At the 88th Academy Awards, “Spotlight,” the film about the Boston Globe’s investigation into priest abuse, won for best picture. Leonardo DiCaprio, heavily favored to win for lead actor, was not disappointed in his fifth chance to take home an Oscar for acting. His director, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, had just gotten his second directing win in a row for “The Revenant.” The film came into the night with the most nominations at 12 and won three.
Overall, “Mad Max: Fury Road” has the most bragging rights, with six statuettes from 10 nods in total.
The major upset of the evening was Sylvester Stallone’s loss to Mark Rylance of “Bridge of Spies” for supporting actor.
Host Chris Rock kicked off the 2016 Oscars with a highly anticipated monologue amid the #OscarsSoWhite controversy, taking multiple jabs at Hollywood’s culture.
Red carpet rewind
Check out the intimate moments on the 2016 Academy Awards red carpet.
See Leonardo DiCaprio, Charlize Theron, Kerry Washington and others as they walk the red carpet at the 2016 Oscars.
Advocates behind #OscarsSoWhite talk about their plans to keep fighting for change
When comedian Chris Rock took to the Dolby Theatre stage to start the Oscars telecast Sunday night, the track “Fight the Power” by rap group Public Enemy played in the background. That same song, used by Spike Lee to cap his seminal film “Do the Right Thing,” also played at the end of the show as the credits rolled. Both instances were a reminder, comedic or otherwise, to keep pushing for greater diversity prompted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ mostly white list of nominees for a second year in a row. And fighting the power is what the #OscarsSoWhite movement plans to continue doing.
Here are the ways some proponents of increased diversity believe the conversation can continue now that awards season is over.
April Reign, creator of #OscarsSoWhite:
“I would encourage everybody to be more mindful of the movies on which they spend their hard earned money. If the cast does not look like them, does not represent their stories, perhaps choose not to see their films and instead seek out stories that tell the diversity and the beauty and nuance of all people.”
Gil Robertson, president of the African American Film Critics Assn.:
“I want to see the putting together of a multicultural group of journalists to continue this conversation. It’s important that we do that because the way the conversation has been had traditionally is in black and white terms. I think it is important that we encourage our Hispanic and Asian and other brothers and sisters to also be vocal, and to give them room to be vocal. We need to work collaboratively to see results.”
Overheard backstage at the Oscars
Girl Scouts, giggles and little gold men set the tone in the wings of the Dolby Theatre stage at the Oscars, where presenters and performers settled their nerves and celebrated their victories.
Where was Oscar host Chris Rock’s ‘Compton’ movie theater? Not in Compton
During a comedy bit on the 88th Academy Awards Sunday night, Chris Rock said he trekked to a Compton movie theater to interview black moviegoers about largely white Oscar contenders.
The resulting segment got big laughs as Rock asked cinema fans if they had seen, or even heard of, movies like “The Big Short,” “Brooklyn” and “Bridge of Spies.”
But there was one problem with the routine — that theater isn’t in Compton. Rock’s video, filmed about a week before the ceremony, actually took place in front of the Rave Cinema 15 (formerly Magic Johnson Theatres) at Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza.
In fact, as the Los Angeles Times has reported, Compton doesn’t even have a movie theater within its city limits, and it hasn’t in decades.
Inside Vanity Fair’s Oscar party (yes, Ben and Jen were there)
Patricia Clarkson, sitting on a couch bleary-eyed at the late hour, seemed amused by the gaggle of tall, pretty girls. Less concerned was “Love” star Gillian Jacobs, who was hanging out with “Game of Thrones” star Emilia Clarke.
Jacobs was more interested in getting some beignets. While waiting for her ride, she grabbed a bag of the Bouchon donuts — guests were given to-go packets upon exiting — and tossed a few in her mouth. And that’s how you end an award season right.
10 most popular Oscars Instagram videos contain McDonald’s, diamonds and JiffPom
No real surprise here, the most popular Instagram videos to be created on Oscars night include a celebrity puppy, Cate Blanchett and her diamonds, Reese Witherspoon doing shots, and Diddy instructing his followers on how to keep their “glows.”
Let’s shine together.
How Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy used the Oscars as a platform for diversity before #OscarsSoWhite
As established over the last few months of #OscarsSoWhite coverage and controversy, Hollywood diversity is an issue that inspires much passion within the entertainment industry and beyond.
But matters of diversity aren’t a trending topic, they’re a conversation that’s been going on for decades. Even in Hollywood. Even at the Oscars.
At the 49th Academy Awards held in 1977, 39 years ago, Richard Pryor (after a seven-minute interpretive song-and-dance number by Ann-Margret) opened the Oscars with a searing monologue that lampooned the lack of African American representation at the awards while a primarily white audience nervously tittered.
In 1988, 11 years after Pryor’s monologue, the academy invited Eddie Murphy, one of the biggest box-office stars of the decade, to award the ceremony’s crown jewel, best picture. But before Murphy got down to business, he went off book and told the story of how he originally wanted to turn down the offer from the academy.
Oscars joke about Asian American accountants stirs outrage
Despite an Academy Awards ceremony focused on addressing issues of diversity in Hollywood, Asian Americans expressed outrage on social media after two jokes that poked at stereotypes. The comments, one by host Chris Rock during a skit and another by comedic actor Sacha Baron Cohen under his Ali G persona, were particularly notable due to the controversy surrounding the #OscarsSoWhite theme.
Rock’s skit drew the most ire. In a rehearsed bit involving the tabulation of Academy Awards votes, he introduced the would-be PriceWaterhouseCoopers representatives overseeing the count. “They sent us their most dedicated, accurate and hard-working representatives,” he said. “Please welcome Ming Zhu, Bao Ling and David Moskowitz.”
Three kids of Asian descent, dressed in suits and carrying briefcases, walked toward center stage. Following a muted response from the crowd, Rock added: “If anybody’s upset about that joke, just tweet about it on your phone that was also made by these kids.”
And react they did, many wondering how the gag made it out of the writers room.
Stacey Dash at the Oscars: The joke’s on whom?
For as much was written speculating about what this year’s Chris Rock-hosted Oscars might look like, it’s doubtful many prognosticators predicted an appearance of Black History Month’s sworn enemy Stacey Dash.
Dash, best known for her work in 1995’s “Clueless,” now spends her days as a cultural contributor for Fox News, where she was suspended in December 2015 for using profanity in reference to President Obama while on the air. More recently, Dash stoked the flames of controversy with statements in response to the #OscarsSoWhite controversy that suggested that BET and Black History Month should be done away with in the interest of equality.
So when Dash took the stage at Sunday’s Oscars, under the guise of “director of minority outreach,” the joke didn’t just flail, it sank like a stone.
Diane Warren on losing the Oscar for the eighth time: ‘I guess I’m just the perennial loser’
I mean, it’s my eighth time losing. I didn’t think I’d lose this time. I mean, that’s the best performance I’ve ever seen in my life. That’s like an Oscar moment of all time. I guess I’m just the perennial loser. I mean, it’s like everybody is talking about it. That and Stallone. It’s really weird.
— Diane Warren, Oscar nominee for original song
How’d Chris Rock do? Critics (mostly) liked his Oscars performance
One of the most urgent questions going into Sunday’s Academy Awards ceremony was just how host Chris Rock would handle the gig, and particularly how he would address the ongoing #OscarsSoWhite controversy.
Critics generally praised Rock for addressing the issue so directly, even if not all the jokes worked. Here’s a look at reactions:
Writing for The Times, television critic Mary McNamara argued that although Rock didn’t land every joke, he encouraged a bit of reflection on what is typically a night for the film industry to pat itself on the back. “For all its flaws, Rock’s Oscars had some of the most powerful moments seen in the telecast’s history. His decision to honestly answer the question ‘Is Hollywood racist?’ was brave and effective,” she said. “If Hollywood believes, as it should, that film is a medium of truth-telling and a catalyst for change, then moments of self-examination should occur at least as often as those of celebration.”
New York Times TV critic James Poniewozik noted that having Rock, who was hired before the diversity flap began, emcee the ceremony “was a lucky pairing of host and subject.” His performance was “evenhanded without being wishy-washy” and represented “an example of something the industry is still trying to learn: that you can achieve both inclusion and entertainment by giving the right person just the right opportunity.”
That being said: What was with the bizarre appearance by Stacey Dash?
How Chris Rock’s entrance included a musical shout-out to Spike Lee
Comedian Chris Rock came out swinging, at least in regard to his music choices. Rock’s walk-on song was Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power,” a song tied to Spike Lee’s 1989 film “Do the Right Thing.” Many looked to Rock to address the lack of diversity in Hollywood and at the Oscars, and he did so before even saying a word, choosing a song that still feels revolutionary.
Chris Rock doesn’t lift ratings for Oscars
Anticipation of Chris Rock’s no-holds-barred commentary at the 88th Academy Awards ceremony did not boost to the overnight ratings for Sunday’s telecast on ABC
Based on Nielsen’s overnight data from 56 large U.S. TV markets, the telecast averaged a 23.4 rating and a 36% share of the homes using television from 8:30 p.m. to 11:51 p.m. EST, when the last commercial break aired.
That’s down 6% when compared with the 24.9 rating from the overnight data for 2015.
Three reasons why ‘Spotlight’ came from behind to take the Oscar for best picture
It was a year of two films. Until it wasn’t.
It was the year “Spotlight,” the third film on everyone’s list of top-three finishers, came from behind and walked off with the best picture trophy.
So what did “Spotlight” have that “The Big Short” did not? Three things:
It not only provided work for a lot of actors, it featured an actor (Tom McCarthy) who also co-wrote and directed. As “Good Will Hunting” proved years ago, actors, a big chunk of academy members, like to see actors branching out.
Yes, it was a hot mess, but Chris Rock’s Oscars show was powerful, confounding and possibly revolutionary
For all its flaws, Rock’s Oscars had some of the most powerful moments seen in the telecast’s history.
— Mary McNamara
The 2016 Oscars telecast was a hot mess, but it certainly wasn’t boring.
An event most often criticized for being self-indulgent and self-congratulatory — so over-long, repetitive and predictable that the host is all but required to joke about its absurdity — this year’s Academy Awards was a strange compilation of atonal moments in which the audience was kept perpetually off balance. Host Chris Rock called Hollywood out on its racism and then sent his daughters out to sell Girl Scout cookies. The mood whipsawed from the shocking to the familiar and back again, often in the space of a few moments.
The kiss: Cue the Celine Dion music, Leo and Kate are back together for a Titanic embrace
They parted ways on that sinking ship back in 1997, but lately Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet have been back together in an awards season that’s gone on and on. After both actors won Golden Globes in January and British Academy Film Awards in mid-February (his as lead actor in “The Revenant,” hers as supporting actress in “Steve Jobs”), many fans were hoping for the ultimate “Titanic” recoupling at the Oscars.
Winslet, however, lost the Oscar to Alicia Vikander (“The Danish Girl”). But when DiCaprio won his Oscar, he found Winslet backstage. They embraced. They kissed. And for one brief moment it was as if Jack and Rose had never drifted apart.
Whoopi Goldberg’s bracelet was also an octopus
The 88th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre wasn’t without a plethora of standout accessories and sartorial details worth a second look, including the red silk flower of Oscar winner Jared Leto’s festive Gucci ensemble and the feathers of Oscar winner Cate Blanchett’s Armani Privé seafoam green gown. And how could we forget Academy Award winner Whoopi Goldberg’s bold jewelry? Here’s a look at what style accessories, details and accompanying fashion selections stood out on the red carpet.
Chris Rock was right, this year the Oscars really were a little different
Bringing an end to an unpredictable and tumultuous Oscar race, the newsroom drama “Spotlight” took home the top prize for best picture at the 88th Academy Awards, emerging victorious in what had widely been seen as a three-way race with the brutal frontier epic “The Revenant” and the financial crisis dramedy “The Big Short.”
Leonardo DiCaprio won his first Academy Award — after four previous acting nominations — for his starring role as a man who survives a vicious grizzly bear attack in “The Revenant.” Brie Larson earned the lead actress prize for her performance as a mother who has spent much of her life in captivity in the drama “Room.”
The evening marked the climax of one of the most controversial Oscar seasons in Hollywood history, as a bitter debate over the lack of any acting nominees of color for the second year in a row roiled the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Unlike in many previous years, no single film dominated the night, as academy voters spread their love around to a wide range of contenders.
Oscars after-party quick change: Before and after
The art of the quick change is a Hollywood staple. And many of the Oscars ceremony audience members showcased entirely new looks at the Vanity Fair Oscar party.
Mindy Kaling traded in her long, blue train for a Salvador Perez original.
Kerry Washington switched from a custom Atelier Versace gown to a backless number.
And Sofia Vergara wore Marchesa to the ceremony but traded that in for something white for the night.
Inside the Oscar winners’ engraving station
Where do newly anointed Academy Award winners go once the TV cameras turn off and the show comes to an end?
For many, the first stop was the engraving station at the Governors Ball, located at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood and Highland, where winners come to get their personal nameplates affixed to their new but nameless Oscars statuettes.
“Engraving” is a bit of a misnomer in this case because the bronze nameplates were all created well in advance of Sunday’s ceremony by the New York art foundry Polich Tallix.
The foundry created winning nameplates for all the nominees, said Adam Demchak, vice president and general manager of the Hudson Valley company.
