The nominations for the 88th Academy Awards were announced this morning, with The Revenant scoring 12 noms in a field that could have been predicted by pretty much anyone and their movie-loving dog. Still, it's a strong roster this year.

Challenging Alejandro González Iñárritu's gruelling man-bear love story for best picture are The Big Short—perhaps the one real outlier in the list—Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn, The Martian, Room, Spotlight, and Mad Max: Fury Road, which tails The Revenant through a radioactive Namibian canyon with a total of 10 nominations.

In the best actor category, the Academy rolled out nominations for Bryan Cranston (Trumbo), Matt Damon (The Martian), and Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant). Suggesting yet again that Oscar is more interested in buzz than quality, mega-sexy profit magnets Michael Fassbender and Eddie Redmayne were both cited for Steve Jobs and The Danish Girl, respectively. 

With Meryl Streep missing and possibly dead, it falls to Cate Blanchett (Carol), Brie Larson (Room), Jennifer Lawrence (Joy), and Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn) to duke it out for best actress. Charlotte Rampling, meanwhile, adds a little vintage class to the category for 45 Years.

Batman and Bane face off again in the best supporting actor category. Christian Bale's nutty performance in The Big Short wrestles with Tom Hardy's nuttier throwdown in The Revenant, while Sylvester Stallone gets the sentimental vote for Creed. Face-chewing Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight) and Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies) tag along behind. 

We'd love to see Jennifer Jason Leigh win best supporting actress since she easily stole The Hateful Eight. Amazingly (shamefully, even), this is her first Oscar nom. The category is filled out with Rooney Mara (Carol), Rachel McAdams (Spotlight), Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl—sheesh), and Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs).

For best director, we have Adam McKay (The Big Short), George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road), Alejandro G. Iñárritu (The Revenant), Lenny Abrahamson (Room), and Tom McCarthy (Spotlight).

And on it goes, with arguably the most interesting battle taking place in the best animated feature film category, where American sadness goes to war with Japanese melancholia (Inside Out, When Marnie Was There), and middle-age white depression is ghettoized with Anomalisa's single nomination in any category. Shaun the Sheep Movie and Boy & the World round out the impressive list.

The winners will be announced in a small, private ceremony on February 28. Here are the other big categories:

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Bridge of Spies
Ex Machina
Inside Out
Spotlight
Straight Outta Compton

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Big Short
Brooklyn
Carol
The Martian
Room

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Sicario

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Amy
Cartel Land
The Look of Silence
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Winter on Fire

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Earned It" (Fifty Shades of Grey)
"Manta Ray" (Racing Extinction)
"Simple Song #3" (Youth)
"Til It Happens to You" (The Hunting Ground)
"Writing's on the Wall" (Spectre)

BEST FILM EDITING
The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Embrace of the Serpent
Mustang
Son of Saul
Theeb
A War

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens