The nominations for the 84th annual Academy Awards were announced Tuesday morning and silent film The Artist is the forerunner, racking up 10 Oscar noms. It's the first silent film in 85 years to be named in the top category.

The Artist will be up against The Descendants, The Help, Moneyball, Hugo, War Horse, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, The Tree of Life and Midnight in Paris.

And the rivalry between good friends George Clooney and Brad Pitt will continue this awards season, as expected. Both were nominated in the best actor category -- Clooney for The Descendants, Brad Pitt for Moneyball. Also, The Artist's Jean Dujardin, Demian Bichir (A Better Life) and Gary Oldman (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy).

The nominees for best actress are Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn), Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady), Viola Davis (The Help), Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs) and Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo).

The nominees for best director are Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist), Alexander Payne (The Descendants), Martin Scorsese (Hugo), Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris) and Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life).

The 84th annual Academy Awards will be broadcast from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood on Sunday, February 26.

Click through for the full list of nominees.