The 82nd Academy Awards nominations were released on Tuesday morning, and Avatar and The Hurt Locker both have nine nominations each. Avatar and The Hurt Locker are neck to neck in 7 categories too. The categories for which both of them are nominated are Cinematography, Directing, Film Editing, Music (Original Score), Best Picture, Sound Editing, and Sound Mixing. Besides these, the 3D sci-fi flick Avatar is also nominated in Art Direction and Visual Effects. “This has gone way above our wildest expectations. We were looking to make a good movie that entertained the masses,” said ‘Avatar’ producer Jon Landau, saying that it was really “a pinch-me moment.”

The Hurt Locker is nominated for the Actor in a Leading Role (Jeremy Renner) and for Original Screenplay too.

The other nominees for best actor are Jeff Bridges — who is the top favorite, George Clooney, Colin Firth, Morgan Freeman. And the Best actress nominees are Sandra Bullock, who is the top favorite, as she won the Golden Globe in this category, Helen Mirren, Carey Mulligan, Gabourey Sibide and Meryl Streep for her role in Julie & Julia.

The Best supporting actor nominees are Matt Damon for Invictus, Woody Harrelson, Christopher Plummer, Stanley Tucci, and the top most favorite for the Award is none other than Christoph Waltz.