"Precious" has been unstoppable, taking the wave of critical acclaim that began on the film festival circuit and riding it straight into awards season. The movie, based on the novel "Push" by Sapphire, got six Oscar nominations this morning.
Mo'Nique is up for best supporting actress; Gabourey Sidibe is nominated for best actress in a lead role; Lee Daniels has been given the nod for best director; Geoffrey Fletcher is nominated in the best adapted screenplay category; Joe Klotz gets the nod for film editing, and, last but not least, the movie is also up for best picture.
The initial reaction to the news? "There's a lot of screaming in my household today," producer Sara Siegel-Magness said.
"It's been quite the journey," she went on. "The moment we won Sundance, we had the feeling there might be something special."
Having Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry sign on as executive producers only helped to boost "Precious's" profile.
"I believe it brought validity to 'Precious's' story as a universal story," Siegal-Magness said, "because Oprah and Tyler speak to the masses. When they speak, people listen."