The ballots are in— “The Artist,” “Hugo," and “The Descendants” are up for best picture, plus performers Meryl Streep, George Clooney, Brad Pitt at Octavia Spencer were also nominated for an Oscar as the announcements for the 84th Academy Award nominations began this morning.

“The Artist” is the one to beat for this year’s awards, with critic support as well as the recent win at the Producers Guild Awards (PGA) this past weekend.Although not popular in theaters (the film only grossed $12.1 million), the silent black and white film about

‘Hollywood’s transition to ‘talkies’’ is the predicted winner.

Scorsese's animated film "Hugo" is the most nomiated film this year, recieving 11 nods, and two-time oscar winner Meryl Streep boots her record as most nominated actress, 17 nominations in total.

More surprising nominations include the 9/11 drama “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” and “The Tree of Life,” for best picture, and the chick comedy “Bridesmaids” for original screenplay.

The ceremony is set to air on NBC Feb. 26 from the Kodak Theater, hosted by Billy Crystal.

Check out all the nominees below, or watch the official announcement here:

Best picture
“War Horse”
“The Artist”
“Midnight in Paris”
“Moneyball”
“The Descendants”
“The Tree of Life”
“The Help”
“Hugo”
“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”

Best supporting actress:
Berenice Bejo, “The Artist”
Jessica Chastain, “The Help”
Melissa McCarthy, “Bridesmaids”
Janet McTeer, “Albert Nobbs”
Octavia Spencer, “The Help”

Best supporting actor
Kenneth Branagh, “My Week With Marilyn”
Jonah Hill, “Moneyball”
Christopher Plummer, “Beginners”
Nick Nolte, “Warrior”
Max von Sydow, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”

Best actress
Glenn Close, “Albert Nobbs”
Viola Davis, “The Help”
Rooney Mara, “Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”
Meryl Streep, “The Iron Lady”
Michelle Williams, “My Week With Marilyn”

Best actor
Demian Bichir, “A Better Life”
George Clooney, “The Descendants”
Jean Dujardin, “The Artist”
Gary Oldman, “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy”
Brad Pitt, “Moneyball”

Best director
Michel Hazanavicius, “The Artist”
Alexander Payne, “The Descendants”
Martin Scorsese, “Hugo”
Terrence Malick, “Tree of Life”
Woody Allen, “Midnight in Paris”

Best original screenplay
“The Artist”
“Bridesmaids”
“Margin Call”
“Midnight in Paris”
“A Separation”

Best adapted screenplay
“The Descendants”
“Hugo”
“The Ides of March”
“Moneyball”
“Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy”

Best foreign language film
“Bullhead”
“Footnote”
“In Darkness”
“Monsieur Lazhar”
“A Separation”

Best animated feature
“A Cat in Paris”
“Chico& Rita”
“Kung Fu Panda 2”
“Puss in Boots”
“Rango”