Did BAFTA Rising Star Nominee List Snub the Ladies?

The British Film and Television Academy (BAFTA) has announced its final five for the Orange Rising Star Award, but don't expect any ladies to accept the audience prize in February, when the awards take place.

As chosen by the customers of British cellphone company Orange, the nominees are Tom Hiddleston (War Horse), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Chris O'Dowd (Bridesmaids), Eddie Redmayne (My Week With Marilyn) and Adam Deacon (Anuvahood).

So what happened to all the ladies who were in the original list of eight, as selected by jurors that included Sienna Miller and David Yates back in October?

That list included Jennifer Lawrence (X-Men: First Class, Like Crazy), Jessica Chastain (The Tree of Life, The Help and four others) and Felicity Jones (Like Crazy).

And all three are expected to have equally strong pictures this year (Lawrence in The Hunger Games, Chastain in The Wettest County and Jones in Cheerful Weather for the Wedding).

Simon Pegg (Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol), who also served as a juror for the long list, shared his frustration on Twitter.

Sad to see no women on the BAFTA rising star shortlist. The panel that determined the long list had no say in the final five, Pegg wrote on Wednesday.

Launched in 2006, the Orange Rising Star Award recognizes the year's brightest young actor or actress, and is the only audience voted award of the annual BAFTA Film prizes.

The Rising Star Award is designed to recognize rising talent, however it is not intended as a true 'beginner's award,' nor is it intended to be for child actors, according to BAFTA.

Indeed, none of the actors in the Rising Star shortlist are in the beginning stages of his career.

Take Hiddleston for example. The 30-year-old starred in three big films in 2011, including Thor and Midnight in Paris, playing the charming F. Scott Fitzgerald. Hiddleston's fan base has also skyrocketed to a new level, with super fans calling themselves Hiddlestoners.

That's kind of amazing isn't it . . . I should be so lucky that I have an army of followers. My goodness, he told New York Magazine in December.

Hemsworth, 28, isn't a newcomer either. While Thor might be his biggest film to date, the Australian actor first graced magazine covers and stopped hearts in 2009, when he appeared in the J.J. Abrams blockbuster Star Trek. Hemsworth is set to appear in three films in 2012, including The Avengers and Snow White & The Huntsman.

The final round of voting for the Orange Rising Star Award is now open to the entire pubic (beyond cellphone customers) at bafta.orange.co.uk.

The winner will be announced at the 2012 BAFTA Awards on Feb. 12.