January 25, 2002
Empire Online

After countless hours spent toiling over the truckloads of voting forms submitted by our readers, the nominations for the 2002 Empire Awards can finally be announced. While thousands upon thousands of you pushed your favourites for recognition, one name cropped up time and time again, The Lord of The Rings.

Peter Jackson's three-hour fantasy garnered a total of eight nominations: Best Film, Best Director and two each for Best Debut, Best Actor and Best British Actor. Peter Jackson is doubtless smiling ear to ear as his epic pulls ahead in the only major film awards voted for by the moviegoing public.

Joining the Fellowship on the road to Empire's coveted trophies, are Benecio Del Toro, Nicole Kidman, Renee Zellweger and Rachel Weisz, all of whom pulled ahead of the pack with performances you most admired. Long-time Empire favourites Ewan McGregor and Kate Winslet also made a welcome reappearance and may take the plinth for the fourth time in the British Actor/Actress stakes.

The awards themselves will take place at London's Dorchester Hotel on Tuesday February 5. Hosted by Phill Jupitus, you can expect a host of glittering stars to attend and Empire Online will be working through the night to bring you all the news as it comes in.

The nominations in full:

Best Debut

Radcliffe/Grint/Watson - Harry Potter
Billy Boyd/Dominic Monaghan - The Lord of The Rings
Orlando Bloom - The Lord of The Rings
Sharon Maguire - Bridget Jones's Diary
Keira Knightley - The Hole

Best British Actress

Olivia Williams - Lucky Break
Helena Bonham-Carter - Planet of The Apes
Kate Winslet - Enigma
Rachel Weisz - The Mummy Returns
Catherine Zeta Jones - Traffic

Best British Actor

Hugh Grant - Bridget Jones's Diary
Sean Bean - The Lord of The Rings
Ewan McGregor - Moulin Rouge
Tim Roth - Planet of The Apes
Sir Ian McKellen - The Lord of The Rings

Best British Film

Mike Basset: England Manager
Bridget Jones's Diary
The Parole Officer
Enigma
Lucky Break

Independent Spirit Award

Jean Pierre Jeunet - Amelie
Gael Bernitz - Amorres Perros
Terry Swigoff - Ghost World
Alejandro Amenabar - The Others

Best Actress

Renee Zellweger - Bridge Jones's Diary
Nicole Kidman - Moulin Rouge
Frances O'Connor - A.I. Artificial Intelligence
Audrey Tautou - Amelie
Nicole Kidman - The Others

Best Actor

Elijah Wood - The Lord of The Rings
Viggo Mortensen - The Lord of The Rings
Billy Bob Thornton - The Man Who Wasn't There
Benicio Del Toro - Traffic
Haley Joel Osment - A.I. Artificial Intelligence

Best Director

Peter Jackson - The Lord of The Rings
Baz Luhrmann - Moulin Rouge
Steven Spielberg - A.I. Artificial Intelligence
Steven Soderbergh - Traffic
Cameron Crowe - Almost Famous

Best Film

The Others
The Lord of The Rings
A.I. Artificial Intelligence
Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone
Moulin Rouge