Two Comedies Lead Oscar Pack, Snowden Film, Russian Movie Among Nominees

In a usually drama-packed list, this year's Oscar contenders, which were announced on Thursday, include two comedies, which lead the pack, as well as a controversial documentary about NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden and Russia's bid for best foreign-language film.

MOSCOW, January 16 (Sputnik) — Alejandro Inarritu's "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)" and Wes Anderson's "The Grand Budapest Hotel" each received nine nominations, including best picture, director, original screenplay and cinematography nods. The two comedies led the list of 17 motion pictures that received two or more nominations in 24 categories.

"Citizenfour," an account of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden's early 2013 interviews with director and producer Laura Poitras in a Hong Kong hotel room, was nominated for best documentary.

Russian director Andrei Zvyagintsev's "Leviathan," the winner of the 72nd Golden Globe awards, will contend for the Oscar in the best foreign-language film category.

Nominations for Hollywood's top cinematic achievements were announced in a live-broadcast ceremony from Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, California earlier on Thursday.

The 87th Academy Awards will take place on February 22 at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles. An estimated 43 million viewers across the United States tuned in to last year's ceremony, where the historical drama "12 Years a Slave" won best picture, while "American Hustle" and "Gravity" each took home 10 statuettes.