein. Bebop also spawned an animated film in 2001. The movie made its way stateside in the summer of 2003, picking up approximately $1 million, although its release never expanded past 29 theaters.

Rumors about a live action adaptation have been swirling since last summer, but this is the first time concrete details have emerged.

This is what we know:

• Peter Craig--about whom I can find very little information--is writing the script.
• Reeves is set to play Spike.
  
• Reeves' longtime manager, Erwin Stoff, is producing through 3 Arts Entertainment. Joshua Long is executive producer.
• Key members of the production staff from the original series will serve as associate producers, including Sunrise president Kenji Uchida, director Shinichiro Watanabe and writer Keiko Nobumoto.
• Original series producer Masahiko Minami will serve as production consultant.

Watchmen case settled

Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox have settled their lawsuit over the distribution rights to Watchmen, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Of course neither side is talking, but as expected, Warner Bros. is going to have hand over a percentage of the film's receipts:

Terms of the agreement will not be disclosed, but it is said to involve a sizable cash payment to Fox and a percentage of the film's boxoffice. Fox will not be a co-distributor on the film, nor will it own a piece of the "Watchmen" property going forward. The studios are set to release a joint statement announcing the agreement Friday.

As this week progresses, it appeared more and more likely that this would be the end result of the dispute. Earlier this month, it looked like Warner Bros. was playing hard ball, requesting the judge speed up a hearing date to determine Fox's ability to delay the release. Shortly thereafter, however, lawyers stopped filed papers and the talks began in earnest.

Perhaps Warner Bros. decided it could easier to go after producer Larry Gordon for allegedly messing up the original agreement in the first place than fight Fox in the courts.

BAFTA nominees announced

British Academy of Film and Television Arts announced the for the 2009 Film Awards today. Again, Slumgdog Millionaire and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button picked up quite a few nods, and Kate Winslet, fresh off her double win at the Golden Globes, picked up two nominations for lead actress.

The full list of nominees are:

BEST FILM

• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Ceán Chaffin
• FROST/NIXON – Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard
• MILK – Dan Jinks, Bruce Cohen
• THE READER – Anthony Minghella, Sydney Pollack, Donna Gigliotti, Redmond Morris
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – Christian Colson

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

• HUNGER – Laura Hastings-Smith, Robin Gutch, Steve McQueen, Enda Walsh
• IN BRUGES – Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Martin McDonagh
• MAMMA MIA! – Judy Craymer, Gary Goetzman, Phyllida Lloyd, Catherine Johnson
• MAN ON WIRE – Simon Chinn, James Marsh
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – Christian Colson, Danny Boyle, Simon Beaufoy

THE CARL FOREMAN AWARD

for Special Achievement by a British Director, Writer or Producer for their First Feature Film

• SIMON CHINN (Producer) – Man On Wire
• JUDY CRAYMER (Producer) – Mamma Mia!
• GARTH JENNINGS (Writer) – Son of Rambow
• STEVE McQUEEN (Director/Writer) – Hunger
• SOLON PAPADOPOULOS, ROY BOULTER (Producers) – Of Time And The City

DIRECTOR

• CHANGELING – Clint Eastwood
• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – David Fincher
• FROST/NIXON – Ron Howard
• THE READER – Stephen Daldry
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – Danny Boyle

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• BURN AFTER READING – Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
• CHANGELING – J. Michael Straczynski
• I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG – Philippe Claudel
• IN BRUGES – Martin McDonagh
• MILK – Dustin Lance Black

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Eric Roth
• FROST/NIXON – Peter Morgan
• THE READER – David Hare
• REVOLUTIONARY ROAD – Justin Haythe
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – Simon Beaufoy

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

• THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX – Bernard Eichinger, Uli Edel
• GOMORRAH – Domenico Procacci, Matteo Garrone
• I'VE LOVED YOU SO LONG – Yves Marmion, Philippe Claudel
• PERSEPOLIS – Marc-Antoine Robert, Xavier Rigault, Marjane Satrapi, Vincent Parannaud
• WALTZ WITH BASHIR – Serge Lalou, Gerhard Meixner, Yael Nahl Ieli, Ari Folman