During the telecast, technicians selected the winning nameplates as the victors were announced and mounted the small plates in the back of the engraving station in preparation for the crush of winners later in the evening.
It’s the company’s first time at the Oscars. This year’s statuette features a very subtle redesign, with a refined face and other adjustments that combine the best of the statuettes from the golden age of Hollywood and more recent versions, according to the academy.
Leonardo DiCaprio was an early arrival at the station, carrying the first Oscar of his career, for “The Revenant.” The actor conversed politely with the technician who used a simple screwdriver to affix the nameplate with two black screws.
“Wow, manually?” asked DiCaprio. “Do they do this every year?” He was informed that yes, this happens each year.
“I wouldn’t know,” the actor joked. He left the party shortly thereafter, followed by an impressive entourage.
Brie Larson, who won best actress for “Room,” came next, sipping champagne and toasting with her beau as she waited for her Oscar to get its nameplate.
Once she had the statuette -- they are wiped clean of smudges and fingerprints with a small towel -- she stared at it and shook her head. “Oh my God,” she whispered before exiting to a blast of camera flashes.
Each Oscar winner gets a small instruction pamphlet on the proper care of the statuette, which is cast in bronze and coated with 24k gold.
To clean the gold surface, recipients are advised to dissolve a half teaspoon of liquid dish soap in a cup of warm water and to then “gently wipe the surface using the soap solution and a soft microfiber cloth.”
Earlier, Alicia Vikander sipped bubbly while waiting for her nameplate. A few chairs down, three-time Oscar-winning cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki took a photo of the supporting actress winner for “The Danish Girl” with his smartphone.
The academy said that the new statuettes weigh the same as previous versions. “It lasts forever and doesn’t require maintenance,” the care guide states.
Crowds are light and desserts plentiful at the Governors Ball
It was all eyes on Leonardo DiCaprio at the Governors Ball--but not for long. The actor, clutching his Oscar statue, left the pink-filled space where revelers were snacking on mini pizza slices and deviled eggs shortly after 10:30 p.m.
The actor, who won for his performance in “The Revenant,” filed out, flanked by security. And it’s no surprise he needed the help. A swarm of well-wishers and celeb gazers wanted their peek at the man of the hour.
“Mad Max” director George Miller left the Governors Ball at a similarly early hour. An entourage followed him, though it wasn’t as large as the number of wins his film “Mad Max: Fury Road” had nabbed earlier in the evening. (Six.)
“It really thrilled me,” said the smiling bespectacled director. “If you told me a year ago that we’d be nominated I wouldn’t have believed it. And if you told me a week ago we’d win, I still wouldn’t have believed it.”
So he wasn’t expecting so many wins? Not even just a little bit?
“Not at all, not at all,” Miller said, shaking his head. “Most of all I’m so happy my wife, Margaret Sixel, won. So it’s a great night.” Sixel was responsible for editing “Mad Max” and was awarded the Oscar for her efforts.
Andra Day, donning a flowing yellow gown, took center stage at the Governors Ball--literally. The singer performed atop a platform in the middle of the sprawling space, launching into a rendition of Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On” as partygoers swayed to the beat.
But by 11 p.m., the room is half full and the mood lackluster. A few enthusiastic dancers brave the dance floor, bouncing to Madonna’s 1980s party song, “Holiday.”
Around that hour, academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs takes a moment to stop in at the Governors Ball.
“I think it was a fabulous night,” she said, after taking a photo with Day. “I thought Chris [Rock] did an amazing job. He really did. Our producers, too.”
Asked how the awards show might look differently come next year with recent implementations in the aftermath of the #OscarsSoWhite controversy, Boone Isaacs was coy about playing fortune teller.
“I have no idea what it will look like next year,” she said.
An empowering night for sexual-assault survivors
The stories of sexual-assault survivors have taken center stage in multiple ways this awards season. In addition to being the subject of “The Hunting Ground” and the Lady Gaga-Diane Warren nominated track, it is also examined in “Room,” which won Brie Larson the lead actress Oscar, and “Spotlight,” which took home the night’s biggest award for best picture. And it all came to a head onstage, backstage and at a protest rally in downtown Los Angeles on Oscars Sunday.
Check out the Oscar winners of the red carpet
Check out the best and worst Oscar looks from Sunday night’s 88th Academy Awards. (Spoiler: Kerry Washington slays.)
The weird, wonderful world of the Governors Ball
The first afterparty for Academy Awards attendees is the Governors Ball. A lavish party where folks are fed salmon-shaped Oscars from celebrity Chef Wolfgang Puck. We got an sneak peek at the festivities earlier this week. Behold.
Here’s how the Governors Ball hammers Oscar shapes in salmon.
Celebs can drink from “gilded eggshells.”
Forty Alaskan King crabs were ordered for the Governors Ball and they cost $450 - $500 a pop.
Chocolate Oscars.
After a year of soul-searching Brie Larson finds herself (and an Oscar)
Brie Larson is feeling “pretty good” right about now.
Following her lead actress win for her performance in “Room,” Larson made her way backstage to the press room and needed no time to think of a song that would best encapsulate her mood. She listed it easily.
“‘I’m in Love with My Life’ by Phases,” she said while clutching her Oscar gold, before launching into song.
The 26-year-old actress spent some time recalling the journey she’s taken since taking on her career-defining role as Ma, an abducted and imprisoned mother in the Lenny Abrahamson-directed film.
“This time a year ago, I was still trying to figure out who I was,” Larson recalled. “The movie was done, but I was in deep searching. I was pulling apart pieces I learned while being Ma ... who I was by the time this movie was over was so far away from who I was before starting this movie.... I’m standing here now completely myself. Everything about this experience ... has been very pointedly about it being a representation of who I am. I feel really strong and excited about holding this gold guy. It’s a metaphor for how I’m feeling inside.”
Larson was later asked if there was a moment in her career where she learned to stand up for herself as a female in the male-dominated industry.
“Oh, many times,” she said. “I would go into auditions and casting [would say], ‘We really love what your doing, but we’d love for you to come back in a jean mini skirt and heels.... For me, I personally always rejected that moment. I tried maybe once and it always made me feel terrible. A jean mini skirt does not make me feel sexy, it makes me feel uncomfortable.”
Larson said she seeks, instead, roles in film that represent “women that I know. Women I understand. Complicated women. Women that are inside of me.”
Elton John’s Oscar watch party auctioned off Lady Gaga’s shoes
The night stayed starry at the Elton John Oscar party as the auction rolled out in rapid fashion. Five nights at Steven Tyler’s Maui vacation home went for $50K.
The red, white and plus platform heels Lady Gaga wore with her sparkly red suit when she sang the national anthem at the Super Bowl drew $55K.
Then the final lot -- two tickets to the Vanity Fair Oscar post-party, with the winners departing straight from this party in WeHo to the mag’s star-studded fete in Beverly Hills -- went up. Bidding hung up for a few minutes around $55K, then shot up and sold for $100K. The money goes to the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
Next came the winners of the Oscar pool, who would take home those Bulgari watches. It was supposed to be one man and one woman getting the prizes, but with a three-way tie among the women, the jeweler donated two additional timepieces. Score!
All that’s left, other than general after-party festivities, is a performance from Elton.
“Now I have to go change into something fabulous,” he said. “I’ll be right back.”
DiCaprio and Iñárritu get passionate about climate change and diversity
Leonardo DiCaprio and Alejandro G. Iñárritu took their time backstage to bask in the glow of their wins for lead actor and director but also to talk further about the subjects they explored in their acceptance speeches: Hollywood diversity and climate change.
When it comes to his win, Iñárritu said that he couldn’t be more happy.
“Every film is like a song. I love this film as I love ‘Birdman’,” he said. “I’m sharing this experience with Leo and all the nominees and the crew and I think all the warmth I’m getting is on behalf of them.”
As for DiCaprio, this first Oscar win has been a lifelong dream.
“I grew up in East Los Angeles very close to the Hollywood studio system … so to have parents that allowed me to be a part of this -- taking me to auditions — it’s been my dream since I was 4 years old.”
Storytelling is what it’s all about for both men.
“Storytelling is a way to confront a huge amount of emotions -- of possibilities,” said Inarritu. “It is a way to control life, to have an oxygen capsule of life without suffering for real.”
The questions soon moved on to their twin passion issues.
“The debate is not only about black and white people,” said Iñárritu, asking if #OscarsSoBrown is next. “The complexity is more than just one one or another — the debate is becoming polarized without exploring the complexity of this country being so mixed — still we are dragging this tribal thing.”
He continued, gaining steam. “One of the problems we are suffering from is that there are no moderate platforms to talk about something deeply that is deciding the destiny of the people of the world by the color of their skin.”
DiCaprio took the microphone next to talk more about climate change, mentioning that he has been filming a documentary about the subject concurrently with “The Revenant.”
“This is the most existential crisis our society has ever known … and the time is now. It’s imperative that we act,” he said. “Tonight I feel so overwhelmed with gratitude, but I feel there’s a ticking clock; there’s a sense of urgency that we must all do something proactive — if you do not believe in climate change and empirical science and truth then you will be on the wrong side of history.”
Sam Smith talks Black Lives Matter, LGBT community
How might Jimmy Napes and Sam Smith celebrate their Oscar win for original song tonight?
“A drink is in order, definitely,” said Napes. “We’re gonna party I think!”
Smith was a tad more serious and emotional about the increase of LGBT and transgender visibility as seen in this year’s Oscar-nominated films, such as “Carol” and “The Danish Girl.” “It means the world to me,” Smith said. “I wanted to take this opportunity to show how much I care about my community. People in the beginning said I didn’t – and I wanted to make it clear how much I do care about the LGBT community. I’m completely overwhelmed, I can’t speak – I’m a little bit drunk as well!”
About Chris Rock’s performance tonight – and his ongoing diversity commentary -- Smith said: “It was amazing. It was so prominent throughout the show and I thought that was important. It’s important all these things get raised because we are not OK. It’s just amazing people are speaking about it and raising it.”
When Smith was asked, specifically, about how he feels about the #BlackLivesMatter movement, he added: “I’m still learning, every day, how bad it is in certain places for black people and black culture. It’s absolutely awful what’s going on in certain parts of the world and I’m fully behind it, that’s all I can say.”
If a drink, for Napes, is now in order, then how might Smith celebrate tonight?
“I’ve been eating the most boring food for months now,” he said, “and I’m gonna destroy some burgers and chocolate cake now!”
‘Spotlight’ victim says best-picture win a new level of validation
Of all the people who felt vindication about “Spotlight’s” upset best picture win, few hold the personal stake of Phil Saviano.
The clergy-abuse survivor has been a visible part of the Tom McCarthy film’s campaign. He has spoken out often on behalf of victims’ rights, and the importance of transparency and accountability within the Catholic Church.
The top Oscar, he said, makes that all worthwhile.
“It’s one thing to have [the story] out in the news; it’s another to have it out in Hollywood,” Saviano said, moments after the movie took best picture.
Saviano said that he believes the win is important because of the battle for justice in the 15 years since the Boston Globe’s investigation began -- but also because that fight isn’t over.
”It’s unfortunate we have to still keep an eye on the church,” he said, citing a policy in which predators who work in the system are able to conceal past violations.
“This movie is going to be shown all over the world, so this really helps,” he added.
A moment later, McCarthy exited the theater holding an Oscar statuette. Told about Saviano’s reaction, he looked up and said, “That’s why we did it, isn’t it?”
Watch the best parts of Chris Rock’s monologue
Full list of the 2016 Academy Awards winners
Here it is, the full list of every single Oscar winner from “Mad Max,” “Mad Max” and “Mad Max” all the way to “Spotlight.”
‘Spotlight’ cast celebrates with a floor pose
And here’s one of the results:
What was your favorite Chris Rock moment from the ceremony?
Brie Larson’s career began with Barbie and fish stick commercials
Brie Larson comes away from the 2016 Academy Awards with the Oscar for lead actress. But earlier in the awards season, Los Angeles Times reporter Rebecca Keegan talked with Larson about her less glamorous beginnings.
As a child actor going out on auditions for fish sticks and Barbie doll commercials, Brie Larson desperately wanted to be taken seriously.
“What they’re looking for is an effervescent kid who has a cute voice and can do a song and dance,” said Larson, now 26. “But I wanted to do monologues. They would ask my name and what my hobbies were and I’d say, ‘I like to act.’ … They’re like, ‘Ah, yeah, OK, let’s move on to the next kid.’”
Hollywood has caught up to Larson’s sincerest childhood ambitions, however. Her performance in “Room,” the A24 drama currently in theaters about a young mother and son living in captivity, has earned critical praise and multiple film festival audience awards for its sensitive and powerful depiction of maternal love in the direst of settings.
“The funny part is, now I don’t really want to be taken seriously,” Larson said, reflecting on her evolution. “Now I find seriousness to be rather ridiculous.”
Screams for ‘Spotlight’ were heard all around the Oscars
Could you hear the screaming from the stage right wings when “Spotlight” was named best picture? It came from a crowd of Oscar winners huddled around the film’s writer and director, Tom McCarthy, including Alicia Vikander, Sam Smith and Brie Larson, who were waiting to be sent on stage at the close of the show beneath a hail of confetti.
