Animal Kingdom is a 2010 Australian crime drama film written and directed by David Michôd, and starring Ben Mendelsohn, Joel Edgerton, Guy Pearce, James Frecheville, Luke Ford, Jacki Weaver, and Sullivan Stapleton. David Michôd's script was inspired by the Pettingill family of Melbourne, Australia, who in 1991 saw the acquittal of brothers Victor Pierce and Trevor Pettingill (along with 2 others, Anthony Leigh Farrell and Peter David McEvoy) in the 1988 murder of two Victoria police officers. The film was critically acclaimed–it received 36 awards and 39 nominations with Weaver receiving multiple awards for her performance, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.