>LOS ANGELES (REUTERS) — A pack of newcomers rose to the rank of Oscar nominee on Tuesday as epic “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” claimed the title of most nominated film for the U.S. film industry’s top honors.

“Rings,” directed by New Zealand’s Peter Jackson, scored 11 Academy Award nominations, including a spot among the contestants for the year’s best film and Jackson’s name in the race for best director.

The epic film based on the third in the trilogy of J.R.R. Tolkien novels about a battle for control of Middle Earth was joined on the list of best picture nominees by seafaring adventure “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World,” crime thriller “Mystic River,” horse-racing tale “Seabiscuit,” and “Lost in Translation,” about two disenchanted Americans in Tokyo.

“Master and Commander” received 10 nominations, second to “Rings” and followed by U.S. Civil War saga “Cold Mountain” and “Seabiscuit” with seven nominations each.

Performers in those movies, however, including stars like Nicole Kidman in “Cold Mountain” and Russell Crowe in “Master and Commander,” were largely left out of acting categories in favor of lesser-knowns and independent films. The notable exception was Jude Law for his role in “Cold Mountain.”

“It was just a great, rich field this year,” said Academy President Frank Pierson. “I think that’s why some of the significant names that were talked about were not on the list. We are seeing some fresh faces, and that’s great.”

Joining Law among best actor nominees were Ben Kingsley for “House of Sand and Fog,” Bill Murray for “Lost in Translation,” Sean Penn in “Mystic River,” and Johnny Depp for “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.”

While Depp’s nomination proved mildly surprising — drama films and performances are generally favored at the Oscars over comedies and action movies like “Pirates” — the bigger upsets came among the actresses.

Samantha Morton was nominated for “In America,” about an Irish family’s struggle to make a home in New York.

“I’m shocked. This was completely unexpected,” Morton said by phone from London. “So often small movies like ours don’t get the chance to be seen … but since making the movie, I’ve learned that people who do see it hold it in their heart.”

Perhaps even more surprising was the nomination of Keisha Castle-Hughes for New Zealand’s “Whale Rider,” who at 13 became the youngest best actress nominee to date. Tatum O’Neal was 10 when she won a best supporting actress Oscar for “Paper Moon.”

Other best actress nominees were Diane Keaton for “Something’s Gotta Give,” Golden Globe winner Charlize Theron playing a serial killer in independent movie “Monster,” and Naomi Watts, for her portrayal of a woman dealing with her husband’s death in low-budget “21 Grams.”

The supporting actor category also saw a surprise with Djimon Hounsou for “In America.” He was joined by Ken Watanabe in “The Last Samurai” and more widely anticipated nominees: Alec Baldwin in “The Cooler,” Benicio Del Toro for “21 Grams,” and Golden Globe winner Tim Robbins in “Mystic River.”

Nominations for supporting actress went to Renee Zellweger for “Cold Mountain,” Holly Hunter in “Thirteen,” Marcia Gay Harden in “Mystic River,” Patricia Clarkson for “Pieces of April” and Shohreh Aghdashloo in “House of Sand and Fog.”

Directing nominations went to Peter Jackson for “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” Clint Eastwood for “Mystic River,” Peter Weir for “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World,” Sofia Coppola for “Lost in Translation” and Fernando Meirelles for “City of God.”

Coppola, daughter of legendary director Francis Ford Coppola, is the first American woman, and only the third woman, to be nominated for an Oscar for directing. Others were Italy’s Lina Wertmuller and New Zealand’s Jane Campion.

Coppola, who won a Golden Globe award for writing “Translation,” was also nominated for an Oscar for best original screenplay. The film had four nominations overall.

The Oscars, which are awarded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, are the U.S. film industry’s top honors and will be given out in a gala ceremony from Los Angeles Feb. 29.