Vikander and Larson hugged as the flashbulbs snapped. A stage manager brushed confetti out of Leonardo DiCaprio’s hair.
The group of sexual abuse survivors who had taken the stage behind Lady Gaga screamed, “We love you, Leo!” as he high-fived them.
When Larson arrived, the survivors screamed even louder and pumped their fists. “Give us a hug!” they said to the actress, whose film, “Room,” centered on a sexual abuse survivor. “Yes, yes, yes!” Larson said, rushing into their arms. “I feel like I’m on fire right now!”
Meanwhile, Times reporter Steve Zeitchik spoke to Michael Keaton an hour before the ceremony ended and Keaton predicted, in a low-key way, a “Spotlight” win for best picture.
“I do feel good. I don’t know why. I just do,” he said when asked if he thought it could pull off an eye-popping upset.
Even with “The Revenant” being a favorite? And even with some saying “The Big Short” could crash both their parties?
“I know. I’ve heard all that. But I have a good feeling. I just do.”
Odds are Keaton has an even better feeling now.
‘Spotlight’: The rare best picture winner to take just one other Oscar
“Spotlight” winning best picture took some pundits by surprise for one simple reason. It’s the first movie since 1952’s “The Greatest Show on Earth” to take best picture and win just one other category. That’s right. “Spotlight” won just two Oscars on Sunday night -- best picture and original screenplay.
“Spotlight’s” victory had everything to do with the academy’s preferential voting system, which asks those casting ballots to rank the movies in order. This rewards consensus choices, movies that show up consistently in voters’ first, second or third place spots. “Spotlight” and “The Big Short” were those kinds of movies. “The Revenant,” not so much. Many people loved it; nearly as many found its brutal violence off-putting.
In the end, “Spotlight” prevailed for its quality, of course, and also for the way it became part of the conversation (and prodded the discussion) about the ongoing investigation into clerical sex abuse within the Catholic Church. When a Vatican commission screened the movie earlier this month, it put “Spotlight” into the news headlines -- and squarely in the minds of Oscar voters at a time when ballots were being cast.
Leonardo DiCaprio brings up climate change in his first Oscar acceptance speech
Leonardo DiCaprio, who won the lead actor Oscar at tonight’s 88th Academy Awards for his role in “The Revenant,” spoke of the dangers of climate change during his acceptance speech.
The film, in which DiCaprio plays frontier tracker Hugh Glass, had a harrowing shoot in remote wilderness locations. The production was nearly jeopardized when filmmakers had to scour the world to find snow.
“Making ‘The Revenant’ was about man’s relationship to the natural world, a world that we collectively felt in 2015 as the hottest year in record history,” he said. “Our production needed to move to the southern tip of this planet just to be able to find snow. Climate change is real. It is happening right now.”
DiCaprio added that climate change is the “most urgent threat facing our entire species.” He called on the audience to back politicians who are outspoken on issues of global warming.
“We need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating,” he said. “We need to support leaders around the world who do not speak for the big polluters and the big corporations but speak for all of humanity and the indigenous people of the world, for the billions and billions of underprivileged people who will be most affected by this, for our children’s children and for those people out there whose voices have been drowned out by the politics of greed.”
He ended his speech with a plea.
“Let us not take this planet for granted. I do not take tonight for granted.”
Remember Morgan Freeman’s Oscar-winning performance in ‘Million Dollar Baby’?
Hollywood heavyweight Morgan Freeman has been nominated for an Academy Award five times and took home a statuette in 2005 for his sterling supporting work in boxing heartbreaker “Million Dollar Baby.”
Freeman was just the fourth African American actor to win supporting actor in the history of the academy.
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
Lady Gaga waited to perform, barefoot and backstage
Lady Gaga, barefoot and in a white suit, danced on the balls of her bare feet in the stage right wings as she waited to sing “Til It Happens to You.”
After performing, Gaga ran off the stage, down a hallway and around a corner to change her clothes, in order to be in her seat before the announcement of her category, original song.
Fact-checking Sam Smith
When Sam Smith took to the stage to accept his (surprising!) Oscar for best song, he made a point to inject his own brand of diversity into the #OscarsSoWhite stratosphere.
In referencing comments from openly gay actor Ian McKellen, the “Spectre” theme singer dedicated his award to the entire lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. This was under the belief that no openly gay people had ever taken home an Oscar.
But the lie detector test determined that was a lie.
For one, see this, posted today by Dustin Lance Black, an openly gay man who won for writing “Milk” in 2009:
Add to that (still limited) list, Elton John, who took home the best original song award in 1994 for “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” from “The Lion King.”
Leonardo DiCaprio wins and is showered in GIFS
Alejandro G. Inarritu dreams of a future without racism
Alejandro G. Inarritu, who won the best director Oscar at tonight’s 88th Academy Awards for his film “The Revenant,” noted he was “very lucky” to be in the position he was in. Then he quickly changed course.
“Unfortunately many others haven’t had the same luck,” he said during his acceptance speech.
Inarritu, who is from Mexico City, then referenced a line in “The Revenant,” a moment when Leonardo DiCaprio’s character, Hugh Glass, is speaking to his mixed-race son. Glass says, “They don’t listen to you. They just see the color of you skin.”
He urged “our generation to really liberate” ourselves “from all prejudice,” dreaming of a future in which “the color of the skin becomes as irrelevant as the length of our hair.”
Michael Keaton was surprised about the Mark Rylance win too
Michael Keaton and Sylvester Stallone are two of the most well-regarded contemporary actors without an Oscar.
So how did the former feel about the latter’s upset at the hands of Mark Rylance in the supporting-actor category?
“It was a surprise, wasn’t it?” Keaton said when The Times caught up with the “Spotlight” actor near the Oscars lobby bar.”Look, I was pulling for Mark [Ruffalo, his co-star]. But you can’t argue with Mark Rylance. I mean, can you? He’s just so good.”
And Sly, poor Sly?
“Supporting actor is tough,” Keaton said. “Just really tough. There’s so many good actors in that every year. But again. I wanted Mark. I’m a homer. I really am.”
How ‘Amy’ has changed the public perception of the late Amy Winehouse
“Amy” closed out its impressive awards run Sunday night with an Oscar.
The film, which chronicled the life of late songstress Amy Winehouse, took home an Academy Award for documentary feature.
Director Asif Kapadia and producer James Gay-Rees told reporters backstage that they’ve noticed the conversation surrounding the troubled “Back to Black” singer seems to have shifted since release of the film.
“What’s happened is the perception of Amy has changed,” Kapadia said. “A lot of people, particularly in the U.S., summed up Amy on one word: She’s a trainwreck.” Now, he added, they say, “There’s so much more to her. Most people say they just want to give her a hug.... I think there’s a much better feeling people have about her.”
The film, which also won in the documentary feature category at the BAFTAs, details the English singer’s rise as a singer to her death in 2011. Asked about the vocal opposition to the film by Amy’s father, Mitch Winehouse, Gay-Rees would only say the film was not meant to cast blame on anyone.
“I think, at the end of the day, the film’s about Amy,” Gay-Rees said. “She became a bit of a punch bag .... film has opened people’s eyes to her again… that’s what our job was...I think that should be enough.”
Kathryn Bigelow is the only woman to have won for directing
For all the conversation swirling around diversity at the Academy Awards, there remain categories that women as a gender can’t manage to find equal footing in.
In 2010, when Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win the Academy Award for directing, for her work on the harrowing examination of war “The Hurt Locker,” she was only the fourth woman to have been nominated for the award.
That was six years ago. No woman has been nominated for director since.
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
Mark Rylance on having ‘out-punched’ Rocky
I find people come up and say things about competing as actors, and I know it’s necessary to make a show out of it. But those actors are so good. I feel more like I’m a spokesman when I win … so I don’t take it too seriously.
— Mark Rylance, Oscar winner for supporting actor
Joe Biden on sexual assault: ‘We must change the culture’
Vice President Joe Biden, introducing Lady Gaga at the Academy Awards, gave an impassioned speech dedicated to reducing sexual assault on college campuses.
“Despite significant progress over the last few years, too many women and men on and off college campuses are still victims of sexual abuse,” said Biden.
The White House in 2014 launched It’s On Us, a campaign designed to reframe the conversation around sexual assault. The initiative aims to bring increased awareness to the issue.
“Tonight, I’m asking you to join millions of Americans, including me, President Obama, the thousands of students I’ve met on college campuses, and the artists I’ve met here tonight to take the pledge -- a pledge that says, ‘I will intervene in situations when consent has not or cannot be given,’” said Biden.
Moments later, Lady Gaga would perform “Til It Happens to You,” a song written for the film “The Hunting Ground,” which documents the prevalence of rape on college campuses. Lady Gaga was joined onstage by survivors of sexual abuse.
“Let’s change the culture,” said Biden. “We must change the culture, so that no abused women or man, like the survivors you will see tonight, ever feel they have to ask themselves, ‘What did I do?’ They did nothing wrong.”
‘Inside Out’ took more than three years to make it to the big screen
Director Pete Docter and producer Jonas Rivera were feeling good from the inside out backstage, after accepting their award for best animated feature film for “Inside Out.” But not so excited as to forget co-writer Ronnie Del Carmen.
“Ronnie Del Carmen is one of the great storytellers in visual animation,” Rivera said. “There’s a lot of talk about diversity, films from around the world, Japan, Latin America, good ‘ol California, and Ronnie is a great artist and represents that [in the Philippines]. … We’re proud of him and he’s definitely sharing this with us.”
On making a film that tackles emotions, Docter said: “What we were after was entertainment and fun. But then we thought, ‘This has something deep and applicable to every human being.’ Emotions are invisible… this film has the potential [for kids] to unpack and think about some of the things they don’t normally. We’ve heard … that this film has given [some kids] a new vocabulary. We’re so thankful we could contribute in that way.”
Rivera added to the evening’s ongoing conversation about diversity, adding: “My grandfather was born in Mexico and his mother snuck him over to El Paso, Texas. My house was like “I Love Lucy” when I was a kid – my mother had blond hair, my father [was of Mexican descent]. I’m very proud of my family, my heritage and of my papa.”
It took more than three years to bring “Inside Out” to the big screen, a long journey that Rivera called “tortuous in that it was a tortuous path that was a big hunk of life; but we love our [team] so much that in a way, it being over, it’s a heartbreaker.”
“Perhaps the most complex thing in the universe is the human mind,” Docter added, “and that’s what we decided to make a movie about. … So we had to make sure things were simple and clear. It was a long process of rewriting that took three and a half years.”
Rivera said that one of the most memorable payoff moments came from rapper Ice Cube. “I’m a huge fan of N.W.A and – this is so name-droppy – but we were lucky enough to sit next to the “Straight Outta Compton” table and I got to meet Ice Cube. And I introduced myself as [the producer of] “Inside Out” and he said “Oh, man, that movie was dope!”
“I got a letter from a mother of a daughter with special needs, who said her daughter was able to talk for the first time after seeing the film -- and that was [most meaningful] for me.”
Remember when Sacha Baron Cohen spilled ashes on Ryan Seacrest? Seacrest does!
Sacha Baron Cohen is no stranger to making a splash at the Academy Awards.
It was just four years ago when the outrageous English comedian appeared on the red carpet in character as Admiral General Aladeen, promoting the new film “The Dictator” with an urn the character claimed to contain the ashes of recently deceased North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il. Just moments into his interview with Ryan Seacrest, Cohen dumped a significant amount of the “ashes” all over Seacrest’s jacket, much to the host’s surprise.
On the red carpet, Cohen told The Times he was feared on the carpet after the stunt he pulled on Ryan Seacrest four years ago.
“I gave him a hug this year and he kept looking at my hands. He was visibly scared,” said Cohen, flanked by wife Isla Fisher. “None of the live TV shows would talk to me this year.
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
‘The Notebook’ reunites at the Oscars
Rachel McAdams emerged with her mom on her arm and saw Gena Rowlands -- who played the older version of her in “The Notebook.”
“How are you? I haven’t seen you in so long!” McAdams said, embracing Rowlands.
“It’s a long night, right?” McAdams added, as Rowlands nodded quietly. “We’re going to sneak to the ladies room so we don’t start drinking at the bar!”
‘Bear Story’ animator wants people to ‘try not to make the same mistakes as the past’
Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala, who took home gold Sunday in the animated short film category, hope their film “Bear Story” brings some awareness about the power of family.
The short film tells the story of a melancholy old bear longing to be reunited with his family after being taken from them to perform in the circus. Osorio serves as the film’s writer and director; Escala serves as the producer.
Osorio has said the 10-minute short film was inspired by childhood memories in Chile, a time of political turmoil under former dictator Augusto Pinochet. Osorio’s grandfather had been imprisoned after the coup d’état of 1973 and was later exiled to England.
”I tried to tell the importance of family being together,” the Chilean animator said of the film. “The message that we must try not to make the same mistakes as the past.”
Watch Sammy Davis Jr. pull the original Steve Harvey
Sammy Davis Jr. made Oscar history at the 36th awards on April 13, 1964, at the Santa Monica Auditorium when he announced the wrong winner for a musical scoring Oscar. Davis read the correct nominees for scoring of music, adaptation or treatment Oscar, opened the envelope and announced that the winner was John Addison for “Tom Jones.” The audience was speechless. Addison had won in the music score, substantially original category.
