Oscars: The Power of the Dog leads nominations as Benedict Cumberbatch and Will Smith battle for Best Actor

Andrew Garfield and Kristen Stewart pick up nods after being shut out of Baftas last week

The nominees for the 2022 Oscars have been revealed, with The Power of the Dog leading with a total of 12 nods.

The Academy Award nominations were announced by Tracee Ellis Ross and Leslie Jordan on Tuesday (8 February). The theme for this year’s ceremony is “Movie Lovers, unite”.

Netflix’s The Power of the Dog leads the pack with 12 nods, including Best Picture and a directing nomination for Jane Campion.

The film’s stars also fared well, with Benedict Cumberbatch picking up a nomination for Best Actor, Jesse Plemons for Best Supporting Actor, Kirsten Dunst for Best Supporting Actress (her first-ever nomination), and Kodi Smit-McPhee for Best Supporting Actor.

Following close behind is Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi film Dune with 10 nods. Meanwhile, West Side Story and Belfast picked up seven nominations each.

King Richard secured six nominations, with Will Smith getting another shot at being crowned Best Actor. The actor was nominated for his 2002 biopic Ali and 2007’s The Pursuit of Happyness, but has failed to secure the top prize.

After being shut out of the Bafta nominations last week, Andrew Garfield has been nominated for his role as Rent composer Jonathan Larson in Tick… Tick… Boom.

The actor is up for Best Actor against fellow Brit Benedict Cumberbatch, as well as Will Smith, Javier Bardem and Denzel Washington.

Will Smith plays the ambitious father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams in ‘King Richard’ (AP)

Thanks to his role in The Tragedy of Macbeth, Washington has scored his 10th overall Oscar nomination and in doing so continued his record as the most-nominated Black actor in Academy Awards history.

Netflix’s The Lost Daughter has picked up three nominations, including Best Picture and a nod for Olivia Colman in Best Leading Actress. Jessie Buckley also received her first-ever nomination for her supporting role in the film.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza has snagged three nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. The film, however, failed to pick up any mentions in the acting categories.

Lady Gaga in ‘House of Gucci’ (Fabio Lovino)

Fans were shocked to see House of Gucci shut out of the nominations other than in the Makeup and Hairstyling category. Fan-favourite Lady Gaga was snubbed for her role in the film.

Other upsets include the absence of Denis Villeneuve in the Best Director category for Dune. The film, however, did pick up a nomination for Best Picture.

After missing out on a Bafta nomination for Spencer, Kristen Stewart was feted with an Oscar nod for her role as Princess Diana.

Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana in ‘Spencer' (STX Films)

Among the other nominees are Coda and Don’t Look Up, which have three and four nods, respectively.

Find the full list of Oscar nominees here.

The 94th Oscars awards ceremony will air this year on 27 March and will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.