As part of its continued effort to “class up its act,” and bring a renewed integrity to the bestowing of awards upon film’s finest working actors that teenagers recognize, this year’s MTV Movie Awards has gritted its teeth and nominated the important, if often difficult-to-watch story of free people conscripted into violent servitude at the whims of a cruel aristocracy. Yes, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is up for MTV’s Movie Of The Year, alongside arguably just-as-prestigious Oscar favorites American Hustle, The Wolf Of Wall Street, and even 12 Years A Slave—every mention of which will surely evoke a far more somber tone of high-pitched whooping from the ceremony’s audience come April 13.


Other guarantees of Jennifer Lawrence’s obligatory attendance include pitting her Hunger Games performance against that of her American Hustle co-star Amy Adams; nominating their aggressive lip-locking in that film for “Best Kiss” and Lawrence’s “Live And Let Die” sort-of-sing-along for “Best Musical Moment;” including her in the Hunger Games group up for Best Fight; and basically doing everything short of creating a “Best Jennifer Lawrence…. Whatever. Best Jennifer Lawrence Thing” category. But such are the measures necessary to make certain the year in cinema is assayed to the standards one has come to expect from MTV, particularly in a year where there was no Twilight movie.

To be fair to MTV’s increasingly self-conscious “academy,” the list is surprisingly heavy on the year’s critical favorites—albeit mostly the ones that have the actors the kids like in them. Hustle and Wolf received the most nominations overall, while the lack of supporting actor categories—and thus the lack of chances to nominate people like Jared Leto and Barkhad Abdi—was addressed in categories like Best On-Screen Transformation and Best Villain, respectively. (Best of luck to Leto; sure, he may have wowed Oscar voters with his dramatic weight loss, but he never had to compete against Orlando Bloom’s wearing of pointy ears.)


If there’s one real surprise, it’s that Gravity’s final chance to be rewarded as the populist favorite it’s been all season seems to have been dashed in favor of honoring The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug. If there’s one consolation, it’s that Sandra Bullock was nominated for Best Actress, not Best Scared-As-Shit Performance.

Anyway, online voting is now open, so you may contribute to maintaining the integrity of the MTV Movie Awards by ensuring Danny McBride making Channing Tatum his ass-monkey isn’t robbed of its rightful #WTF Moment honor by the usual cronyism and studio politicking.


Movie Of The Year

12 Years A Slave

American Hustle

The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

The Wolf Of Wall Street

Best Male Performance

Bradley Cooper, American Hustle

Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf Of Wall Street

Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years A Slave

Josh Hutcherson, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club


Best Female Performance

Amy Adams, American Hustle

Jennifer Aniston, We’re The Millers

Sandra Bullock, Gravity

Jennifer Lawrence, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years A Slave

Best Scared-As-Shit Performance

Rose Byrne, Insidious: Chapter 2

Jessica Chastain, Mama

Vera Farmiga, The Conjuring

Ethan Hawke, The Purge

Brad Pitt, World War Z


Breakthrough Performance

Liam James, The Way Way Back

Michael B. Jordan, Fruitvale Station

Will Poulter, We’re The Millers

Margot Robbie, The Wolf Of Wall Street

Miles Teller, The Spectacular Now



Best On-Screen Duo

Amy Adams and Christian Bale, American Hustle

Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Vin Diesel and Paul Walker, Fast And Furious 6

Ice Cube and Kevin Hart, Ride Along

Jonah Hill and Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf Of Wall Street


Best Shirtless Performance

Jennifer Aniston, We’re The Millers

Sam Claflin, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf Of Wall Street

Zac Efron, That Awkward Moment

Chris Hemsworth, Thor: The Dark World

Best Fight

All Those Celebrities, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

Jason Bateman vs. Melissa McCarthy, Identity Thief

Orlando Bloom and Evangeline Lilly vs. Orcs, The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug

Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Sam Claflin vs. Mutant Monkeys, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Jonah Hill vs. James Franco and Seth Rogen, This Is The End


Best Kiss

Ashley Benson, James Franco, and Vanessa Hudgens, Spring Breakers

Emma Roberts, Jennifer Aniston, and Will Poulter, We’re The Millers

Jennifer Lawrence and Amy Adams, American Hustle

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Scarlett Johansson, Don Jon

Shailene Woodley and Miles Teller, The Spectacular Now



#WTF Moment

Scorpion-Bowling Ball-Chalupa Van Crash, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

Crashing A Children’s Beauty Pageant, Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa

Cameron Diaz Fucks A Car, The Counselor

Lamborghini Lude Scene, The Wolf Of Wall Street

Danny McBride Makes Channing Tatum His Ass-Monkey, This Is The End


Best Villain

Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips

Benedict Cumberbatch, Star Trek Into Darkness

Michael Fassbender, 12 Years A Slave

Mila Kunis, Oz The Great And Powerful

Donald Sutherland, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Best Musical Moment

Backstreet Boys show up, This Is The End

Jennifer Lawrence Sort-Of-Sings “Live & Let Die,” American Hustle

Leonardo DiCaprio Pops And Locks It, The Wolf Of Wall Street

Melissa McCarthy Sings “Barracuda,” Identity Thief

Will Poulter Sings “Waterfalls,” We’re The Millers


Best Comedic Performance

Kevin Hart, Ride Along

Jonah Hill, The Wolf Of Wall Street

Johnny Knoxville, Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa

Melissa McCarthy, The Heat

Jason Sudeikis, We’re The Millers

Best On-Screen Transformation

Christian Bale, American Hustle

Elizabeth Banks, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Orlando Bloom, The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug

Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club


Best Cameo Performance

Robert De Niro, American Hustle

Amy Poehler and Tina Fey, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

Kanye West, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

Joan Rivers, Iron Man 3

Rihanna, This Is The End

Best Hero

Henry Cavill as Clark Kent, Man Of Steel

Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Iron Man 3

Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins, The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug

Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Thor: The Dark World

Channing Tatum as John Cale, White House Down