'Dallas Buyers Club': underdog film turned scrappy Oscar contender

'NEVER SAY DIE'

Julia Roberts is thrilled at Oscar nomination

'American Hustle,' 'Gravity' lead Oscar nominations

While McConaughey, once a hunky staple of the romantic comedy genre, has had several acclaimed roles in the last year, his portrayal of the homophobic Texan who fights for AIDS treatment after he contracts the disease in the 1980s is the one that got critics talking about the new, more serious direction in his career.

"What it means for my career is that I can't wait to go back to work again, tomorrow morning, whenever that is," McConaughey said. "I'm really, really having a wonderful moment in my career now."

Leto, who came back to film after a six-year break to focus on music, said the nominations are "a testament to hard work and independent cinema and to art house film."

"Hopefully, it gives people the encouragement to continue to make smart films, films that are different and films that kind of maybe contain more difficult subject matter," said Leto, who is currently biding his time on Los Angeles jury duty.

Woodroof died in 1992, seven years after being diagnosed with AIDS, and by then he had organized a "buyers club" for mostly gay male AIDS patients to acquire drugs not available in hospitals in the early days of the AIDS crisis and battling in court for access to better treatment.

And for co-producer Rachel Winter, the determination of Woodroof infused the film and its cast and crew with a defiant attitude.

"He didn't want to lay down and die, he wanted to stand up and fight. That's why we wanted to tell this story," she said.

"We had so many hurdles, but it was very much a 'never say die' attitude from the top down," she added.

When she heard the news this morning, that put her in the elite best picture category with some of Hollywood's biggest producers, Winter said she reverted to her days as a Valley girl, with the signature exclamations of LA's San Fernando Valley.

"I think I said 'Oh my God,' like, 45 times. It was the only thing coming out of my mouth," she said.