But the choice for best actress was less clear cut. Twelve percent of the 1,158 Americans polled voted for Naomi Watts as the distraught mother in the tsunami drama "The Impossible," followed by 10 percent for Jennifer Lawrence in "Silver Linings Playbook" and 9 percent for Jessica Chastain in the search for Osama Bin Laden thriller, "Zero Dark Thirty".

Related: Oscar snubs leave Globes with also-ran nominees

Lawrence won the Golden Globe on Sunday for best actress in a comedy or musical, while Chastain took home the prize for best actress in a drama.

"Lincoln" was also the top choice in the poll for the supporting categories, with Tommy Lee Jones and Sally Field favorites for their performances in the film.

Comedians Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, who won praise for their first stint hosting the Golden Globes, will be a hard act to follow but 42 percent of Americans approved of the choice of outspoken comedian and creator of "Family Guy" Seth MacFarlane to helm the Academy Awards.

If given the opportunity to select the host for the Oscars, 15 of people said they would opt for comedian Billy Crystal, followed by 12 percent who chose Ellen DeGeneres while 10 percent wanted Steve Martin.

To view the full poll results go to link.reuters.com/deh35t

The poll, which was conducted online from January 11-15, has a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.

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