Cate Blanchett wins Oscar for best actress

Cate Blanchett has won the Academy Award for best actress for her bravura performance as a fragile socialite experiencing a meltdown in Woody Allen's "Blue Jasmine."
Blanchett had been deemed the front-runner from the very beginning of the Oscar season. It was the sixth Oscar nomination for the Australian actress and her second win, though her first in the leading actress category. Previously she won the 2005 supporting actress trophy for "The Aviator."
The other nominees Sunday night were: Amy Adams, "American Hustle"; Sandra Bullock, "Gravity"; Judi Dench, "Philomena"; and Meryl Streep, "August: Osage County".
The 86th Academy Awards are airing live on ABC from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles with host Ellen DeGeneres.