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A snowbound wilderness. A post-apocalyptic desert. The barren surface of Mars. Behind the Iron Curtain. A newsroom in Boston. The inside of a locked shed. Wall Street trading floors. New York and Ireland in the 1950s.

Two things the eight Best Picture contenders for the 88th Academy Awards, announced Thursday, have in common: the bleakness of their settings and their seriousness of purpose.

The survival drama "The Revenant" topped all films with 12 nominations, with the wasteland chase "Mad Max: Fury Road" close behind with 10 nods.

Both are among the eight films vying for Best Picture. The others: the financial-disaster comedy/drama "The Big Short," the Cold War thriller "Bridge of Spies," the Irish immigrant romance "Brooklyn," the science-fiction adventure "The Martian," the harrowing kidnapping drama "Room" and the journalism drama "Spotlight."

For Oscar handicappers, the most noticeable absence from the Best Picture list was Todd Haynes' '50s lesbian romance "Carol," which received six nominations but not the top category. Likewise, the mega-selling "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" received five nominations, but it wasn't chosen as a Best Picture contender.

The most glaring controversy about this year's Oscar nominations is that, for the second year in a row, none of the 20 nominees in the acting categories were people of color. The hashtag #OscarsSoWhite ran rampant on Twitter — something Academy officials had hoped to avoid. Comedian Chris Rock, tapped to emcee this year's ceremony, will have plenty of material.

Diversity became a watchword after last year's all-white acting nominations. Certainly the moviegoing public responded well to movies featuring people of color in leading roles, such as the boxing drama "Creed" or the N.W.A. biography "Straight Outta Compton" — not to mention the inclusion of a black stormtrooper, Finn (played by John Boyega), in "The Force Awakens." ("Creed" got one nomination, for Sylvester Stallone's supporting performance. "Straight Outta Compton" received a single nomination, for adapted screenplay.)

Many Oscar prognosticators thought Idris Elba's portrayal of an African warlord in the child-soldier drama "Beasts of No Nation" would net a supporting nod. Instead, the Academy's voters picked an all-white acting slate.

The projected favorite for Best Actor is Leonardo DiCaprio, playing the rugged guide surviving near death in the wild in "Revenant." The other nominees are Bryan Cranston as blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo in "Trumbo," Matt Damon as a solitary astronaut in "The Martian," Michael Fassbender as Apple founder Steve Jobs in "Steve Jobs" and Eddie Redmayne as a transgender painter in "The Danish Girl."

Brie Larson, portraying a kidnapping survivor in "Room," is considered a favorite for Best Actress. The other nominees are Cate Blanchett as a lesbian housewife in "Carol," Jennifer Lawrence as a driven entrepreneur in "Joy," Charlotte Rampling as a woman discovering secrets about her husband in "45 Years" and Saoirse Ronan as an Irish immigrant torn by love and homesickness in "Brooklyn."

The race for Supporting Actress is notable for two performers who might be considered leads: Rooney Mara as a shopgirl falling in love in "Carol" and Alicia Vikander as a devoted wife in "The Danish Girl."

The remaining nominees are Jennifer Jason Leigh as a nasty outlaw in "The Hateful Eight," Rachel McAdams as a sensitive reporter in "Spotlight" and Kate Winslet as a put-upon assistant in "Steve Jobs."

Stallone is favored in the Supporting Actor category, reprising his role of boxer Rocky Balboa in "Creed." Also nominated: Christian Bale as an antisocial hedge-fund manager in "The Big Short," Tom Hardy as a devious trapper in "Revenant," Mark Ruffalo as a driven reporter in "Spotlight" and Mark Rylance as a cagey Soviet operative in "Bridge of Spies."

Among the surprises among those actors not nominated: Johnny Depp in "Black Mass," Charlize Theron in "Fury Road," Michael Keaton in "Spotlight," young Jacob Tremblay in "Room," Paul Dano in "Love & Mercy," Benicio Del Toro in "Sicario," Helen Mirren in "Trumbo" and Kristen Stewart for "Clouds of Sils Maria."

The 88th Academy Awards will be handed out Feb. 28 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. It will be broadcast live on ABC, KTVX Ch. 4 in Utah.

Twitter: @moviecricket —

Oscar nominees

Here is a complete list of 88th Annual Academy Award nominations announced Thursday:

1. Best Picture • "The Big Short," "Bridge of Spies," "Brooklyn," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Martian," "The Revenant," "Room," "Spotlight"

2. Actor • Bryan Cranston, "Trumbo"; Matt Damon, "The Martian"; Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Revenant"; Michael Fassbender, "Steve Jobs"; Eddie Redmayne, "The Danish Girl"

3. Actress • Cate Blanchett, "Carol"; Brie Larson, "Room"; Jennifer Lawrence, "Joy"; Charlotte Rampling, "45 Years"; Saoirse Ronan, "Brooklyn"

4. Supporting Actor • Christian Bale, "The Big Short"; Tom Hardy, "The Revenant"; Mark Ruffalo, "Spotlight"; Mark Rylance, "Bridge of Spies"; Sylvester Stallone, "Creed"

5. Supporting Actress • Jennifer Jason Leigh, "The Hateful Eight"; Rooney Mara, "Carol"; Rachel McAdams, "Spotlight"; Alicia Vikander, "The Danish Girl"; Kate Winslet, "Steve Jobs"

6. Directing • "The Big Short," Adam McKay; "Mad Max: Fury Road," George Miller; "The Revenant," Alejandro G. Iñárritu; "Room," Lenny Abrahamson; "Spotlight," Tom McCarthy

7. Foreign Language Film • "Embrace of the Serpent," "Mustang," "Son of Saul," "Theeb," "A War"

8. Adapted Screenplay • "The Big Short," "Brooklyn," "Carol," "The Martian," "Room"

9. Original Screenplay • "Bridge of Spies," "Ex Machina," "Inside Out," "Spotlight," "Straight Outta Compton"

10. Animated Feature Film • "Anomalisa," "Boy and the World," "Inside Out," "Shaun the Sheep Movie," "When Marnie Was There"

11. Production Design • "Bridge of Spies," "The Danish Girl," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Martian," "The Revenant"

12. Cinematography • "Carol," "The Hateful Eight," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Revenant," "Sicario"

13. Sound Mixing • "Bridge of Spies," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Martian," "The Revenant," "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"

14. Sound Editing • "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Martian," "The Revenant," "Sicario," "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"

15. Original Score • "Bridge of Spies," "Carol," "The Hateful Eight," "Sicario," "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"

16. Original Song • "Earned It" from "Fifty Shades of Grey"; "Manta Ray" from "Racing Extinction"; "Simple Song #3" from "Youth"; "Til It Happens to You" from "The Hunting Ground"; "Writing's on the Wall" from "Spectre"

17. Costume Design • "Carol," "Cinderella," "The Danish Girl," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Revenant"

18. Documentary Feature • "Amy," "Cartel Land," "The Look of Silence," "What Happened, Miss Simone?," "Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom"

19. Documentary (short subject) • "Body Team 12," "Chau, Beyond the Lines," "Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah," "A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness," "Last Day of Freedom"

20. Film Editing • "The Big Short," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Revenant," "Spotlight," "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"

21. Makeup and Hairstyling • "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared," "The Revenant"

22. Animated Short Film • "Bear Story," "Prologue," "Sanjay's Super Team," "We Can't Live Without Cosmos," "World of Tomorrow"

23. Live Action Short Film • "Ave Maria," "Day One," "Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)," "Shok," "Stutterer"

24. Visual Effects • "Ex Machina," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Martian," "The Revenant," "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"