Slumdog and Buttons To Battle For Gold - Oscar Nominations

Oscar offers a few surprises.

The nominees for the 81st Academy Awards were announced early this morning. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button came up big, scoring 13 nominations to lead the pack of nominees. This year's "little film that could," Slumdog Millionaire, pulled down 10 nominations, including one for Best Picture.

Meryl Streep continued her long-term relationship with Oscar, earning her 15th nod for her role in Doubt. Notable (non) nominations include The Dark Knight (shut out for Best Picture consideration), Sally Hawkins in Happy-Go-Lucky, and Kate Winslet in Revolutionary Road. Don't feel too bad for Kate though, she scored a nod for her work in The Reader.

Congrats to Richard Jenkins (The Visitor) and Melissa Leo (Frozen River), who took home surprise Best Actor/Actress nominations. Here's who else will by vying for the little gold man on February 22.

BEST PICTURE
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Frost/Nixon
* Milk
* The Reader
* Slumdog Millionaire

BEST ACTOR
* Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
* Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
* Sean Penn, Milk
* Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

BEST ACTRESS
* Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
* Angelina Jolie, Changeling
* Melissa Leo, Frozen River
* Meryl Streep, Doubt
* Kate Winslet, The Reader

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
* Josh Brolin, Milk
* Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
* Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
* Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
* Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
* Amy Adams, Doubt
* Penélope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
* Viola Davis, Doubt
* Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

BEST DIRECTOR
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, David Fincher
* Frost/Nixon, Ron Howard
* Milk, Gus Van Sant
* The Reader, Stephen Daldry
* Slumdog Millionaire, Danny Boyle

To check out a complete list of nominees, head to Oscars.org.