“They gave me the wrong envelope?,” quipped Davis. “Wait until the NAACP hears about this!”
A representative of Price Waterhouse ran out onstage with the envelope announcing the correct winner: Andre Previn for “Irma La Douce.”
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
A lot of dismay over Abe Vigoda’s absence from In Memoriam segment
Once again, it’s Dave Grohl!
The Academy Awards didn’t have time Sunday for performances of two of the tunes nominated for original song -- including one that would’ve marked the first time a transgender artist had performed on the Oscars stage.
But of course the show could make room for Dave Grohl.
The Foo Fighters front man has become an inescapable presence at awards shows over the last few years, and tonight he turned up to accompany the annual “In Memoriam” sequence paying tribute to movie folk who’ve recently left us.
Was his rendition of the Beatles’ “Blackbird” nice? Oh, it was perfectly lovely.
But would it have killed the academy to show us someone we haven’t seen before?
Lady Gaga brings the heat
After rather sleepy performances by Sam Smith, the Weeknd and Dave Grohl, Lady Gaga upped the energy at the Academy Awards with a fierce rendition of “Til It Happens to You,” her and Diane Warren’s stark song about sexual assault on college campuses from “The Hunting Ground.”
Banging away at a white grand piano, the singer stared directly into the camera as she delivered the song’s unflinching lyrics. Then she was joined by a large cast of young people with phrases like “Survivor” and “Not your fault” scrawled on their arms.
The performance ended with a standing ovation from the audience -- and a reaction shot from Warren, who looked positively overcome.
Being a woman in visual effects is ‘hard work, basically’
In one of the first surprises of the evening, the indie sci-fi movie “Ex Machina” took home the Oscar for visual effects, trumping competitors with much bigger budgets including “The Revenant” and “Mad Max: Fury Road.”
Backstage, Sara Bennett was asked about being one of few women in the visual effects field. When asked what other women can do to break into the visual effects field, she said: “You need to have the personality and the confidence.... It’s hard work, basically.”
The Oscars once gave a 10-year-old a supporting actress award
Though neither “Beasts of No Nation” star Abraham Attah, 14, nor “Room” star Jacob Tremblay, 9, was nominated for their tremendous performances in their respective films, the Oscars haven’t always shied away from acknowledging the contributions of its younger actors.
In 1974, the academy recognized the work of Tatum O’Neal, awarding the 10-year-old with a best supporting actress award for her work alongside her father, Ryan, in “Paper Moon.”
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
Whoopi Goldberg never shied away from controversy as Oscars host
As Chris Rock takes another stab at hosting the Academy Awards, after an 11-year absence, four-time former Oscars host Whoopi Goldberg will also be gracing audiences with her presence, this time as a presenter.
Goldberg was never one to shy away from controversy during her tenure as Oscar host, perhaps best exemplified by her 1999 hosting gig in which she started the ceremony in full Elizabethan costuming, complete with perfectly painted white face.
For more Academy Awards flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
Mark Rylance salutes Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg
Mark Rylance, who won the best supporting actor Oscar for his role in “Bridge of Spies,” praised the power of the cinematic medium in his acceptance speech.
“I’ve always just adored stories, hearing them, seeing them, being in them, so for me to have the chance to work with, I think, one of the greatest storytellers of our time, Steven Spielberg, it’s just been such an honor,” said Rylance, who played a soft-spoken Russian spy in the film, which stars Tom Hanks.
Throughout the film, Rylance’s character, Rudolf Abel, responds with the phrase “Would it help?” when asked why he doesn’t appear worried or stressed. Rylance referenced the saying on the Oscar stage, noting it’s often repeated to him by fans of the film.
“I’m so pleased that our film has been nominated so many times, and as a face of the film, I meet many people in the streets and it’s lovely to have them, they’re always saying to me, ‘Would it help?’ and all that stuff.”
Rylance then credited his co-star for his Oscar win.
“I think, if you ever wondered about acting with Tom Hanks, would it help? The answer’s clearly yes.”
Rylance over Stallone: What happened?
When Sylvester Stallone won the Golden Globe for playing Rocky Balboa in the “Rocky” reboot “Creed,” the room exploded. The standing ovation was long, loud and heartfelt. I’ve never Quentin Tarantino so excited ... and dude gets excited a lot.
So why didn’t Stallone win the supporting actor Oscar on Sunday? Well, time and time again, academy members expressed reservations to me that Stallone shouldn’t win for essentially playing the same character in yet another “Rocky” movie. Where’s the degree of difficulty in that?
Plus, the winner, Mark Rylance, is viewed as an actor’s actor. He’s well-respected for his theater work and was great in last year’s PBS miniseries, “Wolf Hall.”
Most expected Stallone to win. But Rylance taking the Oscar for his subtle turn in “Bridge of Spies” isn’t a complete shocker. It’s a case of voters -- particularly the East Coast crowd -- going for a man with an impeccable acting reputation over someone viewed more as a movie star.
Kevin Hart’s impassioned words about actors of color were unrehearsed
Kevin Hart was laughing his head off at Chris Rock’s Girl Scout moment as he waited to take the stage. “All right, guys, we’re going completely off book,” Hart said to the crew before he introduced the Weeknd. “Get ready!”
By all accounts he did: Hart had not delivered his onstage comments about actors of color at Oscar rehearsals. When the comic returned from the stage, he shared a warm hug with Oscars producer Reginald Hudlin.
The hard work behind the ‘Mad Max’ sounds
After accepting their Oscar for sound editing for “Mad Max: Fury Road,” Mark Mangini and David White were downright deferential to director George Miller.
“All of this is due to George Miller, who creates a fantastic environment where everyone can be creative,” Mangini told journalists backstage.
“I’d add to that,” said White, “that he’s one of the world’s greatest collaborators.”
Sound editing is a tricky thing, White explained: “Because of the way this film was shot – high-speed cameras, wind machines, sand -- a lot of the sound [from filming] was unusable. So down to the smallest footsteps and biggest explosions, that [all had to be re-created], and was all from [us.]”
Added Mangini: “Everything had to be believable sound ... it had to have an authenticity to it, which was something George was so serious about all the way through.”
On “Mad Max’s” success at the Oscars tonight – and where that might lead the 71-year-old Miller next – Mangini joked: “I’d actually encourage him to do a really boring relationship drama next, that we can shoot around the kitchen table!”
Pete Docter dedicates ‘Inside Out’ to ‘anyone out there who’s in junior high, high school, working it out, suffering’
After “Inside Out” won the Oscar for animated feature film, director Pete Docter shared a little of the film’s inspiration, noting the Disney/Pixar work was born of the trials and tribulations of getting older.
“This film was really born from watching our kids grow up, which is not easy,” he said.
He then had a positive message for all those suffering through the daily dramas of coming of age.
The film, he said, is dedicated to “anyone out there who’s in junior high, high school, working it out, suffering. There are days you’re going to feel sad, you’re going to feel angry, you’re going to be scared. That’s nothing you can choose, but you can make stuff. Make films. Draw. Write. It’ll make a world of difference.”
‘Mad Max’s’ Oscar-winning film editor Margaret Sixel hopes she can ‘alter the perception that women can’t edit action films’
“Mad Max: Fury Road” director George Miller might have voiced eagerness to work on a sequel to the post-apocalyptic film. But wife Margaret Sixel, who took home Oscar gold Sunday night for film editing, played coy about signing back up for it.
In fact, we can’t even transcribe the noise she made when asked, aside from saying it sounded something like “eeeeIiiiieeeehmmm” and was accompanied by a look of hesitation.
After gathering her thoughts, she said: “I’d like to do a small one in between. Can we just do something we can shoot in six weeks and cut in three months?”
On a more serious note, Sixel said she hopes she and the “Star Wars” teams are helping alter the perception that women can’t edit action films.
“There is some prejudice that women can’t cut action,” Sixel said. “I’m hoping that will change with ‘Star Wars’ girls and me. I think it will change. I think it’s already changing. That’s my personal feeling. You just watch in the next 10 years, balance will come back in our favor, I think.”
The Weeknd busts a move (or has one busted around him)
The Los Angeles Times’ Mikael Wood and Todd Martens chime in on the Weeknd’s Oscar performance.
Mikael Wood: So, Todd, the Weeknd just performed “Earned It,” his Oscar-nominated theme from “Fifty Shades of Grey.” What did we think?
Todd Martens: I was nervous when I saw an aerialist, but I was into it. I thought he was rather confident. And the acrobatics were sexy.
Mikael Wood: Yeah, an aerialist always seems like an overcompensating move. But I agree: He sounded pretty good (or at least better than Sam Smith did). But there was still something of the energy shortage that defined the Weeknd’s Grammys performance a few weeks ago.
Todd Martens: He’s one of the biggest pop stars in the world, yet when it comes to awards shows he’s been stuck performing his ballads. But I was OK with the energy level here; the string-streaked song built nicely. I couldn’t help but compare it to Smith earlier too. And if you look at those two movie songs, they’re both tunes that try to aim for some level of “importance” -- though there’s a level of vulnerability in “Earned It,” a side you don’t always see in the Weeknd.
Mikael Wood: Right. The vulnerability definitely came through, which was nice. I just wish the Oscars’ “importance” (and the Grammys’, for that matter) didn’t always lead to performers keeping everything tamped down, as though they were afraid to break something.
Todd Martens: That was kind of seductive to me, with the dancers closing in on him, even as he was walking forward. It heightened the claustrophobia inherent in a lot of Weeknd songs.
That said, this performance was about all of “50 Shades” I can take.
Ridley Scott assures snub doesn’t matter
One of the biggest snubs of Oscar season came when Ridley Scott wasn’t nominated for a directing Oscar.
So as “The Martian” director sipped a mixed vodka drink at the Oscars bar--he is here as a nominated producer on the film--he could be forgiven for being a little peeved. So is he?
“Well, I’m happy about the box office,” he said, answering the question by not answering the question. “I mean over $600 million. And we’re still going strong in a lot of places. I just heard how we keep going in Tokyo. It’s amazing.”
Scott paused a moment to say hi to “Mad Max: Fury Road” director George Miller, two silver-haired filmmaking titans of another era, still going strong in this one. Then he turned back and sought to clarify his answer, and his own feelings.
“The important thing for me is to keep making movies,” he said. “I’m going to Australia tomorrow. We’re going to shoot again [his “Prometheus” sequel] in five weeks.”
He paused. “I mean, I’ve been here six times. It’s nice. But I just want to keep making movies.”
The trouble with that Compton movie theater bit...
Chris Rock says he went to a cinema in Compton to interview black moviegoers about the Oscar nominees. A minor problem with that: There actually isn’t a movie theater in Compton, and there hasn’t been in decades.
Here’s how that could change soon.
With vodka in hand, Saoirse’s mom says they are ‘grand’
In the lobby, Saoirse Ronan and her mom stood together drinking -- something that definitely didn’t happen the first time the actress was nominated for an Oscar. But, to be fair, she was only 13 then.
“I mean, I’ve got vodka in my hand, so I’d say we’re grand,” said Monica Ronan.
“I’m pretty relaxed,” agreed the “Brooklyn” star, whose category has yet to be announced.
“Plus, I stole all these gummy bears,” Monica said, opening her purse to reveal a trove of pilfered snacks.
“Mom, stop offering everyone gummy bears,” Saoirse said with a smile.
C-3PO and R2-D2 stay in character backstage at the Oscars
There was palpable enthusiasm when R2-D2, C-3PO and BB-8 arrived backstage. “What do you think, R2? It has been a long time, hasn’t it?” C-3PO said, resting his hand on his beeping companion as the droid duo waited to take the stage. “Well it’s good to be with you.”
Behind them a man operated R2 by remote control, while a woman whispered to C-3PO, “Can you hear OK?”
As the droids rolled and wobbled back from the stage, C-3PO declared the experience, “terribly exciting!”
Back in Flint, $63,000 later ...
At the #JusticeForFlint event, Janelle Monae is giving a full-on concert. She follows a number of others including Robert Glasper, Jazmine Sullivan and a host of locals directly affected by the water crisis.
The legendary Stevie Wonder surprised the crowd following Monae -- stream it above.
Oh, and they’ve raised $63,000 so far.
Ellen DeGeneres’ selfie made history
When Ellen DeGeneres hosted the Oscars in 2014, she made Twitter history when she tweeted a selfie with all of Hollywood’s hottest faces.
The Academy Awards are made for stunts like these (see also: Chris Rock and the Girl Scouts) but DeGeneres’ tweet may never be topped.
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
Is DiCaprio getting anxious?
In the last break, Leonardo DiCaprio hurried out to the bar with Benicio Del Toro. The front-runner for lead actor was in a rush to avoid fans wanting to grab a selfie.
He hid out in a corner by the snacks sipping a drink but didn’t remain undercover for long. Once the cellphones came out, he became visibly uncomfortable. He did pose for a few snaps before he told onlookers that he really wanted to finish his drink. He needed to make a near-sprint back into the theater. Are the jitters hitting him?
Oscars recognize the efforts of motion-capture master Andy Serkis
Andy Serkis, the man who brought life to Gollum in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and Caesar in the modern remake of the “Planet of the Apes” series, presented the Oscar for visual effects at Sunday’s ceremony, but not before the show aired a special introduction that revealed a video package that delved into the reality of Serkis’ performances.
