BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Get ready for the battle of the exes.

James Cameron's Avatar and Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker each racked up nine nominations to lead the field of contenders for the upcoming Academy Awards, organizers announced Tuesday.

The former spouses will go head-to-head in both the best picture and best director categories. They'll face a crowded field for best picture, which features 10 contenders instead of the usual five for the first time since 1943. The extended category also includes An Education, The Blind Side, District 9, Inglourious Basterds, Precious, A Serious Man, Up and Up in the Air.

Joining Cameron and Bigelow in the best director category is Lee Daniels, whose work on Precious makes him just the second black filmmaker nominated for the honor. He joins John Singleton who was nominated for the 1991 film Boyz N the Hood.

Also in the running for best director are Jason Reitman for Up in the Air and Quentin Tarantino for Inglourious Basterds.

In the best actor category, Jeff Bridges would appear to be the front-runner based on his sweep for Crazy Heart in the early awards season. Others nominated in the field are George Clooney (Up in the Air), Colin Firth (A Single Man), Morgan Freeman (Invictus) and Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker).

Another front-runner, Sandra Bullock, picked up her first best actress Oscar nod for The Blind Side. Her competition will include two returning champs in Helen Mirren (The Last Station) and Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia). The field is rounded out by newcomers Carey Mulligan (An Education) and Gabourey Sidibe (Precious).

The 82nd annual Oscars will take place on March 7 at Hollywood's Kodak Theatre.

View the complete list of nominees: Academy Award Nominations 2010