Joker is the leading nominee for the 2020 Oscars having picked up 11 nominations in a year where only one black actor and no female directors were nominated.

The dark comic book tale Joker topped the Oscar nominations on Monday with Netflix's The Irishman, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and World War I odyssey 1917 following close behind after each scoring 10.

They were among the nine films nominated for best picture with the others including Parasite, Little Women, Marriage Story, Jojo Rabbit and Ford v Ferrari.

Much of the focus so far this award season has been on the lack of women and ethnic minority filmmakers honored.

Only one non-white actor, British star Cynthia Erivo, was nominated this year for her role as U.S. anti-slavery icon Harriet Tubman in Harriet.

The best director category this year was also male dominated for the 87th time with Greta Gerwig missing out for Little Women.

Issa Rae, who was announcing the Oscar nominees, had a dig at the Academy during the broadcast, saying 'congratulations to those men' after noticing Gerwig's snub.

Scroll down for video and full list of nominations

Joker is the leading nominee for the Academy Awards having picked up 11 nominations, including best actor (Joaquin Phoenix)

Netflix's The Irishman picked up a number of Oscar nominations including best picture, best director and two for support actor: Al Pacino and Joe Pesci

Joker is the leading nominee for the 2020 Oscars with 11 nominations

Netflix secured a total of 24 nominations with The Irishman, Marriage Story and The Two Popes

There were no female directors nominated for the 87th time with Greta Gerwig missing out for Little Women

Only one non-white actor, British star Cynthia Erivo, was nominated this year for her role as U.S. anti-slavery icon Harriet Tubman in Harriet

American Factory, the first release from Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, picked up a nomination for documentary feature

Jennifer Lopez failed to pick up her first nomination for her role in Hustlers and Awkwafina also missed out despite winning a Golden Globe for The Farewell

Taron Egerton who picked up the Golden Globe for playing Elton John in Rocketman was also not nominated in the best actor category

LEADING OSCAR NOMINATIONS Joker: 11 Once Upon a Time In Hollywood: 10 The Irishman: 10 1917: 10 Parasite: 6 Marriage Story: 6 Little Women: 6 Bombshell: 3 Advertisement

While Joker was expected to do well, the academy's overwhelming support for a movie that was far from a critical favourite was unexpected.

The much-debated supervillain origin story's nominations included best actor for Joaquin Phoenix and best director for Todd Phillips, as well as adapted screenplay, film editing and sound editing.

Scarlett Johansson picked up her first ever nominations in both the best actress category for Marriage Story and best supporting actress for Jojo Rabbit. That feat hasn't occurred since Cate Blanchett was nominated for both categories back in 2007.

Netflix picked up a whopping 24 nominations with the likes of The Irishman, Marriage Story, The Two Popes and documentary American Factory, which is the first release from Barack and Michelle Obama's production company.

Among the glaring snubs was Jennifer Lopez who failed to pick up her first nomination for her role in Hustlers. Awkwafina also missed out despite winning a Golden Globe for The Farewell.

The nominees for best actress are: Cynthia Erivo in Harriet; Scarlett Johansson in Marriage Story; Saoirse Ronan in Little Women; Charlize Theron in Bombshell; and Renée Zellweger in Judy.

The nominees for best actor are: Antonio Banderas in Pain and Glory; Leonardo DiCaprio in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood; Adam Driver in Marriage Story; Jonathan Pryce in The Two Popes; and Joaquin Phoenix in Joker.

Noticeable absent from the best actor list was Taron Egerton who picked up the Golden Globe for playing Elton John in Rocketman. Christian Bale (Ford v. Ferrari), Robert DeNiro (The Irishman) and Eddie Murphy (Dolemite Is My Name) were also skipped over in the category.

Scarlett Johansson picked up her first ever nominations in both the best actress category for Marriage Story and best supporting actress for Jojo Rabbit (above)

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood picked up nominations in the major categories including best picture, best director, best actor (Leonardo DiCaprio) and best supporting actor (Brad Pitt)

The Oscars picked only one non-white actor - British star Cynthia Erivo, who plays U.S. anti-slavery icon Harriet Tubman in Harriet

Charlize Theron (left) and Margot Robbie (right) picked up nominations for best actress and best supporting actress for Bombshell

In the best supporting actor category, Brad Pitt for Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci for The Irishman, Tom Hanks for A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood and Anthony Hopkins for The Two Popes secured nominations.

The nominees for best supporting actress are: Kathy Bates in Richard Jewell; Laura Dern in Marriage Story; Scarlett Johansson in Jojo Rabbit; Florence Pugh in Little Women; and Margot Robbie in Bombshell.

The best director nominees are: Bong Joon Ho for Parasite; Sam Mendes for 1917; Todd Phillips for Joker; Martin Scorsese for The Irishman; and Quentin Tarantino for Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood.

American Factory picked up a nomination in the documentary feature category. The other nominees were The Cave, The Edge of Democracy, For Sama and Honeyland.

Social satire Parasite became the first South Korean movie to be nominated in both the best picture and best international film categories. Director Bong Joon Ho also received a nod for best director.

Disney blockbusters The Lion King and Frozen 2 were both omitted in the animated feature film category. Beyoncé also did not get noticed for her song Spirit on The Lion King soundtrack.

