One night after “The Artist” seemed to button up a Best Picture Oscar by picking up the Directors Guild trophy for Michel Hazanavicius, Tate Taylor’s “The Help” threw its weight around the Screen Actors Guild awards, picking up key awards for Female Actor in a Supporting Role (Octavia Spencer), Female Actor in a Leading Role (Viola Davis) and Cast in a Motion Picture … the SAG equivalent of Best Picture.

A win by the “Artist” ensemble would have slammed shut any other film’s chances of topping Hazanavicius’ silent ode to old Hollywood in the coveted Best Picture race. But the show of support for Taylor’s period drama shows signs of life in what has been a landslide race up to this point. Could “The Help” build on its SAG momentum and turn the next few weeks into a frenzied contest for Oscar’s affections?

We shall see.

Elsewhere at the SAG awards (at least on the movie side), Christopher Plummer picked up yet another award for his work in “Beginners,” expertly playing a closeted homosexual coming out of the closet after his wife passes away.

But “Artist” lead Jean Dujardin threw a wrench into “Descendants” star George Clooney’s Oscar plans by picking up the SAG for Male Actor in a Leading Role. As THR’s main Oscarologist Scott Feinberg notes, Dujardin has a very good chance of taking Best Actor away from Clooney on Oscar eve, and this SAG win suggests a shift in momentum in that category.

“In so doing, [Dujardin] became the new frontrunner to win the best actor Academy Award, just like the last seven best actor SAG Award winners and all but four best actor SAG Award winners ever,” Feinberg writes.

So, the race – which we declared over just a few days ago – is back on. The ball is back in Harvey Weinstein’s court, because the bulk of today’s headlines are about “The Help,” and not “The Artist.” Plenty of time to swing momentum back to Hazanavicius’ gem, but the next big move has to happen soon.

And because we never tire of showing it, here is Davis and the cast of “The Help” picking up our Hollywood Ensemble trophy at the Hollywood Film Awards in October. Truly, this film’s awards journey started on our stage, and we couldn’t be happier for their success:

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Producer Jim Burke for “The Descendants.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”
- Producer Grant Heslov for “The Ides of March.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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Yeah, right. There’s still PLENTY of news to report not that we’ve shifted into Phase Two of the Oscar campaign. Let’s hit the big stories of the day:

- Zooey Deschanel and Joel McHale (two stars better known for television projects at the moment) have been tapped to host the 2012 Writers Guild Awards. Expect them to be sarcastically adorable.

- Did you catch Patton Oswalt’s humorous Twitter thread inviting all the snubbed talents – Andy Serkis, Albert Brooks, Charlize Theron, Tilda Swinton – to a bar for Karaoke?

- Even better: Did you see Swinton’s joyous response? (Basically, she’s in.)

- Critic Tim Robey examines what it is the Academy seems to love about “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close’ director Stephen Daldry.

- And finally, an alternate (and honest) take on the movie posters for this year’s Oscar nominees. Worth a look!

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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Jennifer Lawrence and Academy President Tom Sherak revealed that “The Artist,” “The Descendants,” “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close,” “The Help,” “Hugo,” “Midnight In Paris,” “Moneyball,” “The Tree of Life” and “War Horse” will compete for Oscar’s top prize when Billy Crystal hosts this year’s ceremony on Sunday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT.

In honor of the nine Best Picture nominees, here are the nine biggest surprises from this morning’s nominees:

1. “Hugo” earned more nominations than “The Artist”
That doesn’t mean Michel Hazanavicius’ film isn’t the frontrunner, as it earned nominations in the top categories including Picture, Director, Actor (Jean Dujardin) and Supporting Actress (Berenice Bejo, who had to hear her name butchered by Sherak). But Marty Scorsese’s film topped all contenders with 11 nominations, and that means something.

2. “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” represents
A late entry into the Oscar race, Stephen Daldry’s heartwrenching drama about a special needs boy (Thomas Horn) overcoming the loss of his father in the 9/11 terrorist attacks connected with enough Academy members to earn a Best Picture nomination, as well as a nod for the mighty Max Von Sydow. It also triggered the largest number of cry-baby Tweets from detractors, which are always fun to read.

3. Stephen Daldry’s Director streak is snapped
With nine Best Picture nominees and only five Best Director slots, some filmmakers had to be left out. Steven Spielberg (“War Horse”), Bennett Miller (“Moneyball”), Tate Taylor (“The Help”) and Daldry all saw their films earn Picture nods, but they missed the Director cut. For Daldry, it is the first time he has released a movie and has not been nominated.

4. Nick Nolte makes the cut!
Thankfully enough voters saw Gavin O’Connor’s grossly underrated “Warrior” to recognize Nolte’s tremendous performance.

5. Gary Oldman makes the cut!
Earning his first (FIRST!!) Oscar nomination. That, alone, is shocking. At least the Academy’s starting to wake up to this “newcomer.” (Side note: Thrilled that Demián Bichir scored a nom for “A Better Life.”)

