'The Imitation Game' leads the way with six nominations for the Jameson Empire Awards.

The World War II thriller starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley heads the race for the awards, and has been nominated in the Best Film, Best Director (Morten Tyldum), Best Actor (Benedict Cumberbatch), Best Actress (Keira Knightley), Best Thriller and Best British Film categories.

Cumberbatch faces competition from Richard Armitage ('The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies'), Bradley Cooper ('American Sniper'), Eddie Redmayne ('The Theory of Everything') and Andy Serkis ('Dawn of the Planet of the Apes') for the Best Actor prize.

Meanwhile, his co-star Keira Knightley is up against Emily Blunt ('Edge of Tomorrow'), Felicity Jones ('The Theory of Everything'), Rosamund Pike ('Gone Girl') and Alicia Vikander ('Ex Machina') for the Best Actress gong.

Elsewhere, 'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies', 'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes' and 'Kingsman: The Secret Service' have received four nominations each, while 'Boyhood', 'Gone Girl', 'The Theory of Everything' and 'Interstellar' each have three nominations.

Actor James Nesbitt will return to host the awards on March 29 and he's already looking forward to the event, saying: ''Last year's Jameson Empire Awards were an incredible experience.

''Hollywood legends like Tom Cruise, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Emma Thompson were rubbing shoulders with the next generation of acting talent and the atmosphere was electric.

''They really do celebrate the true voice of the movie-going public and I'm looking forward to March 29!''

Meanwhile, Empire's Editor-In-Chief, Morgan Rees, said he's looking forward to readers of the publication revealing their favourite films of the last 12 months.

He said: ''The Jameson Empire Awards 2015, powered by the savviest film-loving readership on the planet, are a huge celebration of the best cinema has to offer. 2014 gave us films that tackle the big questions of the universe and movies about walking trees and talking bears. It promises to be a fantastic night.''

The Jameson Empire Award Nominations:

Film:

'Boyhood'

'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes'

'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies'

'The Imitation Game'

'Interstellar'

Director:

Peter Jackson ('The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies')

Richard Linklater ('Boyhood')

Christopher Nolan ('Interstellar')

Matt Reeves ('Dawn of the Planet of the Apes')

Morten Tyldum ('The Imitation Game')

Newcomer - Male:

Ellar Coltrane ('Boyhood')

Taron Egerton ('Kingsman: The Secret Service')

Daniel Huttlestone (''Into the Woods'')

Jack O'Connell ('Unbroken')

Dan Stevens ('The Guest')

Actor:

Richard Armitage ('The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies')

Bradley Cooper ('American Sniper')

Benedict Cumberbatch ('The Imitation Game')

Eddie Redmayne ('The Theory of Everything')

Andy Serkis ('Dawn of the Planet of the Apes')

Actress:

Emily Blunt ('Edge of Tomorrow')

Felicity Jones ('The Theory of Everything')

Keira Knightley ('The Imitation Game')

Rosamund Pike ('Gone Girl')

Alicia Vikander ('Ex Machina')

Newcomer - Female

Sophie Cookson ('Kingsman: The Secret Service')

Carrie Coon ('Gone Girl')

Essie Davis ('The Babadook')

Karen Gillan ('Guardians of the Galaxy', 'Oculus')

Gugu Mbatha-Raw ('Belle')

Sci-fi/Fantasy:

'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes'

'Guardians of the Galaxy'

'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies'

'Interstellar'

'X-Men: Days of Future Past'

Horror:

'Annabelle'

'The Babadook'

'The Guest''

'Oculus'

'Under the Skin'

Comedy:

'22 Jump Street'

'The Grand Budapest Hotel'

'The Inbetweeners 2'

'The Lego Movie'

'Paddington'

Thriller:

'Captain America: The Winter Soldier'

'Gone Girl'

'The Imitation Game'

'Kingsman: The Secret Service'

'Locke'

British Film:

'The Imitation Game'

'Kingsman: The Secret Service'

'Paddington'

'The Theory of Everything'

'Under the Skin'