Surprise picks among Writers Guild of America Award nominations, a strong Oscars precursor

In the best adapted screenplay category, Ramin Bahrani’s “The White Tiger” nosed out Hollywood bigs Christopher Hampton (“The Father”) and Charlie Kaufman (“I’m Thinking of Ending Things”) for one of the coveted five slots. It will vie for the prize against “One Night in Miami,” “News of the World,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.”