'The King's Speech' Leads Oscar Race With 12 Nominations

In this film publicity image released by The Weinstein Company, Colin Firth portrays King George VI in "The King's Speech." (AP2010)

The nominations for the 83rd Annual Academy Awards were announced Tuesday, with the drama "The King's Speech" leading the pack with 12 nominations, including best actor for Colin Firth and best picture.

Firth, who plays stuttering monarch George VI, led the pack for best actor, along with Jesse Eisenberg for "The Social Network," Javier Bardem for "Biutiful," James Franco for "127 Hours," and Jeff Bridges in "True Grit."

Along with "The King's Speech" as a lead contender for best picture, other nominees were the psychosexual thriller "Black Swan"; the boxing drama "The Fighter"; the sci-fi blockbuster "Inception"; the lesbian-family tale "The Kids Are All Right"; the survival story "127 Hours"; the Facebook chronicle "The Social Network"; the animated smash "Toy Story 3"; the Western "True Grit"; and the Ozarks crime thriller "Winter's Bone."

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"True Grit" ran second with 10 nominations, including acting honors for Jeff Bridges and Steinfeld. The favorites in the male-acting categories both were nominated, Globe winners Firth as best actor for "The King's Speech" and Christian Bale as supporting actor for "The Fighter."

The best-actress field shapes up as a two-woman race between Annette Bening for "The Kids Are All Right," who won the Globe for actress in a musical or comedy, and Natalie Portman for "Black Swan," who received the Globe for dramatic actress.

The supporting-actress Oscar could prove the most competitive among acting prizes. Melissa Leo won the Globe for "The Fighter," but she faces strong challenges from that film's co-star Amy Adams and 14-year-old newcomer Steinfeld, who missed out on a Globe nomination for "True Grit" but made the cut for supporting actress at the Oscars.

The Feb. 27 Oscar ceremony will be televised live on ABC from Hollywood's Kodak Theatre.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.