Golden Globes nominations announced

Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" is now officially the awards-season leader after earning seven nominations from the Golden Globes awards Thursday morning.

Trailing behind were Ben Affleck's "Argo" and Quentin Tarantino's "Django Unchained" with five nods apiece; coming in with four nods each were the romantic comedy "Silver Linings Playbook," the musical "Les Miserables" and Kathryn Bigelow's drama about the hunt for Osama bin Laden, "Zero Dark Thirty."

All told, the famously eccentric Golden Globes delivered another yearly list of nominees that seemed as random as the actors chosen to read it: Megan Fox, Ed Helms and Jessica Alba. That's because the Globes distinguish between dramas and comedies or musicals, which means more awards to go around, and because the Globes like to recognize celebrities even when their movies are lousy. Last year, the 2010 Angelina Jolie-Johnny Depp dud "The Tourist" earned three Globes nominations.

Among the surprises in this year's list was the strong showing from "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen," a romance starring Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt that received good reviews but remained widely unseen. Both actors, and the film itself, are nominated in the comedy or musical categories. Unexpected nods in the dramatic actress category went to Rachel Weisz in the largely ignored British movie "The Deep Blue Sea," and to Naomi Watts in "The Impossible," a limited-release drama about the 2004 Asian tsunami.

The most notable omission: Anthony Hopkins, not nominated for his lead role in "Hitchcock," although Helen Mirren, who played his wife, is up for best dramatic actress. Paul Thomas Anderson's critically acclaimed "The Master" is not being considered for best director or dramatic film, though its three stars -- Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams -- were nominated. And the costume drama "Anna Karenina," starring Keira Knightley and Jude Law, was recognized only for its score.

The 70th annual Golden Globe awards show, hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, will air live on NBC at 8 p.m. Jan. 13.

GOLDEN GLOBES NOMINATIONS

BEST PICTURE, DRAMA

"Argo"

"Django Unchained"

"Life of Pi"

"Lincoln"

"Zero Dark Thirty"

BEST PICTURE, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

"The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel"

"Les Miserables"

"Moonrise Kingdom"

"Salmon Fishing in the Yemen"

"Silver Linings Playbook"

BEST ACTOR, DRAMA

Daniel Day-Lewis, "Lincoln"

Richard Gere, "Arbitrage"

John Hawkes, "The Sessions"

Joaquin Phoenix, "The Master"

Denzel Washington, "Flight"

BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA

Jessica Chastain, "Zero Dark Thirty"

Marion Cotillard, "Rust and Bone"

Helen Mirren, "Hitchcock"

Naomi Watts, "The Impossible"

Rachel Weisz, "The Deep Blue Sea"

BEST ACTOR, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

Jack Black, "Bernie"

Bradley Cooper, "Silver Linings Playbook"

Hugh Jackman, "Les Miserables"

Ewan McGregor, "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen"

Bill Murray, "Hyde Park on Hudson"

BEST ACTRESS, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

Emily Blunt, "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen"

Judi Dench, "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel"

Jennifer Lawrence, "Silver Linings Playbook"

Maggie Smith, "Quartet"

Meryl Streep, "Hope Springs"