ANIMATED FILM

• PERSEPOLIS – Marjane Satrapi, Vincent Parannaud
• WALL•E – Andrew Stanton
• WALTZ WITH BASHIR – Ari Folman

LEADING ACTOR

• FRANK LANGELLA – Frost/Nixon
• DEV PATEL – Slumdog Millionaire
• SEAN PENN – Milk
• BRAD PITT – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• MICKEY ROURKE – The Wrestler

LEADING ACTRESS

• ANGELINA JOLIE – Changeling
• KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS – I’ve Loved You So Long
• MERYL STREEP – Doubt
• KATE WINSLET – The Reader
• KATE WINSLET – Revolutionary Road

SUPPORTING ACTOR

• ROBERT DOWNEY JR. – Tropic Thunder
• BRENDAN GLEESON – In Bruges
• PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN – Doubt
• HEATH LEDGER – The Dark Knight
• BRAD PITT – Burn After Reading

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• AMY ADAMS – Doubt
• PENÉLOPE CRUZ – Vicky Cristina Barcelona
• FREIDA PINTO – Slumdog Millionaire
• TILDA SWINTON – Burn After Reading
• MARISA TOMEI – The Wrestler

MUSIC

• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Alexandre Desplat
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Hans Zimmer, James Newton Howard
• MAMMA MIA! – Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – A. R. Rahman
• WALL•E – Thomas Newman

CINEMATOGRAPHY

• CHANGELING – Tom Stern
• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Claudio Miranda
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Wally Pfister
• THE READER – Chris Menges, Roger Deakins
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – Anthony Dod Mantle

EDITING **

• CHANGELING – Joel Cox, Gary D. Roach
• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Kirk Baxter, Angus Wall
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Lee Smith
• FROST/NIXON – Mike Hill, Dan Hanley
• IN BRUGES – Jon Gregory
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – Chris Dickens

**As there was a tie in this category there are six nominations

PRODUCTION DESIGN

• CHANGELING – James J. Murakami, Gary Fettis
• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Donald Graham Burt, Victor J. Zolfo
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Nathan Crowley, Peter Lando
• REVOLUTIONARY ROAD – Kristi Zea, Debra Schutt
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – Mark Digby, Michelle Day

COSTUME DESIGN

• CHANGELING – Deborah Hopper
• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Jacqueline West
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Lindy Hemming
• THE DUCHESS – Michael O'Connor
• REVOLUTIONARY ROAD – Albert Wolsky

SOUND

• CHANGELING – Walt Martin, Alan Robert Murray, John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Lora Hirschberg, Richard King, Ed Novick, Gary Rizzo
• QUANTUM OF SOLACE – Jimmy Boyle, Eddy Joseph, Chris Munro, Mike Prestwood Smith, Mark Taylor
• SLUMDOG MILLIONARE – Glenn Freemantle, Resul Pookutty, Richard Pryke, Tom Sayers, Ian Tapp
• WALL•E – Ben Burtt, Tom Myers, Michael Semanick, Matthew Wood

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS

• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Eric Barba, Craig Barron, – Nathan McGuinness, Edson Williams
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Chris Corbould, Nick Davis, Paul Franklin, Tim Webber
• INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL – Pablo Helman
• IRON MAN – Shane Patrick Mahan, John Nelson, Ben Snow
• QUANTUM OF SOLACE – Chris Corbould, Kevin Tod Haug

MAKE UP & HAIR

• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Jean Black, Colleen Callaghan
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Peter Robb-King
• THE DUCHESS – Daniel Phillips, Jan Archibald
• FROST/NIXON – Edouard Henriques, Kim Santantonio
• MILK – Steven E. Anderson, Michael White

SHORT ANIMATION

• CODSWALLOP – Greg McLeod, Myles McLeod
• VARMINTS – Sue Goffe, Marc Craste
• WALLACE AND GROMIT: A MATTER OF LOAF AND DEATH – Steve Pegram, Nick Park, Bob Baker

