1. Amy Adams
Then again, anyone who expected Annette Bening ("20th Century Women") or Taraji P. Henson ("Hidden Figures") to earn a Best Actress nod was disappointed as well. On the other hand, congrats to Ruth Negga, often overlooked this awards season, for scoring a Best Actress nomination for biopic "Loving."
2. Martin Scorsese and "Silence" Denied
Scorsese is also an Academy favorite, but his movie "Silence," once expected to be a major contender this year, got nothing except for Best Cinematography. Actually, the other various awards organizations have also largely turned a deaf ear to "Silence," but still, that's gotta sting. Insult to injury department: Andrew Garfield, star of both "Silence" and "Hacksaw Ridge," was nominated only for the latter.
3. Mel Gibson
Other projected Best Director nominees as Denzel Washington ("Fences"), Garth Davis ("Lion"), and David Mackenzie ("Hell or High Water") came up empty-handed.
4. Hugh Grant Snubbed
Good will for "Florence Foster Jenkins" apparently extended only as far as Meryl Streep (her 20th nomination!) and those who costumed her. Grant was widely expected to get a Supporting Actor nod, but this category was full of surprises.
Lucas Hedges, not widely mentioned during awards season so far, grabbed one of the six nominations for "Manchester by the Sea." And Michael Shannon got one for "Nocturnal Animals," over his widely touted co-star (and Golden Globe winner) Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
5. No Love for Pixar
The category offered instead some foreign-made surprise entries: "My Life as a Zucchini" (not that big a surprise, since it got a Golden Globe nomination as well) and "The Red Turtle," a dialogue-free fantasy romance from Studio Ghibli that was a big winner last year at Cannes but which has yet to make a splash on these shores.
6. "Deadpool"
Okay, the smash-hit superhero spoof was a longshot for Best Picture or Best Actor, but still, nada for adapted screenplay, editing, sound, or even make-up? C'mon, making Ryan Reynolds look hideously disfigured ought to be worth something.
7. Viggo Mortensen
8. "The Empty Chair"
Documentaries don't often generate Best Original Song nominees, but Sting's tune about slain journalist James Foley from "Jim: The James Foley Story" earned a nod over such pre-nomination favorites as Pharrell Williams and Lalah Hathaway's "Runnin'" ("Hidden Figures"), Shakira's "Try Everything," ("Zootopia"), and Stevie Wonder and Ariana Grande's "Faith" ("Sing").
9. No Love for "20th Century Women"
At least he made it into that category; such prospective nominees as "Jackie" and "Zootopia" did not.
10. "Hunt for the Wilderpeople" Snubbed
This little-seen indie is one of the best films of 2016 (and of the decade), and it was virtually ignored during its platform release last summer. Its soft (read: practically non-existent) awards campaign didn't help it get the attention it deserves either. Another indie that fell off the Academy's radar...?
11. "Sing Street"
