oscar nominations

Oscar nominees 2010: what they said

Oscar contenders, including Gabourey Sidibe, Carey Mulligan and Sandra Bullock, react to news of their nominations.

"As soon as I heard I jumped up and down and for some reason I kept screaming, 'I'm going to get a car! I'm going to get a car!' I don't know why, but I did." Gabourey Sidibe, best actress nominee for Precious

"I thought I was managing my expectations, but on hearing the news I discovered new and unfamiliar vocal tones. Perhaps I should do another musical." Colin Firth, best actor nominee for A Single Man

"This is beyond anything I've ever dreamed of. I've definitely never felt such excitement and nausea this early in the morning!" Carey Mulligan, best actress nominee for An Education

"I am thrilled and proud to be an Oscar nominee. It almost makes up for Arsenal's dismal performance on Sunday." Nick Hornby, best adapted screenplay nominee for An Education

"This is my fifth nomination and I'm more proud of that than all the rest of it, I think. Getting nominated - to me, that's the plateau. After you're nominated, it's like a crap shoot, it's like throwing dice." Morgan Freeman, best actor nominee for Invictus

"I do believe some liposuction is in order, a very strict diet regime, and I will acquire a very light English accent. I was going to say that I should start wearing glasses, but I already wear glasses, so I am already sort of there." Sandra Bullock, best actress nominee for The Blind Side, on her plans for awards night

"I'm just going to carry on with my life and be thankful and that's it. My celebration days, which were huge, are now slightly modified, shall we say. At my exalted age I can't quite do the old 24-hour nightly shifts that I used to." Christopher Plummer, best supporting actor nominee for The Last Station, on getting his first Oscar nomination at the age of 80

"I'm very happy and honoured for Christopher, myself and our film. I think Tolstoy himself would have been perplexed by all this, but, Sofya his wife would have been over the moon. So in that spirit, I am too." Dame Helen Mirren, best actress nominee for her role as Sofya Tolstoy in The Last Station

"This is more exhilarating than I could have ever imagined. What a tremendous honour from the academy - a blazing stamp in the passport of an artist that can never be taken away and will always be cherished." Jeremy Renner, best actor nominee for The Hurt Locker

"I am proud and grateful to stand with these women who have given such a range of beautiful, indelible performances this year." Meryl Streep, shortlisted for Julie & Julia, on her fellow best actress nominees

"After 82 years, it's the first film nominated for best picture directed by an African-American. Isn't that great? It's just so exciting. How can you lose? You can't lose." Lee Daniels, best director nominee for Precious

"If one can give the impression that the impossible is possible, then I am perhaps overwhelmed with joy. But I do hope some day we can lose the modifier and that it becomes a moot point whether the person is male or female and they're just film-makers making statements that they believe in." Kathryn Bigelow, who will become the first female best director winner in Oscar history if she triumphs for The Hurt Locker