'Congratulations to those men': Lack of women and ethnic minority filmmakers honored

Much of the focus so far this award season has been on the lack of women and ethnic minority filmmakers honored.

Gerwig's acclaimed Little Women adaptation was notably absent in several award nominations announcements despite being one of nine films nominated for the best picture Oscar.

Issa Rae, who was announcing the nominations, threw shade at Academy for the all-male directors category saying 'congratulations to all those men'

US star Issa Rae, who was announcing the nominations, threw shade at the all-male directors category.

'Congratulations to those men,' she said after announcing the nominees, including Martin Scorsese, Todd Phillips, Sam Mendes, Quentin Tarantino and Bong Joon Ho.

Later in the broadcast, Issa also made a dig at the Academy for only nominating Gerwig in the Best Adapted Screenplay category despite the critical acclaim she has received for her take on the Louisa May Alcott classic.

'They actually let Greta in there,' she said.

'Unfortunately there are just five nominees' for best director in an 'incredibly strong year,' one Academy voter who asked not to be named said, pointing to the revered track records of the likes of Scorsese, Tarantino and Mendes.

Other female directors this year that missed out on nominations included Lulu Wang, director of The Farewell, and Hustlers director Lorene Scafaria.

Controversy over those omissions, in an industry criticised for its lack of diversity, was fuelled at last week's BAFTA nominations, which were also condemned for overlooking ethnic minorities.

The Oscars picked only one non-white actor - British star Cynthia Erivo, who plays U.S. anti-slavery icon Harriet Tubman in Harriet.

Notable snubs included Eddie Murphy for blaxploitation biopic Dolemite Is My Name, Jennifer Lopez for Hustlers, Awkwafina for The Farewell and Lupita Nyong'o for Us.

Last year, three of the four acting Oscars went to non-white performers.

The nominees for best actress are: Cynthia Erivo in Harriet; Scarlett Johansson in Marriage Story; Saoirse Ronan in Little Women (left); Charlize Theron in Bombshell; and Renée Zellweger in Judy (right)

Both Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver were nominated for best actress and actor for the Netflix drama Marriage Story

South Korean class satire Parasite from Bong Joon-ho secured a spot in the best picture and best director slot

Jonathan Pryce in The Two Popes (right) picked up a nomination for best actor while Sam Mendes's World War I odyssey 1917 (left) picked up 10 nominations

Obama-backed documentary earns Oscars nod

The Obama-backed documentary American Factory, which is the first release from Barack and Michelle's production company Higher Ground, also earned an Oscars nod.

The documentary, released in August last year, follows a Chinese billionaire coming to Ohio to offer jobs at a reopened automotive plant.

Both Barack and Michelle tweeted their congratulations after American Factory's nomination was announced.

'Glad to see American Factory's Oscar nod for Best Documentary. It's the kind of story we don't see often enough and it's exactly what Michelle and I hope to achieve with Higher Ground. Congrats to the incredible filmmakers and entire team!' Barack tweeted.

His wife congratulated the film's producers Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert and Jeff Reichert.

'So thrilled that Julia Reichert, Steven Bognar, and all of the incredible people behind #AmericanFactory are nominated for the Best Documentary Oscar! We're so proud of them and amazed by their talent for storytelling.'

Documentary American Factory, which is the first release from Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, was nominated for documentary feature

Netflix lands 24 Oscar nominations in quest for best picture trophy

Streaming video service Netflix will have another chance to snatch the movie industry's top prize from Hollywood's traditional film studios after receiving 24 nominations.

Two Netflix movies, Mafia epic The Irishman and divorce drama Marriage Story scored nominations for the coveted best picture trophy.

The Silicon Valley giant, which reinvented television, will battle for Oscar glory against century-old Hollywood studios, including Comcast Corp's Universal Pictures, AT&T Inc's Warner Bros. and Sony Corp's Columbia Pictures.

American Factory, the first release from Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, picked up a nomination for documentary feature

The companies behind the movies are expected to spend millions to court Oscar voters in the coming weeks on TV commercials, digital ads and special events with A-list celebrities in New York and Los Angeles.

Winning best picture would burnish Netflix's reputation in the film business and give it new bragging rights in the increasingly competitive fight for streaming video viewers. The company began releasing original movies in 2015 and has been trying to build a library of prestige films alongside its dozens of comedies, thrillers and action flicks.

But the digital video pioneer has irked theatre owners by insisting that its films stream at the same time, or a few weeks after, they debut in theatres. Major theatre chains have objected to the timing and refused to show Netflix films. The practice also forced members of the film academy to debate how to define a movie.

Last year, Netflix's Roma competed for best picture but did not win. The streaming giant received a total of 15 nominations in 2019.

During the recent Golden Globes, Netflix only secured one win: Laura Dern for best support actress in Marriage Story.

Nominations for The Irishman, which tells the story of the disappearance of labor union leader Jimmy Hoffa, included best director for Martin Scorsese and supporting actor for Al Pacino and Joe Pesci.

Marriage Story stars Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver, who play a show-business couple navigating a divorce and custody battle, received lead acting nominations.

Among Netflix's other nominations, Klaus and I Lost My Body were named in the best animated feature category.