‘La La Land’ tops Globes with seven nominations

Damien Chazelle accepts the award for best director for "La La Land" at the 22nd Annual Critics' Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California, U.S., on December 11, 2016.

Damien Chazelle’s Los Angeles musical “ La La Land ” sang and danced its way to a leading seven Golden Globes nominations, with Barry Jenkins’ celebrated coming-of-age tale “ Moonlight ” close on its heels with six nods.

“ La La Land ” earned nominations for its lead actors, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, as well best picture, comedy or musical, directing, screenplay, score and original song, as announced on Monday in Los Angeles by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

Best picture

“ Moonlight ” led the field in the dramatic categories, including best picture. It earned nods for Jenkins’ directing and script, supporting actor favourite Mahershala Ali and supporting actress Naomie Harris. The other nominees for best picture, drama, were “ Manchester by the Sea ,” “ Lion ,” “ Hell or High Water ” and Mel Gibson’s “ Hacksaw Ridge ”.

On the TV side, “

The People v. O.J. Simpson ” continued its awards success with five nominations. Other regulars — “ Veep ” and “ Transparent” — were also recognized, though more recent acclaimed shows not eligible for September’s Emmy Awards elbowed their way in, including “ The Night Of ,” “ Westworld ,” “ Atlanta ,” “ This Is Us ” and “ Insecure .”

Kenneth Lonergan’s tender portrait of grief, “

Manchester by the Sea ,” landed five nominations, including best actor in a drama for Casey Affleck. The Weinstein Co.’s “

Lion ,” the story of an Indian boy separated from his family, won nods for Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman.

Best actress

The best actress race is one of the year’s most competitive, though it’s so far been dominated by “ Elle ” star Isabelle Huppert. Others nominated for best actress in a drama include Amy Adams (“ Arrival” ), Natalie Portman (“ Jackie ”), Jessica Chastain (“ Miss Sloane ”) and Ruth Negga (“ Loving” ).

The January 8 Golden Globes will be hosted by Jimmy Fallon and broadcast by NBC.