Song film earns 5 Spirit award nods
Celine Song’s “Past Lives,” Todd Haynes’ “May December” and Cord Jefferson’s “American Fiction” received a leading five nominations, including best feature, from the Film Independent Spirit Awards. The nominees were announced Tuesday on YouTube.
Song’s quietly romantic film, starring Greta Lee and Teo Yoo, earned nominations for her direction, script and for both actors. “May December” got nods for Natalie Portman, Charles Melton and screenwriter Samy Burch. MGM’s “American Fiction,” featuring Jeffrey Wright as a frustrated novelist, got recognition for Wright, Erika Alexander and Sterling K. Brown.
It was a good morning for A24. The indie film company received 11 nods overall for “All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt,” “Earth Mama” and “The Zone of Interest.” Kelly Reichardt’s “Showing Up” was also named winner of the Robert Altman Award, which is given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast. Michelle Williams leads an ensemble that includes André Benjamin, Hong Chau, Judd Hirsch and Amanda Plummer.
Alexander Payne’s “The Holdovers” received four nominations including for cinematography, best screenplay, best supporting performance for Da’Vine Joy Randolph and best breakthrough for newcomer Dominic Sessa.
Directing nominees are Andrew Haigh (“All of Us Strangers”); Ira Sachs (“Passages”); William Oldroyd (“Eileen”); and Haynes and Song. “Passages” and “All of Us Strangers” are also nominated for best feature, as was “We Grown Now.”
Lead performance nominees are Wright,
Lee, Yoo, Portman, Jessica Chastain (“Memory”), Trace Lysette (“Monica”), Judy Reyes (“Birth/ Rebirth”), Andrew Scott (“All of Us Strangers”), Franz Rogowski (“Passages”) and Teyana Taylor (“A Thousand and One”).
Supporting performance nods went to Noah Galvin (“Theater Camp”), Anne Hathaway (“Eileen”), Glenn Howerton (“BlackBerry”), Marin Ireland (“Eileen”), Catalina Saavedra (“Rotting in the Sun”), Ben Whishaw (“Passages”) and Marshawn Lynch in “Bottoms,” in addition to Melton, Randolph, Brown and Alexander.
The nominees for television included “Jury Duty” for best series and ensemble cast, “Beef ” for series, Steven Yeun and Ali Wong, Billie Eilish for “Swarm” and “The Last of Us,” which earned acting nods for Bella Ramsey, Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman.
The Spirit Awards
limit eligibility to productions with budgets of $30 million or less.
Hudgens marries: Actor Vanessa Hudgens and professional baseball player Cole Tucker got married over the weekend in Mexico, according to reports.
Hudgens, 34, and Tucker, 27, were both spotted in Tulum, and Hudgens’ longtime agent posted on Instagram congratulating her on the marriage. The two tied the knot Saturday, sources said. A photo of Hudgens in a white dress on the beach began circulating Sunday on social media.
Dec. 6 birthdays: Actor James Naughton is 78. Singer Frank Beverly is 77. Actor JoBeth Williams is 75. Actor Tom Hulce is 70. Comic Steven Wright is 68. Guitarist Peter Buck is 67. Actor Janine Turner is 61. Director Judd Apatow is 56. Keyboardist Ulf “Buddha” Ekberg is 53.