SHORT FILM

• KINGSLAND #1 THE DREAMER – Kate Ogborn, Tony Grisoni
• LOVE YOU MORE – Caroline Harvey, Sam Taylor-Wood, Patrick Marber
• RALPH – Olivier Kaempfer, Alex Winckler
• SEPTEMBER – Stewart le Maréchal, Esther May Campbell
• VOYAGE D’AFFAIRES (THE BUSINESS TRIP) – Celine Quideau, Sean Ellis

THE ORANGE RISING STAR AWARD

• MICHAEL CERA
• NOEL CLARKE
• MICHAEL FASSBENDER
• REBECCA HALL
• TOBY KEBBELL

New Watchmen trial tidbits

The LA Times, which has been providing much of the coverage on dispute between Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox over the distribution rights to The Watchmen, reported today that Producer Larry Gordon could ultimately be the biggest loser.

While none of the lawyers involved in the case are talking, the LA Times today quoted several sources about possible settlement deals:

Among the possible settlement terms under discussion is a deal in which Fox could end up with as much as 8.5% of "Watchmen's" gross receipts, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.

I've been saying for awhile that the most likely outcome would be some kind of settlement between the two studios in which Fox gets a cut of the receipts. It just will come down to Fox finding a bite small enough for Warner Bros. to find palatable.

What's interesting in today's LA Times article is the suggestion that WB may go after Gordon himself for at least part of their lost revenue, and he would in turn look at his insurance company:

It is unclear whether Gordon has initiated an insurance claim against the law firm that negotiated his "Watchmen" deal with Warner Bros., but Gordon has said in a letter that the same lawyers may have made "a unilateral mistake" as part of an earlier deal involving the film's rights.

...

Fox sued Warner Bros. in February, arguing that Fox controlled the film's distribution rights because of two "Watchmen" deals it made with Gordon in 1991 and 1994. The pacts, Fox maintained, obligated any "Watchmen" producer other than Fox, including Gordon, to notify Fox and obtain its rights before making a film.

It's quickly becoming apparent that the blame game is in full effect. Warner Bros. seems to be positioning itself to set up Gordon as the fall guy, saying that they were misinformed by Gordon's laywers. Gordon, on the other hand, is saying that the error was either a "mutual" error between himself and Fox, or a error on the part of his attorneys.

In a court filing dated Dec. 8, Warner Bros. said it "never received the very documents upon which Fox asserts its claims" until a year after they supposedly received the rights from Gordon. Warner Bros. also said Gordon's attorneys never alerted the studio they should contact Fox about the rights.

According to today's article, Gordon sent a letter to the judge--which was returned unread--stating the problem was either "a mutual mistake by both parties [Fox and Gordon], or a unilateral mistake made by his counsel, on which Mr. Gordon relied."

Meanwhile, everyone on the sidelines have to wait to see if the lawyers can save the day. Comforting thought, indeed.

Watchmen case close to settlement?

Although both sides in the ongoing feud between Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox over the distribution rights to the upcoming Watchmen adaptation are refusing to comment on their talks, the New York Times' blogger Michael Cieply reported seeing the two studio heads mucking it up during last night's Golden Globes.

From where this reporter sat at the Golden Globes last night, that sure looked like Tom Rothman of Fox and Alan Horn of Warner Brothers down among the superstar seats, smiling and back-patting — each other, not the superstars — just before the show began. A public display of affection between studio chiefs, along with those pricey “Watchmen” ads on the National Football League playoff games this weekend, would add up to a message as big as the Hollywood sign: The talks between hitherto warring Fox and Warner over a settlement of Fox’s lawsuit over rights to “Watchmen” must be on track.

The Times' Carpetbagger blog usually just reports the the up and downs of award season, so it remains to be seen how much truth there is in the assumptions Cieply made. He is correct, however--as I've said as well--that it makes sense for both sides to want a quick settlement to this case so they reap the rewards of what could be big hit come this March.

