The Kings Speech and The Fighter lead race for acting awards

Dec 16, 2010, 17:18 GMT

Los Angeles - The King's Speech and The Fighter were each nominated for four awards by the Screen Actors Guild Thursday, boosting their positions as Oscar front-runners at the start of the Hollywood awards seasons.

Both films featured strongly in the Golden Globes nominations announced Tuesday, with The Kings Speech earning seven nominations and The Fighter, six.

The King's Speech, a British period drama, stars Colin Firth as King George VI's as he bonds with a tutor played by Geoffrey Rush in a bid to overcome his speech impediment. Both actors earned SAG nominations, along with Helena Bonham Carter, who plays Queen Mary. The film also earned a nomination in the ensemble category - SAG's equivalent of the best picture Oscar.

The Fighter, a gritty boxing drama, earned nods for Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, Amy Adams and ensemble, but there was no nomination for lead actor Mark Wahlberg.

The Social Network received two nominations: for lead actor Jesse Eisenberg and for ensemble, while True Grit earned nods for lead actor Jeff Bridges and supporting female actor Hailee Steinfeld.

Also earning nominations in the leading male actor category were 79-year-old Robert Duvall for his role as a hermit in the period drama Get Low and James Franco for 127 Hours.

Hilary Swank was nominated for lead actress for her role in Conviction. She competes with Annette Bening for The Kids Are All Right, Nicole Kidman for Rabbit Hole, Jennifer Lawrence for Winter's Bone and Natalie Portman for Black Swan.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards are regarded as among the most accurate predictors of the Academy Awards given the large overlap between members of the two institutions. Last year, both the academy and SAG agreed on all four feature acting winners, Jeff Bridges for Crazy Heart, Sandra Bullock for The Blind Side, Christoph Waltz for Inglourious Basterds and Mo'Nique for Precious.