The video is significant because of the lack of official acknowledgement within the academy for the efforts of motion capture artists and was an overdue nod to Serkis’ stellar work.
Before Serkis awarded the Oscar to the team from “Ex Machina” he took a moment to make a jab at Republican front-runner Donald Trump, saying, “You could play anything from a planet threatening monster to Donald Trump, which is not very a diverse example but...”
Correction: An earlier version of this post reported that Serkis ended his quote with “you get the point.” The quote has been amended.
The final Oscars score card tally ...
And here’s a look at the other films taking home a 2016 Oscar:
“Amy” 1
“Bear Story” 1
“The Big Short” 1
“The Danish Girl” 1
“Ex Machina” 1
“A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness” 1
“The Hateful Eight” 1
“Inside Out” 1
“Room” 1
“Stutterer” 1
“Son of Saul” 1
“Spectre” 1
Warner Bros. leads studios so far with ‘Mad Max’
With 11 categories down, Warner Bros.’ “Mad Max: Fury Road” is cleaning up with six awards, including costume design, film editing and production design.
Here’s how the Hollywood studios stack up now:
- Warner Bros.: 6 (“Mad Max: Fury Road”)
- 20th Century Fox: 1 (“The Revenant”)
- Paramount: 1 (“The Big Short”)
- Open Road Films: 1 (“Spotlight”)
- A24: 1 (“Ex Machina”)
- Focus Features: 1 (“The Danish Girl”)
‘Mad Max’: Six Oscars and counting
“Mad Max: Fury Road” has now won Oscars for costume design, production design, makeup and hair, film editing, sound editing and sound mixing.
Is that it? Or can it pull off an upset in the director and best picture categories?
I’m not optimistic that it will win any more awards tonight. If it had taken visual effects, maybe. But it’s already an impressive haul.
Tom Hardy is looking a little nervous
Tom Hardy is pacing around the Dolby Theatre lobby, circling as if he’s anxious.
I asked if his nerves had something to do with “The Revenant’s” chances.
“No, I’m just waiting for my wife to finish breast pumping in the bathroom. She has to do it every hour.”
The Oscars have been around since 1929, so why is this the 88th ceremony?
The first Academy Awards, which covered films released in 1927 and ‘28, was held on May 16, 1929. So why is today’s Academy Awards the 88th annual Oscars?
Because there were actually two ceremonies in 1930. The first was held April 3, 1930 with the musical “Broadway Melody” winning best film, Warner Baxter earning lead actor for “In Old Arizona,” Mary Pickford picking up lead actress for “Coquette” and Frank Lloyd receiving the director Oscar for “The Divine Lady.”
Seven months later on Nov. 5, 1930, the academy handed out Oscars to “All Quiet on the Western Front” for best film and director for Lewis Milestone, George Arliss for lead actor for “Disraeli” and Norma Shearer for lead actress for “The Divorcee.”
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
Eddie Redmayne takes a drink (but his wife can’t)
Last year’s lead actor Eddie Redmayne came out into the lobby with his pregnant wife and headed straight to the bar.
“She’s not drinking, but I definitely am,” he said with a couple of hours to go before his category was announced.
This awards season, he said, he’s been far more relaxed than he was while promoting “The Theory of Everything.”
“I bet I won’t even see Alicia until so much later, because you get swept up with all the journalists and everything,” he said, referring to his “Danish Girl” co-star and supporting actress winner Alicia Vikander. “I feel like I barely got to see my wife until the end of the night when I won.”
As for Chris Rock’s performance as host, Redmayne had only positive things to say. “I thought he did fantastically,” the actor said. “There’s been so much expectation.”
Cate Blanchett congratulates Alicia Vikander on her supporting actress win
Cate Blanchett grabbed the arm of freshly minted Oscar winner Alicia Vikander and whispered “Congratulations” while Blanchett waited to have her microphone checked.
When Blanchett stepped backstage after a long, elaborate stage walk-and-talk, Jennifer Garner said, “How about that walk!” Garner soon realized that her co-presenter Benicio del Toro was standing on her dress. “You had one job to do!” Garner said to Del Toro, with a laugh, as Del Toro grimaced and stepped aside.
Then Tina Fey and Steve Carell returned from presenting their category and Fey looked up at the monitor to see the telegenic Margot Robbie and Jared Leto presenting. “How are we still on-screen?” Fey asked Carell.
The five best lines from Chris Rock
Chris Rock took to the Dolby Theatre stage and held nothing back. Tackling the #OscarsSoWhite controversy -- which resulted from the lack of diversity in the acting categories -- the comedian delivered everything anyone could’ve hoped for.
One of the best lines:
“Jada’s gonna boycott the Oscars? Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna’s panties. I wasn’t invited.”
Read Chris Rock’s entire Oscars opening monologue
The following is a transcription of Chris Rock’s opening monologue as host of the 2016 Oscars. He took the stage to Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power”:
“Man, I counted at least 15 black people on that montage. Hey! Well, I’m here at the Academy Awards, otherwise known as the White People’s Choice Awards.
You realize, if they nominated hosts, I wouldn’t even get this job....”
Sam Smith reminds us of Adele -- and not in a good way
Did Sam Smith just have an Adele-at-the-Grammys moment?
Plenty of folks have dissed Smith’s “Writing on the Wall,” from the James Bond movie “Spectre,” as one of the spy franchise’s weakest themes, with none of Bond’s trademark swagger.
But I like the lush, strikingly tender song and the way it unsettles some of our ideas about male action figures.
That said, Smith’s run through the Oscar-nominated tune was deeply wobbly in a way that recalled Adele’s famously pitchy performance earlier this month at the Grammy Awards.
And like his fellow Brit (who later complained about microphone trouble), Smith seemed to know it wasn’t going well, as he swayed increasingly nervously as the song went on.
On the plus side, the young singer -- who recently won a Golden Globe with “Writing’s on the Wall” -- was showing off a strong, stubbly new look, one that prompted host Chris Rock to mention that his favorite song is “Father Figure.”
You know, the George Michael hit.
The Oscars react to Chris Rock’s monologue
From backstage, Times reporter Rebecca Keegan said that Rock played well in the wings, where Emily Blunt and Charlize Theron were waiting to present. There were some ‘whoas’ and raised eyebrows at certain lines -- the lynching and police brutality ones -- from crew and various publicists, makeup folks etc. But mostly big laughs and a sense that he was killing it.
Backstage best director nominee Adam McKay from “Big Short” said, “I thought it was really great. I thought it was jabbing at Hollywood and at same time, even-handed,” of Rock’s opening words.
Patricia Arquette, who made waves at last year’s Oscars ceremony with her remarks on gender inequality, thought Rock’s monologue went well.
“It was very funny. I always thought what makes a great comedian is their own perspective, even if it’s not everyone’s perspective. He’s a genius.”
For the Record: And earlier version of this story attributed Adam McKay’s quote to Tom McCarthy.
‘Mad Max’ costume designer warns ‘Mad Max’ could happen
Costume designer Jenny Beavan, who won the costume design Oscar for her work on “Mad Max: Fury Road,” ended her acceptance speech with an ominous thought. The post-apocalyptic nightmare that is the “Mad Max” universe may be closer to reality than we like to think.
“I just want to say one quite serious thing, and I’ve been thinking about this a lot,” she said onstage at the Dolby Theatre. “Actually, it could be horribly prophetic, ‘Mad Max,’ if we’re not kinder to each other and if we don’t stop polluting our atmosphere.
“So, you know,” she added, “it could happen.”
Beavan has been nominated for a total of 10 Academy Awards. She won the Oscar in 1987 for “A Room With a View.”
For the record: A previous version of this post stated that Beavan won the Oscar in 1986.The ceremony was held in 1987.
Happy for Alicia Vikander, but sad about Kate Winslet
As widely predicted, Alicia Vikander closed strong and took the best supporting actress award.
It might be the rare time that someone won not just for the performance in question but for an un-nominated role the same year, in this case Vikander’s great work as the glacial robot in “Ex Machina.”
Still, watching the clips before the award, I felt bad that early favorite Kate Winslet couldn’t get an award as well. A real powerhouse performance.
One of Chris Rock’s sharpest observations
Walking onstage to the music of Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power,” Oscar host Chris Rock wasted no time addressing the subject that has plagued this year’s ceremony.
Referencing a montage of the year’s films, Rock said, “Man, I think I counted 15 black people in that montage! Well, I’m here at the Academy Awards, otherwise known as the white People’s Choice Awards.”
For roughly 11 minutes, Rock dealt with the lack of diversity among this year’s major nominees. Rock made some solid points, asking why this year’s ceremony was so controversial when the Academy Awards in the past have also not featured diversity.
One of his more sharpest observations came when he said that during the 1960s, the Oscars did not attract the kind of controversy because black people “had real things to protest.”
Though the audience was receptive, Rock was not as acerbic and his jokes have not was acid-tipped as he has been in previous performances, such as his HBO specials.
And for a routine about diversity, he centered almost totally on the exclusion of blacks, leaving out references to other minorities, such as Asians and Latinos.
Stacey Dash makes shocking appearance at Oscars
Following a bit in which Chris Rock bemoans the lack of opportunity for black actors in Hollywood, he brought out everyone’s favorite Fox News correspondent, Stacey Dash, to wave to the audience and wish everyone a happy Black History Month.
Dash made headlines when the #OscarsSoWhite controversy began, stating that Black History Month shouldn’t exist, nor should BET or anything that focused on celebrating black culture specifically.
Two strong screenplays win, but why’d those categories go first?
It was nice for writers to be lauded by presenters Emily Blunt and Charlize Theron as “the backbone of the industry,” but I’m still not sure if giving the writing Oscars first was an attempt to put big awards early or a way to say writing awards are really not big awards after all.
Still, it was good to see two strong screenplays, “Spotlight” and “The Big Short,” both exemplars in their own way, win best original and best adapted screenplay.
Also, that double win kept both films alive in the race with “Revenant” for best picture. This will likely go right down to the wire.
James Bond songs at the Academy Awards and Adele’s ultimate triumph
For as iconic as the James Bond theme songs are in pop culture, as evidenced by tonight’s original song nomination for “Spectre” theme “Writing’s on the Wall,” the songs themselves have been shockingly overlooked at the awards.
Despite garnering original song nominations for Paul McCartney’s “Live and Let Die,” Carly Simon’s “Nobody Does It Better” and Sheena Easton’s “For Your Eyes Only,” it wasn’t until Adele’s “Skyfall” that the series finally took home the Oscar for original song at the Academy Awards.
Can Sam Smith continue Adele’s streak? Can you believe Shirley Bassey’s “Goldfinger” wasn’t even nominated?
For more Academy Award flashbacks check out our Oscars timeline.
Chris Rock pulled no punches in his opening Oscar speech
Stop, hey, what’s that sound?
Since separate categories were established for sound in 1963, 17 films have swept both, most recently “Gravity” two years ago. Now, “Mad Max: Fury Road” makes it 18 with its wins for both sound editing and sound mixing.
But it raises the question, what exactly is the difference between editing and mixing?
Simply put, the sound editing team creates designed sound, including effects and sonic enhancements. Sound mixers, on the other hand, combine on-set recordings such as dialogue with the editors’ designed sounds to help create the movie’s soundtrack.
What is that new ‘Thank You’ scroll? It’s the Oscars’ new idea for stopping the endless, boring speech
How much do you hate the music that the Oscars orchestra plays when a winner’s acceptance speech runs on too long?
Now the producers of Sunday’s telecast may have found a way around those awkward play-offs.
David Hill and Reginald Hudlin, the first-time producers of the ABC telecast live from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, say they are going to try a new feature that will scroll the winners’ thank yous across the bottom of the screen while they are speaking. The idea is to give each speaker more time to blab about something other than how their agent always believed in their dream.
A ‘Titanic’ moment: Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet hit the red carpet together
We finally had the Jack and Rose moment we were hoping for tonight.
Academy Award nominee Leonardo DiCaprio — he’s nominated for lead actor for “The Revenant” — hit the red carpet with his former “Titanic” co-star and Academy Award winner Kate Winslet, who’s nominated for supporting actress for “Steve Jobs.”
Winslet wore a liquid gray dress by Ralph Lauren while DiCaprio wore an Armani tuxedo.
In many minds, we were simply hearing, Winslet say, “I’ll never let you go, Jack.”
Last minute rush
“Hey, ghost in the building!” Chris Rock yelled as he reported to his spot in the stage left wings.
Just before show time, it was a celebrity traffic jam backstage.
“Ahh I’m free,” Sarah Silverman said, streaming from the red carpet into the Oscars greenroom carrying her heels.
Sofia Vergara and Michael Strahan shared an air kiss, Henry Cavill grabbed a bottle of water to cool down and Chrissy Teigen came down the hall declaring everyone “SO pretty!” to hubby John Legend.
“Folks, we need you to take your seats!” a stage manager bellowed into the greenroom. “Ten minutes to top of show!”
Elton John’s Oscars viewing party is underway
At Elton John’s Academy Awards viewing party in West Hollywood to benefit his AIDS foundation, guests feverishly filled out their Oscar ballots, with “Spotlight” the title buzzing above all the others. Prizes included pricey Bulgari watches for the man and woman scoring highest on the ballot.