AWARDS SEASON: Slumdog, Winslet big winners at the Globes

It was a banner day at the Golden Globes for the Slumdog Millionaire, as the film took home all four awards it had been nominated for, including Best Picture - Drama and Best Director.

The India-based drama held off competition from The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, The Reader and Revolutionary Road in the final award announced during the three-hour ceremony.

Director Danny Boyle was also awarded, as were Simon Beaufoy for Best Screenplay - Motion Picture and A. R. Rahman for Best Original Score.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona was awarded for Best Picture in the comedy/musical category.

In the acting awards, Kate Winslet ended her streak of not winning the big prizes in a very big way, collecting not only the Best Supporting Actress award for her role in the World War II drama The Reader, but also Best Actress - Drama for Revolutionary Road.

Mickey Rourke was awarded for Best Actor - Drama for his role in The Wrestler, and ended up thanking everyone, including his dogs.

The bittersweet moment of the evening, however, was when Director Christopher Nolan accepted the Best Supporting Actor award for Heath Ledger.

"All of us who worked with Heath on 'The Dark Knight' accept this with an awful mixture of sadness but incredible pride," Nolan said. "After Heath passed on, you saw a hole ripped in the future of cinema, but with the extraordinary response to his work that we've seen all over the world, I for one will start to be able to look less at the gap in the future and at the incredible place Heath made for himself with his talent and his dedication."

Ledger's award and Nolan's words were met by a standing ovation from the star-studded crowd.

In the comedy/musical arena, Collin Farrell won Best Actor for his In Bruges role as a conflicted hitman, while Sally Hawkins in Happy-Go-Lucky took home Best Actress.

Best Song went to Bruce Springsteen's "The Wrestler" in The Wrestler.

Finally, Wall-E took home the award for Best Animated Feature.

Producer speaks out on Watchmen case

It's been a busy weekfor the Watchmen case between 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. Settlement talks between lawyers from both parties have been "productive," according to the Associated Press.

The real bombshell, however, came yesterday with an open letter from Watchmen producer Lloyd Levin, published at HitFix, which takes Fox to task for sitting on the project for years only to come after Warner Bros. now. He also praises Warner Bros. for taking a risk in funding the production of an expensive, "hard R" rated adaptation with no stars and a $100-plus million budget.

Now here's the part that has to be fully appreciated, if for nothing more than providing insight into producing movies in Hollywood: The Watchmen script was way above the norm in length, near 150 pages, meaning the film could clock in at close to 3 hours, the movie would not only be R rated but a hard R - for graphic violence and explicit sex - would feature no stars, and had a budget north of $100M. We also asked Warner Brothers to support an additional 1 to 1.5 hours of content incurring additional cost that would tie in with the movie but only be featured in DVD iterations of the film. Warner's supported the whole package and I cannot begin to emphasize how ballsy and unprecedented a move this was on the part of a major Hollywood studio. Unheard of. And would another studio in Hollywood, let alone a studio that didn't show one shred of interest in the movie, not one, have taken such a risk? Would they ever have made such a commitment, a commitment to a film that defied all conventional wisdom?

Only the executives at Fox can answer that question. But if they were to be honest, their answer would have to be "No."

Shouldn't Warner Brothers be entitled to the spoils - if any -- of the risk they took in supporting and making Watchmen? Should Fox have any claim on something they could have had but chose to neither support nor show any interest in?

Be sure to read the full letter.

Earlier this week, Warner Bros. asked the judge to make his decision as soon as Monday on the case. Now, according to the Associated Press report, the lawyers requested the judge delay a hearing scheduled for today to allow additional time for negotiations.

AWARDS SEASON: Directors give their top 5

Christopher Nolan and The Dark Knight were final card to complete their trips today with the Directors Guild of America.

The DGA announced the five nominees for Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film.

