Britons Daniel Day-Lewis, Gary Oldman, and Daniel Kaluuya were nominated in the leading actor category for their roles in “Phantom Thread,” “Darkest Hour,” and “Get Out” respectively.
British actress Sally Hawkins was nominated for her leading role performance in dark fantasy “The Shape of Water,” while British “Phantom Thread” actress Lesley Manville was nominated for a supporting performance.
“Great to see a host of cracking British contenders in this year’s Oscar nominations line-up,” Matt Hancock, Secretary of Date for Digital, Culture Media and Sport, posted on Twitter.
World War Two drama “Dunkirk” received the second-most nominations overall, with eight including a directing nomination for Christopher Nolan, trailing Guillermo del Toro’s “The Shape of Water,” which received 13.
“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” helmed by British director Martin McDonagh, was nominated in the best film category, and star Frances McDormand was nominated for best leading actress, though McDonagh was not nominated for directing the critically-acclaimed film.
Oldman has already won a Golden Globe and a British Academy of Film and Television Arts award for his performance as Winston Churchill in “Darkest Hour”, though he faces stiff competition from three-time Oscar winner Day-Lewis, among others.
In the technical arena, British director Edgar Wright tweeted his satisfaction with his musical heist caper “Baby Driver,” receiving nominations for film, sound, and sound effects editing.
In recent years, the United Kingdom has produced films that have dominated the prestigious awards, with Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire,” winning eight Oscars in 2009, and Tom Hooper’s “The King’s Speech,” taking four major awards in 2010.
Eric Fellner, nominated for his role in producing “Darkest Hour,” told Reuters that government subsidies had helped to shore up the industry and allowed British talent to succeed on the global stage.
“(Subsidies) made a massive difference. And that’s why you’re seeing so many people in so many different departments that are British, working on the biggest and smallest films all around the world and getting accolades like Oscar nominations today.”