“The Great Debaters,” a film based on the real-life victories of a black debating team in the 1930s, topped the list of nominees announced Tuesday for the 39th NAACP Image Awards.
“Girlfriends” and “Everybody Hates Chris” led TV nominees.
“The Great Debaters” collected eight nominations, including outstanding motion picture and both outstanding actor and outstanding director for Denzel Washington. The movie also garnered three supporting-actor nominations for Forest Whitaker, Nate Parker and Denzel Whitaker.
Other best-picture nominees: “American Gangster,” “I Am Legend,” “Talk to Me” and “Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married?”
Other outstanding-actor nominees were Columbus Short for “Stomp the Yard,” Don Cheadle for “Talk to Me,” Terrence Howard for “Pride” and Will Smith for “I Am Legend.”
Nominated for outstanding actress: Jurnee Smollett for “The Great Debaters,” Angelina Jolie for “A Mighty Heart,” Halle Berry for “Things We Lost In the Fire,” Jill Scott for “Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married?” and Taraji P. Henson for “Talk To Me.”
In TV categories, “Everybody Hates Chris” and “Girlfriends” had seven nominations each, including best TV comedy.
In music categories, the nominees for outstanding album were Alicia Keys’ “As I Am,” Chris Brown’s “Exclusive,” Kanye West’s “Graduation,” “Growing Pains” by Mary J. Blige and “System” by Seal.
The Image Awards honor those who promote diversity in the arts. Awards in 44 categories, including literature, will be presented Feb. 14 in a Los Angeles ceremony broadcast live on Fox.