There were divas in the house: Caitlyn Jenner stopped for a few selfies with people on her way in, and while Leonardo DiCaprio was being interviewed on the red carpet on the many TVs in the cocktail area, singer Mariah Carey made her way into the party.
Guests then made their way into the dining room to get settled in for the show.
As the show began, about a quarter of the guests had yet to sit down and watch. Boy George and Matthew Morrison were seated at the same table down center front, and celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, who designed the menu, zipped by.
And while some people were smiling, most of the laughs were drowned out by chitchat as people settled in. However, host Chris Rock’s barb about Rihanna’s panties got a roar of laughs.
Lady Gaga: All in white again, but no red gloves
What the Oscars look like when you’re not on the A-list
Where do all the nonfamous people go? In life, but also at the Oscars.
At the same time as Al Roker and the microphoned set are flashing metal to the nominees on the red carpet, a parallel carpet, also red, runs into the Dolby Theatre. Milling about it are studio executives, producers and others who don’t normally grace Us Weekly’s pages.
The industry types run into each other, making fashion-related small talk and engaging in “Spotlight-vs. Revenant” voting theories.
One executive from a studio with a best picture nominee confessed she followed the no-eating-on-Oscar-day rule, to little gastrointestinal avail. Executives from another company wondered about the likelihood of a Sacheen Littlefeather protest moment inside the theater, then concluded these were more polished, less publicly provocative times.
Occasionally the executives snapped selfies in front of an Oscar statue, a rare moment when those who typically eat in commissaries are turned into Beliebers.
The parallel red-carpet is also below the public bleachers, which means that some of the most powerful people in Hollywood are chatting on their biggest day of the year amid the rise-and-fall screams of some very enthusiastic tourists.
At regular intervals, a Mr. Clean-looking security type, with a grudging smile, tried to move people along with a “Share the carpet, share the carpet” exhortation that evoked a camp counselor trying to divvy up a batch of S’mores.
But just because the A-listers are on the other side of a velvet rope doesn’t mean people here can’t add a little flair.
At one point, Boston Globe journalist Walter Robinson, played by Michael Keaton in “Spotlight,” faced the bleachers and led the crowd in a chant on behalf of his movie. “Go Spotlight,” they responded lustily. Martin Baron, the Globe editor also featured in the film, gave them a big thumbs-up as he walked. Then the crowds moved on to cheering for Jacob Tremblay.
Charlize Theron stuns in red
Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs talks diversity before the show
Of all the people with a lot riding on Sunday’s Oscars, Cheryl Boone Isaacs is at the top of the list.
With her group under fire over the issue of diversity, Boone Isaacs has staked out a position of reform. At the Oscars nominees luncheon earlier this month, the Motion Picture Academy president famously noted the “elephant in the room,” alluding to minority under-representation in her group, and said she had “asked the elephant to leave.”
Just outside the Dolby Theatre on Sunday evening, Boone Isaacs was less interested in making a statement on race.
“Everybody’s going to do great,” she said, when asked by a Times reporter about her hope for the evening, and especially Chris Rock, in furthering the diversity cause. “This is a celebration,” she added.
When asked if she was expecting a more important or provocative evening than usual, she smiled, paused a moment, then said, “It’s always important.”
Isaacs was more elaborate when speaking with Robin Roberts during ABC’s earlier red carpet coverage.
When asked about the membership overhaul in the wake of the Oscar nominations, Isaacs responded, “Some people thought that we did it rather quickly but we had been having these discussions and pulling together initiatives for a while now so we were able to speak up at a time that was most important and talk about the action that we are taking. I am here to say we are going to continue to take action and not just speak.”
Isaacs added, “By us making sure that we are being inclusive with all the activities and initiatives that we do, our members are like ambassadors out into the entire motion picture industry, [making] sure that the conversation of inclusion continues, and more than the conversation, that action is taken, and that it’s all of our responsibility to make sure that diversity does happen.”
The ABFF Awards are re-airing on BET now
The American Black Film Festival was founded in 1997 by Jeff Friday. Fast-forward nearly 20 years, what began as a group of 90 people -- Nia Long, Larenz Tate, Halle Berry, Spike Lee, among them -- celebrating black film is now an annual festival (which will be in Miami in June) that attracts almost 20,000 people. And the festival’s annual awards show is now a television special that aired on BET last week.
The show is the network’s first venture into award shows for film, titled “2016 ABFF Awards: A Celebration of Hollywood” and honoring Hollywood icon Diahann Carroll, actors Don Cheadle and Regina King, producer Will Packer and director Ryan Coogler.
“We want people to feel good about the culture, their performance, their body of work in some cases, just good about themselves,” he said. “That’s what award shows are about and we’re always about celebrating great achievement -- It’s not just great black achievement, it’s great achievement.”
Undoubtedly influenced by the #OscarsSoWhite-related boycotts, the show is re-airing now on BET opposite the Oscars telecast.
George Miller’s tux is 35 years strong
“Mad Max: Fury Road” director George Miller has been wearing the same tux for 35 years. Seriously.
“I got it for my first award show and I’ve been wearing it ever since,” said Miller, who dressed up the look with a special pin from the Order of Australia when he walked the Academy Awards red carpet on Sunday.
If the Oscar nominee wins for directing, he plans on staying up all night -- something he hasn’t done since he won an Oscar for “Happy Feet” in 2007.
“I’m older, but I think I’ll be fine,” he said with a smile.
Sparkle abounds on the Academy Awards red carpet
So far there’s been no shortage of sparkle on Hollywood’s biggest night, making shiny, sparkly embellishments the evening’s biggest trend so far.
Among the shiny, happy people: Margot Robbie in a glittery gold Tom Ford dress, Saoirse Ronan in an emerald green by Calvin Klein Collection, Naomi Watts in Armani Prive and Alicia Vikander in custom Louis Vuitton.
‘Spotlight’ director hits protest before carpet
“Spotlight” director Tom McCarthy didn’t spend his Oscar morning getting a massage or having his tux tailored. Instead, he headed downtown to the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels to protest for the release of the names of predator priests.
“I emailed [“Spotlight” star] Mark Ruffalo and [co-writer] Josh Singer to see if they wanted to go,” the Oscar nominee recalled on the red carpet. “I said, ‘Mark, do you have one more protest in you?’ And he did.
“It was a beautiful way to start a day like this,” he continued. “Because the movie is about accountability. It really gave us some perspective.”
McCarthy’s film, which chronicles the work of Boston Globe journalists as they uncovered sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, is up for six Academy Awards.
Sex abuse survivors and supporters of SNAP protest outside the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels on Sunday. They were joined by “Spotlight” director Tom McCarthy and actor Mark Ruffalo.
How will the night go? Check out these categories for clues
Over the past 25 years, the winner of the best directing Oscar went on to win best picture 76% of the time. Unfortunately, director is one of the last statues handed out.
However, there are a number of other categories that may prove helpful in determining which direction the academy voters are leaning tonight.
The fourth award of the evening is for costume design and 32% of the time, the winner of this category has gone on to win best picture. If “Mad Max: Fury Road” can hold off “Cinderella” and its glass slipper, it could be a sign that George Miller’s film will dominate the craft categories and possibly set up an upset later -- perhaps for best director.
Another category to watch is film editing, as it has matched up with best picture 52% of the time over the last quarter century. Pundits have made “Mad Max” a heavy favorite, but an upset by one of the other best picture nominees — “The Big Short,” “The Revenant” or “Spotlight” — could be an indicator that this is their night.
These two
Sofía Vergara, who is presenting tonight, and Jacob Tremblay, a star of “Room,” pose adorably on the red carpet. See more photos from the red carpet.
Lady Gaga’s dishwashing gloves: How the red carpet can be as brutal and thrilling as high school
The Oscars red carpet can be a lot like the high school cafeteria, with social media starring in the role of the know-it-all gossip — and notching up the schadenfreude along the way.
Who can forget the avalanche of Twitter memes spawned after Lady Gaga walked the red carpet in Azzedine Alaïa and a pair of bulky, red gloves that some on social media deigned to be designed by Captain Planet, while others Photoshopped the songstress in front of a pile of dirty dishes or other domestic settings?
Then there was Jared Leto in a Givenchy suit that largely got the thumbs-up but was hardly enough to buffer him from the sniggers about his striking resemblance to a certain biblical character.
So it’s no surprise design ateliers and luxury houses have in the past been wary of engaging in the kind of discussions that reside on social media platforms.
That’s changing now.
The little gold men arrive
An hour before the show, the real stars of Oscar Sunday arrived: Two propmasters wearing white gloves just rolled a velvet-draped cart carrying more than 40 gold Oscar statuettes into the stage right wings, where they will wait to be handed off to their future owners. The propmasters are polishing the statuettes and calling out numbers for each.
“We’re playing Battleship here,” one said.
Meanwhile in Flint, Michigan...
“Creed” director Ryan Coogler and “Selma” director Ava DuVernay are in Flint, Mich., for #JusticeForFlint, a free benefit aimed at supporting the city’s beleaguered residents as they suffer through a water crisis. The event, hosted by comedian Hannibal Buress, is put on by Coogler’s artist-activist collective Blackout for Human Rights.
Coogler and crew have pulled together a level of star power perhaps collectively more massive than the Oscars: Jesse Williams, Janelle Monae, Jazmine Sullivan, Musiq Soulchild, Ledisi, Jussie Smollett, Hill Harper, Jamilah Lemieux, Robert Glasper and Vic Mensa among others. DuVernay tweeted out thanks to countless others who put forth funds to support the event, but could not make it in person.
#JusticeForFlint isn’t a protest of the Oscars, even though Coogler and “Creed” star Michael B. Jordan are considered among the people of color who had been snubbed by the academy. Coogler told BuzzFeed the date was chosen because it’s the final weekend of Black History Month.
The event is being live-streamed throughout the night by Revolt TV, above.
Saoirse Ronan pays homage to the Emerald Isle in Calvin Klein
Academy Award nominee Saoirse Ronan (“Brooklyn”) paid homage to her roots in the Emerald Isle (she was born in the U.S. to Irish parents) at the 88th Academy Awards, hitting the red carpet in a custom emerald sequin dress with velvet straps designed by Francisco Costa, the women’s creative director for Calvin Klein Collection.
Reality bites back
“The Big Short’s” win for adapted screenplay is the fourth straight script based on a nonfiction book or article to win the Oscar category. Historically, however, the academy has favored novels and other fictionalized inspiration 83% of the time.
“The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine” (2010) is the second book by Michael Lewis to generate a nomination in the category. Lewis also wrote “Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game” (2003), adapted by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin for the 2011 film. Lewis’ 2006 book “The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game,” about the changing game of football, was adapted by John Lee Hancock for a 2009 film that garnered an Oscar for star Sandra Bullock and a nomination for best picture, but no screenplay nomination.
Eight-time nominee Diane Warren is ready to win
Diane Warren has been nominated eight times for original song at the Oscars, but she’s never taken home a prize.
“Everyone thinks we’re going to win this year, though,” said the veteran songwriter, who penned “Til It Happens to You” from “The Hunting Ground,” with Lady Gaga.
Since the songwriter has been spending so much time with Gaga, we pressed for deets: Is the pop star really a diva?
“No, she’s great,” said Warren. “She has a lot of heart, and that really comes through.”
So what will Warren do if she finally takes home an Oscar tonight?
“Oh, go out and have fun with my little friend,” she said.
For the record, that would be her possible statue, not Gaga.
(A warning to readers: The video below contains imagery of sexual assaults.)
Mindy Kaling gets starstruck: ‘I mean, like, Leo is here’
TV star Mindy Kaling has been to plenty of award shows, but her first time at the Oscars felt extra special.
“I mean, like, Leo is here,” she joked, referring to “Revenant” star Leonardo DiCaprio. “It’s intimidating.”
Sure, but plenty of movie stars have moved to TV in recent years, right?
“That’s true -- like Matthew McConaughey,” said Kaling, who lent her voice to “Inside Out,” which is up for best animated feature. “I don’t know what it is about the show. Maybe it’s the statue itself! It feels special.”
About that Anohni’s boycott...
Another lone representative of a film? J.Ralph, who co-wrote “Manta Ray” from the film “Racing Extinction,” is up for original song.
The tune is one of two -- along with “Simple Song #3” from “Youth” -- that will not be performed during the show tonight. As a result of the omission, Ralph’s co-writer, Anohni -- who would have been the first transgender performer on the Oscars -- decided to boycott the ceremony.
“Obviously, it would have been amazing if they performed all five songs,” said Ralph, donning a special-made glittery lapel. “But we want the focus to be on the message of the film.”
Abraham Attah and Jacob Tremblay went to the Harry Potter park together
Abraham Attah, the 14-year-old star of “Beasts of No Nation,” prepared for the Oscars in a different fashion than other show attendees: He went to Universal Studios with 9-year-old Jacob Tremblay, star of Oscar-nominated best picture “Room.” The two hit the park’s new Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction a few days ago, and Attah said that the “Room” star was more afraid of the rides than he was.
“I was a little bit scared, but he was very scared,” said Attah, who will presenting with Tremblay tonight before starting school in Connecticut this September.
Play Oscar night bingo!
The Oscars are a beloved and time-honored tradition, but let’s face it — the ceremony can get a little long. To make the show a little more fun, we’ve put together a bingo card. When something happens during the ceremony that matches what’s on the board, click on the corresponding square. Play here or print out multiple copies for a viewing party. Once you get five in a row, you’ve won!
