Nominations for the 69th Annual Writers Guild of America Awards

The Writers Guild of America has just announced their annual nominations for this year's awards, with their selections being almost entirely what was expected.

For Original Screenplay, we have "Hell or High Water," "La La Land," "Loving," "Manchester by the Sea," and "Moonlight," while over in Adapted Screenplay, we have ""Arrival," "Deadpool," "Fences," "Hidden Figures," and "Nocturnal Animals."

This year is a little unique in that none of the major players have been disqualified thanks to the WGA's silly rules. In the past this has removed such key screenplays as "Birdman," "The King's Speech," and "Django Unchained," all of which went on to win an Oscar.

The only major surprise to be found in today's nominations is the glaring omission of Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese's outstanding screenplay for "Silence," which was somehow beaten out by "Deadpool," whose screenplay had some amusing moments, but doesn't come close to the level of Scorsese's masterful film.

My early predictions are the "Manchester by the Sea" and "Arrival" will have no problem claiming their respective categories, but keep in mind, when it comes to the Oscars there's going to be a bit of a shakeup due to the fact that they are counting "Moonlight" and "Loving" as Adapted Screenplays.

The WGA will announce their winners on February 19th, so be sure to check back then for coverage. Until then, please see below for a list of today's nominees:

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Hell or High Water, Written by Taylor Sheridan; CBS Films

La La Land, Written by Damien Chazelle; Lionsgate

Loving, Written by Jeff Nichols; Focus Features

Manchester by the Sea, Written by Kenneth Lonergan; Amazon Studios/Roadside Attractions

Moonlight, Written by Barry Jenkins, Story by Tarell McCraney; A24

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Arrival, Screenplay by Eric Heisserer; Based on the Story “Story of Your Life” by Ted Chiang; Paramount Pictures

Deadpool, Written by Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick; Based on the X-Men Comic Books; Twentieth Century Fox Film

Fences, Screenplay by August Wilson; Based on his Play; Paramount Pictures

Hidden Figures, Screenplay by Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi; Based on the Book by Margot Lee Shetterly; Twentieth Century Fox Film

Nocturnal Animals, Screenplay by Tom Ford; Based on the Novel Tony and Susan by Austin Wright; Focus Features

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY

Author: The JT LeRoy Story, Written by Jeff Feuerzeig; Amazon Studios

Command and Control, Telescript by Robert Kenner and Eric Schlosser, Story by Brian Pearle and Kim Roberts; Based on the book Command and Control by Eric Schlosser; American Experience Films

Zero Days, Written by Alex Gibney; Magnolia Pictures

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