Gary Oldman leads British hopes for an Oscar on Sunday as the sexual harassment scandal that has rocked Hollywood is likely to dominate the ceremony.
The star takes on countrymen Daniel Day-Lewis and Daniel Kaluuya for the best actor prize and is the presumed frontrunner for the gong – having already picked up a Golden Globe, a Bafta and a Screen Actors Guild award for his portrayal of Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour.
The Shape Of Water, Guillermo Del Toro’s fantasy romance, leads the nominations with 13, including a best actress nod for Sally Hawkins and one for best picture.
Hawkins would have to beat frontrunner Frances McDormand to take home the trophy, as well as Irish actress Saoirse Ronan for Lady Bird.
McDormand is nominated for her blistering turn as a grieving and vengeful mother in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, alongside Margot Robbie for I, Tonya and Meryl Streep for The Post.
Joining Oldman, Day-Lewis and Kaluuya in the best actor category are Hollywood heavyweight Denzel Washington for Roman J Israel, Esq and newcomer Timothee Chalamet, 22, who who would be the youngest ever winner of the category for Call Me By Your Name.
It it likely that the Time’s Up campaign for gender equality will have a strong presence at the ceremony, after attendees wore black to both the Golden Globes and Baftas in solidarity with victims of sexual harassment.
While no plans for a similar move have been announced for the Oscars, it is likely that visible symbols of support will be on display and the topic is expected to feature heavily in speeches from the podium.
Other British stars in the running for prizes include Lesley Manville, nominated for supporting actress for her role opposite Day-Lewis in Phantom Thread.
She is up against Mudbound’s Mary J Blige, Lady Bird’s Laurie Metcalf, The Shape Of Water’s Octavia Spencer and Allison Janney in I, Tonya.
Christopher Nolan is nominated for best director for war film Dunkirk, which bagged eight nods including best picture.
It would be Nolan’s first Oscar, but he will have to beat Del Toro – who has already scored the Bafta and Golden Globe as well as the top honour from the Directors Guild of America.
It is possible history could be made at the ceremony. If Greta Gerwig takes home the gong for Lady Bird, her solo directorial debut, she would be only the second woman to do so since the first Academy Awards in 1929.
Kathryn Bigelow won for The Hurt Locker in 2010.
If Jordan Peele takes the prize for Get Out, he will be the first black director to do so.
The other director in the running is Paul Thomas Anderson for Phantom Thread.
In the cinematography category, Mudbound’s Rachel Morrison would become the first woman to win the prize after becoming the first ever female nominee.
Elsewhere, Christopher Plummer is nominated for the supporting actor prize for his role in Sir Ridley Scott’s All The Money In The World – in which he was an 11th-hour replacement to scrub disgraced actor Kevin Spacey from the finished film.
He is up against Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell, both for Three Billboards, and The Shape Of Water’s Richard Jenkins and The Florida Project’s Willem Dafoe.
Other Britons to be nominated include Radiohead musician Jonny Greenwood for his original score on Phantom Thread. and Roger Deakins, who scored his 14th nod for his cinematography – this time on Blade Runner 2049.
He is yet to win the big prize.
The other films in the running for best picture are Call Me By Your Name, Darkest Hour, Get Out, Lady Bird, Phantom Thread, The Post and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.
Jimmy Kimmel will host the 90th Academy Awards from Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre on March 4.