Celebs (and their baby bumps) go glam
Super Bowl versus Oscar (a little perspective)
Thirty years ago, David Mamet wrote that there are only two legitimate national holidays. Those holidays were the Super Bowl and the Academy Awards.
Today, in terms of TV ratings, if the Super Bowl is Christmas, the Oscars are more like … oh, I don’t know … what’s half of Christmas? Though the NFL’s championship extravaganza drew audiences of 40 million to 50 million U.S. viewers in the 1980s, it now eclipses 100 million domestically. Meanwhile, the Oscars have generally stayed in a range between 36 million and 55 million viewers, hovering closer to 40 million in most years.
The good news for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences? Its televised shindig still bests the Grammys, the Golden Globes, the Emmys and the Tony Awards by a wide margin.
Whoopi Goldberg’s Oscars show dress was inspired by ‘All About Eve’
Whoopi Goldberg’s Academy Awards dress, created by the Danes of New York, was inspired by a dress Bette Davis wore in “All About Eve,” she told Ryan Seacrest on the red carpet.
That 1950 film took home six Oscars -- including one by Edith Head for costume design -- at the 1951 Academy Awards.
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For the Record
4:10 p.m.: An earlier version of this post said “All About Eve” won five Oscars at the 1951 awards show. It won six.
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Alicia Vikander an early style standout in custom Louis Vuitton
Alicia Vikander (“The Danish Girl”) has been killing it in Louis Vuitton on this awards season’s red carpets, and her Oscars dress continues that trend.
The actress arrived at Dolby Theatre in a custom Louis Vuitton gown with silver embellishments. The color is an unusual shade of yellow that we might call “butter” but she described on the carpet as “dusty” yellow.
Call it what you will, we call it one of the early style standouts on this year’s red carpet.
Hugh Jackman gives some hosting advice
Chris Rock doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who gets nervous before he goes out to perform. If he did, though, he might want to heed a piece of advice from former Oscars host Hugh Jackman: Don’t look too closely at the stage manager.
Jackman, who presided over the show in 2009, said he was cool as a cucumber for most of the run-up to the telecast. He didn’t feel anxious at all -- not through rehearsals, not that morning, not even the time spent in hair and makeup before the show began.
Then something -- or someone -- kicked in.
“I wasn’t scared until right about 30 seconds before airtime,” Jackman recalled to the Los Angeles Times earlier this week.
What is ‘The Wood’ and why are people live tweeting it instead of the Oscars?
#OscarsSoWhite creator April Reign chose 1999’s “The Wood” as counterprogramming for those looking to protest the industry’s lack of diversity. She’s encouraging people to live-tweet the movie, available on Netflix, instead of watching the Oscars telecast.
But just in case you’ve never heard of the (amazing!) film, here’s a quick primer:
- “The Wood” is directed by Rick Famuyiwa, the same man who gifted us with last year’s “Dope” and 2002’s “Brown Sugar” and has helmed the forthcoming HBO drama “Confirmation.”
- The romantic comedy follows a group of friends dealing with a groom’s cold feet on his wedding day. To get through it, they reminisce about their childhood.
- Actors Taye Diggs, Omar Epps and Richard T. Jones lead a cast that includes Malinda Williams, Sanaa Lathan and LisaRaye McCoy.
- The film was nominated for an NAACP Image Award and six Black Reel Awards.
- According to Rotten Tomatoes, “The Wood” has a 92% positive score from the audience and 61% positive rating from critics.
Overheard on the Oscars shuttle...
Times reporter Yvonne Villarreal shares her insights en route to the Dolby Theatre.
‘Straight Outta Compton’ writers: Ice Cube ‘didn’t want us to boycott’
Of the films that were excluded from the best picture category this year, “Straight Outta Compton” seemed to cause the most uproar. The only representatives from the film at the Oscars on Sunday are original screenplay nominees Andrea Berloff and Jonathan Herman, who wrote the film. The screenwriters said rap group N.W.A and the cast felt strongly that the pair should attend the telecast.
“I saw Ice Cube at a party the other night and he was really happy about the movie being represented,” said Herman.
“He didn’t want us to boycott this at all,” added Berloff. “He wanted us here talking about the movie.”
Read the L.A. Times interview with Ice Cube during the release of “Straight Outta Compton.”
Chatter from the publicist holding pen
Behind heavy security at the corner of Hollywood and Highland, in a velvet-roped area, the specter of film luminaries looms. There’ s a Tom McCarthy here, an Alejandro Inarritu there, a Sly Stallone somewhere else.
The Oscar nominees themselves? Not exactly. This is the publicist holding pen at the top of the red carpet. It is where the people who manage the people gather, waiting for their star clients to arrive, strategizing and dishing accordingly.
The vibe is somewhere between secret society and construction-site lunch break. Gossip about nominees is swapped; complaints about recalcitrant stars is exchanged and eye-rolled.
There are a number of rituals. Comparing the relative lateness of nominees is one:
“I don’t think he’s getting in the car until 4,” said the publicist of one high-profile filmmaker nominee.
“I think mine’s still eating breakfast,” volleyed her friend.
There is also a hierarchy to the proceedings. Like so much in Hollywood, the holding pen is less about what you’ve done than the company you keep. Who you’re with is who you are.
“I’m here with the ‘Spotlight’ editor Tom McCardle, the ‘Spotlight’ reporters, and Tom Hooper,” said one publicist with some swagger about “The Danish Girl” director.
Replied another: “Tom Hooper’s here?”
Mark Ruffalo shines ‘Spotlight’ on sex abuse victims at L.A. protest
Sex abuse survivors and supporters of SNAP protest outside the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels on Sunday. They were joined by “Spotlight” director Tom McCarthy and actor Mark Ruffalo.
“Spotlight” star Mark Ruffalo, the film’s director, Tom McCarthy, and its writer Josh Singer joined a group of about 20 protesters Sunday morning who rallied in downtown Los Angeles against sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.
Protesters, many of whom identify as victims of abuse by Catholic priests, marched and brandished banners outside the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.
Ruffalo, Singer and McCarthy, who were invited by the group to appear because their Oscar-nominated film highlights the issue, joined them in calling on the church to take greater action against sexual abuse and release the names of known abusers.
The “Spotlight” creators each held a section of a banner showing the victims’ childhood photos and addressed the protesters before heading to pre-Oscar parties and the red carpet.
“I’m here to stand with the survivors and the victims and the people we’ve lost from Catholic priest childhood sex abuse,” Ruffalo told protesters.
Makeup artist reveals a ‘Revenant’ secret: K-Y jelly and dirt
With just over two hours to go until showtime, few stars have yet to turn up on the red carpet. A few below-the-line folks are trickling by -- think sound mixers and makeup artists -- including makeup and hairstyling nominee Sian Grigg, who was tasked with making Leonardo DiCaprio look disheveled on the set of “The Revenant.” To make him look believably filthy, Grigg rubbed a mixture of K-Y jelly and dirt on the actor’s face.
“These guys never washed, so they had dirt underneath their fingers and everything,” she said.
DiCaprio was a “trouper” during the process, according to Grigg, though she noted he was eager to get in the shower at the end of filming each day.
The L.A. Times team is on site and Oscar-ready
Follow the Times writers and photo team on Twitter as they bring you live coverage from the Dolby Theatre and beyond:
Folks have faith in host Chris Rock
Everyone is waiting for what host Chris Rock will say in his opening monologue of tonight’s Academy Awards. He’s unpredictable, socially conscious and -- if you’ve been asleep for the last two months -- under a lot of pressure to deliver a scathing (yet hilarious) critique of Hollywood’s diversity issue.
But these people have some faith that he will deliver:
Wolfgang Puck distributes signature chocolate Oscars on the red carpet
See what goes into catering the 2016 Oscars Governors Ball with Wolfgang Puck.
Wolfgang Puck is the first to arrive on the carpet, dressed in his chef’s whites. He and his team made quick friends with the fans in the bleachers, tossing them tiny gold chocolate Oscars. Fortunately, it’s one of the best weather days of award season thus far -- a temperate 73 degrees -- so the specialty chocolates probably won’t melt. The signature candies are a favorite at the Governors Ball, which the celebrity chef has catered for the last 22 years.
#EqualMeansEqual, and Patricia Arquette means it
Remember that time Patricia Arquette catapulted into the headlines with an acceptance speech about equal rights for women?
“To every woman who gave birth to every taxpayer and citizen of this nation, we have fought for everybody else’s equal rights,” she said last year while accepting the supporting actress Oscar for her role in “Boyhood.” “It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America.”
The speech drew roaring applause from the crowd, and gave birth to the best GIF featuring Jennifer Lopez and Meryl Streep. But it also placed the actress in the middle of a firestorm of critics who believed her words -- both on stage and in the press room -- ignored the intersectional experiences of people of color and other minorities.
Doubling down on that speech, Arquette took to Twitter this year to answer questions about the Equal Rights Amendment that would legalize equality among the sexes using the hashtag #EqualMeansEqual.
Here are a couple of her responses to submitted questions, many of which center on the experiences of people of color.
Test your red carpet fashion IQ with this quiz
Think you have a high red carpet fashion IQ?
Try to figure out who wore these iconic Oscar get-ups by matching the outfit to the wearer. See how your score compares with other players’ and learn a little bit about the famous frocks along the way.
91% white. 76% male. What the academy really looks like
With Sunday’s Oscars show, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will close one of the most contentious awards seasons in its history and open an era of historic change, as the 89-year-old institution launches an ambitious drive to diversify its membership.
A Los Angeles Times study shows just how much work the academy has to do if it intends to reflect the audience it serves — and just how aggressive the group’s new goals are.
In 2012, The Times reported that Oscar voters were 94% white and 77% male. Four years later, the academy has made scant progress: Oscar voters are 91% white and 76% male, according to a new Times study.
Blacks are about 3% of the academy, up from 2%; Asians and Latinos are each just over 2%, with both groups up slightly.
The academy has invited more women and minority group members over the last four years, but with its 6,261 voting members appointed for life, the organization’s ranks were on track to remain overwhelmingly white and male for decades.
With Lady Gaga in the mix, take a look at past stunning and outrageous looks at the Academy Awards
During her career, Lady Gaga has given us a bevy of outrageous looks, but of late, Gaga has refined her appearance, especially when it comes to formal red carpet events. Remember the Versace gown she wore to the Academy Awards in 2014? (By the way, Gaga and songwriter Diane Warren are nominated for the song “Til It Happens To You” from the documentary “The Hunting Ground.”)
Before Lady Gaga takes the stage to sing the ballad, take a trip down memory lane with our fashion photo gallery of looks from the Academy Awards, including Halle Berry’s stunning Elie Saab gown as well as photos of Joanne Woodward in a homemade gown, Lupita Nyong’o in a light blue Prada gown and Audrey Hepburn in a yellow lace Givenchy gown.
Al Sharpton tackles #OscarsSoWhite during sermon
During a sermon at First AME Church of Los Angeles on Sunday morning, the Rev. Al Sharpton said he planned “to start a movement” to draw attention to the lack of diversity among this year’s nominees for Oscars and said that the focus needs to be on Hollywood’s decision makers.
“In 2016, a year when we saw movies like Idris Elba’s ‘Beasts of No Nation’ and ‘Straight Outta Compton’ and ‘Concussion,’ not one of these actors and actresses of color was nominated for their roles,” Sharpton said from the pulpit. “There are no blacks who can greenlight a film. We can put a black family in the White House, but we can’t put a black [person] in the boardroom of power in Hollywood.”
Sharpton will be attending a protest later Sunday just feet away from the Dolby Theater where the Oscars will be held. It is organized by Project Islamic Hope, the National Action Network (of which Sharpton is founder and leader), Los Angeles Urban League and Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable.
The celebrities are coming! The celebrities are coming!
With the Academy Awards red carpet soon to be in full swing, celebrities are taking to social media to detail their journey to the Dolby Theater.
Host Chris Rock opted for McDonalds this morning to keep up his strength for the day to come.
Rapper Common, who won a golden statue last year for the song “Glory” from the film “Selma”, hopped in a car this morning to start the process of getting ready. His chosen soundtrack: hip hop group Brand Nubian. He will be a presenter tonight.
Reese Witherspoon took a moment to appreciate the picture perfect day that Los Angeles is offering up this Sunday on her way to the festivities.
Unsurprisingly, comedian and presenter Sarah Silverman’s got jokes.
Also presenting is actor/comedian Kevin Hart. This morning, he was on daddy duty.
Sam Smith is performing his Oscar nominated song “Writing’s on the Wall” from the latest James Bond film “Spectre” and is looking very sharp with songwriter Jimmy Napes.
Pharrell and the legendary Quincy Jones have formed a mutual admiration society in anticipation of their presenting gig tonight.
Best actress frontrunner Brie Larson could not be more excited about news from the Academy that there will be a few “Star Wars” special guests at tonight’s ceremony.
And already dressed to pick up his inevitable Oscar tonight is Sylvester Stallone. He’s nominated for reprising the role of Rocky Balboa in the “Rocky” spin-off “Creed.”
The All Def Movie Awards are live (but not really)
The All Def Movie Awards, put on by media mogul Russell Simmons last week, is not a direct shot at the lack of diversity in the Oscar nominee list. Rather, he said, “It’s a celebration, a celebration of people who otherwise would not be celebrated.”
