BAFTAs 2014: 12 Years a Slave tipped to be big winner
Sandra Bullock, Judi Dench, Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio will be among the stars on the red carpet later for the 67th British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs).
Gravity leads the way with 11 nominations, including best film, but 12 Years a Slave is tipped to be the big winner.
The BAFTAs are the last major movie awards before the Oscars on March 2.
Prince William will attend Sunday’s event at London’s Royal Opera House.
The awards are hosted for a ninth time by Stephen Fry.
Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, about a free black man who is kidnapped and enslaved, has 10 nominations – including best film, best director and best actor for Chiwetel Ejiofor.
Bookies think the harrowing historical drama will scoop five of the major categories.
American Hustle also has 10 nominations, and its stars Amy Adams, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence appear in all the acting categories.
The 1970s drama, about two con artists who get entangled with the FBI, is also up for best film, with David O. Russell nominated for best director and original screenplay.
Other movies competing for best film include Somali piracy thriller Captain Phillips, and Philomena, based on the true story of an Irish woman trying to find the son she was forced to give up for adoption.
The BAFTAs are the last major movie awards before the Oscars on March 2
Captain Phillips has nine nominations while Behind the Candelabra, with Michael Douglas as Liberace, and Disney story Saving Mr. Banks have five nominations each.
Philomena‘s Judi Dench competes in the best actress category against American Hustle‘s Amy Adams, Gravity‘s Sandra Bullock, Emma Thompson for Saving Mr. Banks and the runaway favorite Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine.
The nominations saw Judi Dench set a BAFTA record, with her 15th acting nomination.
In the best actor field, Chiwetel Ejiofor is the bookies’ favorite against Christian Bale, Tom Hanks for Captain Phillips, Bruce Dern for Nebraska and Leonardo DiCaprio for The Wolf of Wall Street.
The outstanding British film category sees blockbuster Gravity up against the tiny-budgeted drama The Selfish Giant, Clio Barnard’s contemporary English fable about two Bradford schoolboys who collect scrap metal on a horse and cart.
Also nominated in the outstanding British film category are Philomena, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, Saving Mr. Banks and Rush.
Gravity, Saving Mr. Banks and Rush all qualified for the British film category because they were either filmed in the UK, utilized British effects companies or employed other British talent.
The BAFTAs can be an indicator of which films go on to win Academy Awards two weeks later.
Presenters and guests include Benedict Cumberbatch, Eddie Redmayne, Jeremy Irons, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Stanley Tucci and Uma Thurman.
The ceremony will open with a duet from Tinie Tempah and Mercury Prize nominee Laura Mvula.
Prince William, the academy’s president, will present Helen Mirren with the British Academy fellowship, its highest accolade.
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