'Pan's Labyrinth' director Guillermo del Toro is at it again with 'The Shape of Water.' The film is set inside a 1960s government laboratory and explores the curious relationship between an amphibious creature in a water tank and a voiceless janitor. USA TODAY
The Academy Awards dove all in for The Shape of Water.
The 1960s-set supernatural fairy-tale romance received 13 Oscar nominations on Tuesday morning, including best picture, lead actress (Sally Hawkins), supporting actor (Richard Jenkins), director (Guillermo del Toro) and a slew of technical honors. Behind it is Christopher Nolan's World War II epic Dunkirk with eight nominations and the darkly comic drama Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, up for seven at the March 4 ceremony hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and airing live on ABC (8 p.m. ET/5 PT).
Three Billboards and Shape of Water will tussle for the night's biggest prize in a wide-ranging best picture slate that includes coming-of-age comedy Lady Bird, social thriller Get Out, World War II dramas Darkest Hour and Dunkirk, Pentagon Papers drama The Post, fashion-world romance Phantom Thread and gay love story Call Me By Your Name.
Gary Oldman, transformed into Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour, followed up Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild award wins with an expected Oscar nomination for best actor. The British thespian will compete against newcomers Timothée Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name) and Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out), retiring screen legend Daniel Day-Lewis (Phantom Thread) and Denzel Washington (Roman J. Israel, Esq.).
Three Billboards' Frances McDormand also continued her successful awards streak with a nomination for best actress alongside Hawkins. Rounding out the category are previous nominee Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird), Oscar rookie Margot Robbie (I, Tonya) and all-time contender Meryl Streep (The Post), earning her 21st nomination, the most of any actor.
Allison Janney (I, Tonya) and Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird) each snagged their first Oscar nominations for supporting actress. Joining them will be Mary J. Blige (Mudbound), previous winner Octavia Spencer (The Shape of Water) and surprise contender Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread).
Three Billboards scored two spots in the supporting actor race, with Sam Rockwell and Woody Harrelson both earning nominations. They'll compete against Willem Dafoe (The Florida Project), Richard Jenkins (The Shape of Water) and Christopher Plummer, who stepped in to replace Kevin Spacey in All the Money in the World at the last minute.
