Christian Bale film Hostiles is the latest to be thrown into this year's Oscars race

He stars in the violent western from Scott Cooper alongside Rosamund Pike

New Christian Bale film Hostiles has finally acquired a distributor earning a release that will place it in line for awards contention.

The violent Western, from filmmaker Scott Cooper, will be released in the US by Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures (ESMP).

A question mark has surrounded the film's distribution ever since its festival premiere at Telluride and Toronto last month with many expecting Bale and co-lead Rosamund Pike to be frontrunners for Oscars success should a release date be set in time.

Hostiles will receive a limited release in the US this December before opening wider in January.

The film, set in 1892, follows A US Army Captain - played by Bale - who reluctantly agrees to escort a dying Cheyenne war chief (Wes Studi) and his family back to tribal lands encountering a young widow (Pike) along the way.

Cooper has previous steering lead performances to award wins following Jeff Bridges' Best Actor win for Crazy Heart in 2010. His other credits include Out of the Furnace and Black Mass. We managed to see Hostiles out in Toronto and can confirm that Pike's performance in particular is deserving of awards attention, however, she'll face intense competition as the Best Actress Oscar race is looking to be the closest one in years.

Bale stepped out to promote Hostile at Toronto showcasing his weight gain for a new film in which he's playing former Vice President Dick Cheney.

ESMP is owned by Byron Allen whose new acquisitions include Chappaquiddick, in which Jason Clarke plays Senator Ted Kennedy, and Keanu Reeves' Replicas.

A UK release date for Hostiles is yet to be announced.