Sky’s the limit as Bond picks up six nominations

James Bond leads the pack at this year’s Empire Awards with Skyfall earning six nominations including best actor for Daniel Craig and best actress for Dame Judi Dench.

Dame Judi faces competition from Oscar winners Anne Hathaway and Jennifer Lawrence who are both nominated in the same category, but not for the roles that won them Academy Awards last month. Ms Hathaway is nominated for The Dark Knight Rises, while Lawrence gets a nod for The Hunger Games.

The shortlist for best actor includes two more winners from this year’s Oscars – Daniel Day-Lewis and Christoph Waltz.

Other contenders for best actor include Robert Downey jnr and Martin Freeman, while Golden Globe winner Jessica Chastain and Naomi Watts complete the line-up for best actress. Skyfall also picked up nominations for best thriller, best British film, best director and best film at the awards which are voted for by film fans.

The public are invited to choose their favourites in each of the categories.

Argo, which has been a big winner during awards season, has been nominated in the best thriller category, but missed out on recognition in for best film.

Avengers Assemble and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey have five nominations each. Voting takes place on the Empire website ahead of the ceremony on Sunday 24 March.

Last year Olivia Coleman won best actress for her role in 
Tyrannosaur.