"A film is a collaboration, but it is the director's energy and vision that brings the elements of script, performance and production into a satisfying totality. Today's nominees demonstrate how vision, combined with skill and talent, creates magic on the screen," said DGA Third Vice President Taylor Hackford.

"What makes this award truly meaningful to directors is the knowledge that only this award is decided solely by their peers – the men and women who live the passion, sweat and fear that goes into creating feature films."

Nolan will be up against Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire, David Fincher for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Ron Howard for Frost/Nixon and Gus Van Sant for Milk.

The winner will be announced at the 61st Annual DGA Awards Dinner on Saturday, Jan. 31, at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel.

It should be noted that only six times since the DGA Awards began in 1948 has the feature film winner not gone on to win the Best Director Academy Award.

AWARDS SEASON: The Dark Knight two for two this week

The Dark Knight received another feather in its hat today (Jan. 7) for its chances to pick up a best picture nod at the Academy Awards.

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) announced the nominees for the Writers Guild Awards, and The Dark Knight was mong the five nominees for adapted screenplay.

The 2009 Writers Guild Awards will be held Saturday, Feb. 7, with simultaneous ceremonies at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles and the Hudson Theatre at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in New York City.

The four films competing against The Dark Knight will be The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Doubt, Frost/Nixon and Slumdog Millionaire.

Over in the original category, we'll see Burn After Reading, Milk, Vicky Christina Barcelona, The Visitor and The Wrestler.

For documentary screenplays, it's Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story, Chicago 10, Fuel, Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson and Waltz with Bashir.

For a full list of the WGA nominees, including the television awards, click here.

Before this week, I wasn't giving The Dark Knight much of a chance to get that best picture nomination, but after finding itself in the shortlist with both the producers and writers, I'm becoming a believer. The announcement of the Directors Guild Awards tomorrow will be a big indicator.

Judge to decide Watchmen dispute

The Los Angeles Times reported today a new development in the ongoing case between Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox over who has the rights to distribute the comic book adaptation of Watchmen.

According to the Times, lawyers for both sides have agreed to allow the judge overseeing the case decide if Warner Bros. can release the film.

In court papers filed Monday with U.S. District Judge Gary A. Feess, attorneys for Fox and Warner Bros. jointly said they would let the judge decide Jan. 20 whether Fox could block the film's theatrical distribution, now scheduled for March 6, as Fox has been seeking all along as part of its copyright infringement lawsuit against Warner Bros.
FULL STORY

This case has been making fans sweat for awhile, but this probably good news. Of course it will depend on the ruling, and the likelihood of an appeal regardless of a decision is pretty high.

If the judge rules in favor of Warner Bros., without an injunction from an appeals court, the release date should be safe, at least for a few weeks.

If the judge does rule in favor of Fox, expect a lot of negotiations. Fox would then have the big red button, and it would be in Warner Bros. best interest to work out a deal where Fox gets a cut from the profits. Since Fox didn't have to finance the movie's production, it's basically free money if they work out a deal.

AWARDS SEASON: Producers announce their favorites

In an awards season that has already has its share of surprises, the Producers Guild of America dropped another one today, announcing Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight as one of its top movies of the year.

The film one was of five nominees for the top prize at the Producers Guild Awards, which will be presented Saturday, Jan. 24.

In addition to Nolan, Charles Roven and Emma Thomas for The Dark Knight, the other nominees were The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Kathleen Kennedy & Frank Marshall, Ceán Chaffin), Frost/Nixon (Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner), Milk (Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen) and Slumdog Millionaire (Christian Colson).

The nominated feature documentaries were Man on Wire (Simon Chinn), Standard Operating Procedure (Julie Bilson Ahlberg and Errol Morris) and Trouble the Water (Carl Deal and Tia Lessin).

Bolt (Clark Spencer), Kung Fu Panda (Melissa Cobb) and Wall-E (Jim Morris) are up for animated feature.

Over in TV land, Curb Your Enthusiam, Entourage, The Office, 30 Rocks and Weeds are up for comedy, and Boston Legal, Damages, Dexter, Lost and and Madmen for drama.