THE 67TH ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATIONS : Best Actress

Jodie Foster,

“Nell”

Foster earns her fourth Academy Award nomination portraying a woman found in a remote region of North Carolina who speaks a strange language. The former child actress won best actress Oscars for 1988’s “The Accused” and 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs.”

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Jessica Lange

“Blue Sky”

Lange has received the Los Angeles Film Critics and Golden Globe awards for her role as a military officer’s mentally unstable wife. She already has a best supporting actress Oscar (for 1982’s “Tootsie”) and has had four best actress nods.

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Miranda Richardson

“Tom & Viv”

The British actress receives her first best actress nomination for her role as the emotionally troubled wife of writer T.S. Eliot. Richardson, who has appeared in “Dance With a Stranger” and “Empire of the Sun,” received a best supporting Oscar nomination for 1992’s “Damage.”

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Winona Ryder

“Little Women”

A best supporting nominee last year for “The Age of Innocence,” Ryder receives her first best actress nomination for her role as Louisa May Alcott’s feisty heroine, Jo. Like Foster, Ryder began as a child actress, making her film debut in 1986’s “Lucas.”

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Susan Sarandon

“The Client”

The politically outspoken actress receives her fourth best actress nod for her role as a strong-willed attorney in the adaptation of John Grisham’s bestseller. She was previously nominated for 1981’s “Atlantic City,” 1991’s “Thelma & Louise” and 1992’s “Lorenzo’s Oil.”