6. Melissa McCarthy made the cut, as well!
So the “Bridesmaids” train didn’t carry the mega-comedy all the way to Best Picture, but it did churn up nominations for this year’s “It” girl, McCarthy, and a Screenplay nod for Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig.

7. Albert Brooks did not make the cut …
And “Drive,” in general, was overlooked. This one disappoints me, as I thought Brooks should have been a frontrunner in the Supporting Actor category. He didn’t even get a nomination. Same basically goes for “Drive,” which was skipped over in virtually every category, earning only a Sound Editing nomination. That’s a shame.

8. “Harry Potter” did not receive that “Lord of the Rings” bump.
Remember when the Academy bent over backwards for “Return of the King,” using the third and final installment in Peter Jackson’s trilogy to reward the filmmaker for a complete body of work? Yeah, they didn’t feel like doing that for “Harry Potter,” which was relegated to the technical categories. A franchise this monumental deserved much more than that.

And finally …

9. “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” earns five nominations
Yet misses out on Picture and Director. Listen, it’s still a very good morning for David Fincher, producer Scott Rudin, and Team “Tattoo.” But going into the nominations, I felt the Academy would either completely embrace Fincher’s dark adaptation or shun it. They did neither. Or is it both? Rooney Mara worked her way into a very competitive Best Actress race (nudging out Tilda Swinton and Charlize Theron, to name a few). And the film did very well in the technical categories. We’ll see how it performs on Oscar eve.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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Universal and Working Title confirmed the casting this morning, pairing Tveit with Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried and Eddie Redmayne (“My Week With Marilyn”). Some other big names are being bandied about for supporting roles, though the likes of Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter have not officially been attached just yet.

Tveit will play Enjolras, a character responsible for a student rebellion in the streets of Paris. He’s best known for ordering Javert’s execution in the story.

As of right now, Hooper is rushing to meet a release date of Dec. 7, 2012.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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HollywoodNews.com: Fans everywhere are looking forward to seeing Kristen Stewart and Charlize Theron in ‘Snow White and the Huntsman,’ and from how it all started, it sounds like there is definitely something to look forward to with it.

Theron recently opened up about the instant and effortless chemistry the two stars had upon meeting, states E! News. “We met on a plane going to Comic-Con. You know when you meet someone and it’s effortless? It was instantly amazing,” Theron commented.

“We couldn’t shut up. The plane landed and they were like, ‘Get off the plane’ and we were going on and on,” Theron added about the two stars bonding instantly.

Are you looking forward to the film?

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Image by PR Photos

The Oscar-nominated director revealed that his latest film, “Young Adult,” will screen at the Berlin Film Festival in February. The screening also will serve as the film’s German premiere.

“Young Adult” has been earning its stars awards recognition leading up to the Oscar nominations on Jan. 24. Charlize Theron, who plays a self-centered YA novelist, earned nominations from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the Satellite Awards and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, who bestowed the beauty with a Golden Globe nom. Her co-star, Patton Oswalt, also has been collecting nominations for his performance as Matt, a handicapped nerd from Theron’s home town who helps her “connect” to her fading roots.

Diablo Cody, who penned Reitman’s “Young Adult” script, picked up the Hollywood Screenwriter Award at our Hollywood Film Festival in October. Her acceptance speech is below.

In addition to “Young Adult,” the Berlin festival also added to its slate “I, Anna,” the directorial debut of Charlotte Rampling’s son, Barnaby Southcombe. The film noir co-stars Gabriel Byrne, Hayley Atwell and Eddie Marsan.

And Chris Kenneally’s documentary “Side By Side” was put on the schedule. The doc looks at digital cinema, and featured interviews with the lieks of David Fincher, Keanu Reeves, Martin Scorsese and James Cameron.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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The picture bested “The Help,” “Hugo,” “The Ides Of March,” “Moneyball” and “War Horse.”

Could Alexander Payne’s stellar drama give “The Artist” a run for the Oscar? We shall see.

For continued Golden Globes coverage throughout the evening, keep visiting HollywoodNews.com’s Awards Alley.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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The silent comedy triumphed over “50/50,” “Bridesmaids,” “Midnight In Paris,” and Simon Curtis’ “My Week With Marilyn.”

For continued Golden Globes coverage throughout the evening, keep visiting HollywoodNews.com’s Awards Alley.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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He defeated Brendan Gleeson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ryan Gosling and Owen Wilson.

Because of the dual categories at the Globes, Dujardin didn’t have to compete against George Clooney, so we really don’t know which actor has the upper hand in the Oscar race. But the Best Actor category does seem to come down to the two of them.

We’ll see what happens …

For continued Golden Globes coverage throughout the evening, keep visiting HollywoodNews.com’s Awards Alley.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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It defeated “Arthur Christmas,” “Cars 2,” “Puss In Boots” and “Rango.”

For continued Golden Globes coverage throughout the evening, keep visiting HollywoodNews.com’s Awards Alley.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

Follow Hollywood News on Twitter for up-to-date news information.

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