The British monarchy saga “The King’s Speech” leads the Academy Awards with 12 nominations, including best picture and acting honors for Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter and Geoffrey Rush.

“This story has struck such a rich resonant chord with audiences of all ages, which is very exciting — to have your work honored by your industry peers is even better,” Rush said in a statement.

Get the full list of nominees

Also nominated for best picture Tuesday were the psychosexual thriller “Black Swan“; the boxing drama “The Fighter“; the sci-fi blockbuster “Inception“; the lesbian-family tale “The Kids Are All Right“; the survival story “127 Hours“; the Facebook chronicle “The Social Network“; the animated smash “Toy Story 3“; the Western “True Grit“; and the Ozarks crime thriller “Winter’s Bone.”

“True Grit” ran second with 10 nominations, including acting honors for Jeff Bridges and Hailee Steinfeld.

The Feb. 27 Oscars set up a best-picture showdown between two favorites, “The King’s Speech” and “The Social Network.” “The Social Network” won best drama at the Golden Globes and was picked as the year’s best by key critics groups, while “The King’s Speech” pulled an upset last weekend by winning the Producers Guild of America Awards top prize, whose recipient often goes to claim best picture at the Oscars.

The favorites in the male-acting categories both were nominated, Globe winners Firth as best actor for “The King’s Speech” and Christian Bale as supporting actor for “The Fighter.”  (Read More).