The event -- which was taped last week and streaming online (above) now -- was far from what one can expect at the Academy Awards. Most of the categories for the show were in jest — best helpful white person, best black survivor, etc.
A number of notable names were in attendance, including Ice Cube and son O’Shea Jackson Jr. of “Straight Outta Compton,” model Amber Rose and actors Marlon Wayans, Sanaa Lathan and Terry Crews.
To boycott or not to boycott?
Prompted by the #OscarsSoWhite movement, a growing number of people, including some celebrities, have called for the entertainment industry to increase the representation of women, minorities and other disadvantaged communities on screens large and small. And though the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has vocalized a new commitment to diversifying its membership, the fight to hold broader Hollywood accountable continues.
Many have decided to boycott, protest or otherwise bypass the industry’s biggest night altogether. If you’re looking to join, here are just two of the ways to get involved:
Live-tweeting of “The Wood”
April Reign, creator of the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, is leading people in live-tweeting 1999’s “The Wood,” available on Netflix.
All Def Movie Awards
Media mogul Russell Simmons threw his own awards ceremony called the All Def Movie Awards and hosted by comedian Tony Rock (yes, he’s Chris Rock’s brother). It was taped and will air on Fusion — opposite the Oscars — starting at 4 p.m. Pacific time and re-air throughout the night. It’s also being live-streamed.
Chris Rock: Risky no more
Eleven years ago, the film academy considered itself quite daring when it asked Chris Rock to host the Oscars.
The first black man to preside solo over the festivities, Rock would, it was hoped, bring a younger, hipper, more urban audience to the telecast, perhaps tighten up its sagging ratings, make it seem a bit less calcified.
Unapologetically outspoken about his disinterest in the show — “They don’t honor comedy and there aren’t a lot of black people,” he said at the time, “so why would I watch?” — Rock was, in the parlance of the Oscaratti, a “risky” choice.
Abraham Attah’s pick of red-carpet kicks means 10,000 pairs will go to kids in Ghana
The Toms shoes brand seems to be everywhere these days – including the Academy Awards red carpet. We’re not sure the pair worn by actor Abraham Attah (“Beasts of No Nation”) today marks the first time the footwear company has been to the Academy Awards, but it’s worth a mention since the SoCal company has announced it will donate 10,000 pairs of shoes on the actor’s behalf to needy children in his home country of Ghana.
It’s a refreshing bit of transparency in the murky realm of pay-for-play red-carpet dressing – and the kind of trend we hope has serious legs (and feet) in the future.
Derek Hough previews ‘Singing in the Rain’ revival at Weinstein Oscars bash
In Hollywood, there’s even more partying before the Oscars than there is afterward.
Harvey Weinstein’s annual pre-Oscar party at the Montage in Beverly Hills on Saturday night featured performances by actress and singer Zendaya and Derek Hough of “Dancing With the Stars.”
Hough, who will star in a Weinstein production of “Singing in the Rain” on Broadway, gave the crowd a sneak peek of the songs “Moses Supposes” and “Singing in the Rain,” (naturally) tunes from the classic musical.
Among those attending the party were John Legend and Chrissy Teigen, tennis star Roger Federer, and actors Colin Firth and Christoph Waltz, among others. “Scandal’ “s Kerry Washington and Lady Gaga showed up near midnight.
Hough said the choreography is very much still in the workshop stage, and the stage in the Montage dining room didn’t offer much of a chance to show his Gene Kelly moves.
Zendaya took the stage and performed the theme from “Finding Neverland.”
Listen to the Oscar nominees for original song
“Earned It” for “Fifty Shades of Grey”
The Weeknd’s sexy jam “Earned It” did, well, earn “Fifty Shades of Grey” an Academy Award nomination. And the singer will perform tonight.
“Manta Ray” for “Racing Extinction”
“Racing Extinction,” from the director of “The Cove,” Louie Psihoyos, turned to composer J. Ralph for the music in both films. Ralph collaborated with Antony, of Antony and the Johnsons, for the song “Manta Ray,” nominated this morning for the original song Oscar.
However the singer and artist Anohni, has issued a searing statement in which she announced that she will be boycotting the Sunday awards ceremony.
A statement from the singer explained, “I will not be lulled into submission with a few more well manufactured, feel-good ballads and a bit of good old fashioned T. and A. They are going to try to convince us that they have our best interests at heart by waving flags for identity politics and fake moral issues.”
“Til It Happens to You” for “The Hunting Ground”
The Oscar original song nomination for Lady Gaga’s “Til It Happens to You” does two things. It ensures a major fashion moment on the red carpet from Lady Gaga, and it brings new attention to Kirby Dick’s campus rape documentary, “The Hunting Ground,” for which the song was written.
The song was co-written by Diane Warren, who has been nominated now for eight Oscars. She spoke to The Times last year about her history with the Academy Awards.
Warning: the video link above contains depictions of sexual assault.
“Simple Song #3” for “Youth”
Italy’s Paolo Sorrentino, director of the 2014 foreign picture Oscar winner “The Great Beauty,” turned to Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Dave Lang for his latest film, “Youth,” starring Michael Caine as a retired conductor. Kenneth Turan called the film “quixotic, idiosyncratic and effortlessly moving.”
“Writing’s on the Wall” for “Spectre”
Sam Smith already won the original song Golden Globe, and then there are the four Grammys he picked up at last year. Smith also has the distinction of writing the only song for a James Bond movie to top the U.K. music charts. All this makes him a favorite in the category.
Did Brie Larson’s look at the Film Independent Spirit Awards offer a hint at her Oscar gown?
Based on her look at Saturday’s Film Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica, Academy Award nominee and Instagram regular Brie Larson — she’s nominated for lead actress for “Room” — should be one of the highlights of the Oscars’ red carpet today. (Oh, and she won best female lead at the Spirit Awards.)
Full coverage from the Film Independent Spirit Awards here.
Her youthful, multicolored print frock (the photo above was taken by her mom) was simply gorgeous and made us curious to see what dress she and her glam squad have decided on for her appearance on the red carpet at the Academy Awards in Hollywood.
The baffling complexity of an Oscar envelope
The Academy Awards may be known best for glitz and glamour, a celebration of the cinematic art in all its forms, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of room for numbers in the mix.
When winners take home a statuette, that’s a cool 8.5 pounds they’re hauling with them, but the winner envelopes may be even more impressive.
One-eighth of an inch thick and weighing a quarter of a pound, each envelope takes a staggering 110 man-hours to complete.
How Sharon Stone wound up wearing a Gap T-shirt to the 1996 Academy Awards
The outfit Sharon Stone wore to the 1996 Academy Awards -- a Gap T-shirt under an Armani jacket and paired with a Valentino skirt -- ranks as one of the more memorable mash-ups of high-low fashion to come down the red carpet. But how did it happen?
That question was answered at the Feb. 23 Costume Designers Guild Awards when Stone, via a pre-taped congratulatory message to Career Achievement Award winner Ellen Mirojnick, credited the costume designer with the last-minute ensemble.
The dress I was going to wear had been backed over by the FedEx truck,” Stone said in the video, “and I decided to have Ellen Mirojnick kidnapped. When she showed up, she opened my closet and said: ‘We can do this.’
The rest is red-carpet history.
For a look back at more fashion throughout Oscar’s history take a look at our Academy Awards Fashion: Oscar gowns through the years gallery.
What time are the Oscars? Everything you need to know to watch the 88th Academy Awards
It’s Oscars Sunday, Hollywood’s biggest night. Here’s everything you need to know for tuning into the 88th Academy Awards and red carpet taking place at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles.
Rolling out the red carpet
Watch how the sausage is made at the Academy Awards. From each little Swarovski crystal to the monstrous golden statues, it takes a village to create the glitz and glam that permeates this award show.
Los Angeles Times photographer Al Seib has been at the Dolby Theater recording the madness behind the Hollywood event. Watch Oscar get his golden spray tan touch-up and see the famous red carpet carpet unroll.
For more details check out our gallery of Oscar construction.
Oscar predictions: Who’s going to win in all 24 categories?
The Academy Awards arrive tonight. Maybe you’re in an Oscar pool. Maybe you have a rooting interest. Maybe you’ve been tossing and turning at night wondering if Leonardo DiCaprio is finally going to get his due. (Rest easy, friend. He is.)
To help you no matter your need, here are my final Oscar predictions for all 24 categories, including alternate picks in the closest races.
BEST PICTURE
“The Big Short”
“Bridge of Spies”
“Brooklyn”
“Mad Max: Fury Road”
“The Martian”
“The Revenant”
“Room”
“Spotlight”
Will win: “The Big Short.” The X factor here is the academy’s preferential voting system, which asks voters to rank the movies in order. This rewards consensus choices, movies that show up consistently in voters’ first-, second- or third-place spots. “Spotlight” and “The Big Short” would seem to be those kinds of films. And since I’ve been calling it for “The Big Short” even before its PGA win, I’m going to stubbornly stick with that choice.
Could win: “Spotlight” or “The Revenant”
The complete list of 2016 Oscar nominees
The leader of the pack for the 88th Academy Awards is “The Revenant” with 12 nominations, including best picture and acting nominations for both Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead acting category and Tom Hardy for supporting actor. “Mad Max: Fury Road,” also a best picture nominee, follows with 10 nominations.
The other films nominated for best picture are “The Big Short,” “Bridge of Spies,” “Brooklyn,” “The Martian,” “Room” and “Spotlight.”
Here’s the full list of Oscar nominees from Best Picture on down.
Cate Blanchett practices walking in heels too
Who has two Oscars, rocks a jumpsuit and practices walking in her towering silver heels? Cate Blanchett. The “Carol” nominee showed up to Oscar rehearsals Saturday carrying the shoes she plans wear on show night. Practicing a tricky walk-and-talk through some set pieces on the Dolby Theater stage, Blanchett asked the director if she was hitting her mark. “Is it here? Ish? And angled in this fashion?”
For more about how the stars prepared for the big night check out our story from Oscar rehearsals.
Jared Leto and Margot Robbie want to make you giggle
Jared Leto and his co-presenter, Margot Robbie, practiced their patter during Oscar rehearsals Saturday at the Dolby theater. The casually clad duo, he in a beanie and flannel shirt, she in cutoffs, appeared to be interested in distracting audiences from their hotness by using humor.
“Just a giggle, please?” Leto said, trying out a joke on the audience of stand-ins and crew members.
For more from Oscar rehearsals, check out our story.
Inside Oscar rehearsals: Brace yourself for cuteness
Pint-sized co-presenters Abraham Attah, 14, of “Beasts of No Nation” and Jacob Tremblay, 9, of “Room,” rehearsed together for their Oscar moment on Saturday. “Can you step that high up?” a stage manager asked Tremblay, gesturing toward a stack of apple boxes.
To peak behind the curtain at the Oscars, read our full story from rehearsals.
Pick your favorites with the L.A. Times play-at-home Oscar ballot
Place your bets! It’s time to pick your Oscar pony. Who will take home gold? And who will just go home?
Let your favorites battle it out in the L.A. Times Oscar ballot. Go all in on “Carol” for Best Costume Design and laugh at those who picked “Cinderella.” This is your time.
‘Spotlight’ wins best picture
Here is our review of “Spotlight.” It also won best original screenplay tonight.
The other nominees were:
“The Big Short” | Review
“Bridge of Spies” | Review
“Brooklyn” | Review
“Mad Max: Fury Road” | Review
“The Martian” | Review
“The Revenant” | Review
“Room” | Review
Brie Larson wins lead actress
She won for her role in “Room.” She has long been a favorite for the win.
The other nominees were:
Cate Blanchett, “Carol”
Jennifer Lawrence, “Joy”
Charlotte Rampling, “45 Years”
Saoirse Ronan, “Brooklyn”
‘Writing’s On The Wall’ wins original song
Music and lyrics for the song in “Spectre” were by Jimmy Napes and Sam Smith.
The other nominees were:
“Earned It” from “50 Shades of Grey,” music and lyric by Abel Tesfaye, Ahmad Balshe, Jason Daheala Quenneville and Stephan Moccio
“Manta Ray” from “Racing Extinction,” music by J. Ralph; lyric by Antony Hegarty
“Simple Song #3” from “Youth,” music and lyric by David Lang
“Til It Happens to You” from “The Hunting Ground,” music and lyric by Diane Warren and Lady Gaga
Leonardo DiCaprio wins lead actor
He won for his role in “The Revenant.” He has been nominated four other times and was widely favored to finally win this year.
The other nominees were:
Bryan Cranston, “Trumbo”
Matt Damon, “The Martian”
Michael Fassbender, “Steve Jobs”
Eddie Redmayne, “The Danish Girl”
Alejandro G. Iñárritu wins director
Iñárritu won for “The Revenant.” He is the first director to take consecutive Oscars since Joseph L. Mankiewicz in 1950-51.
The other nominees were:
Adam McKay, “The Big Short”
George Miller, “Mad Max: Fury Road”
Lenny Abrahamson, “Room”
Tom McCarthy, “Spotlight”
Ennio Morricone wins original score
He won for “The Hateful Eight.” He won an honorary Academy Award in 2007, and now the 87-year-old has won his first standard Oscar.
The other nominees were:
Thomas Newman, “Bridge of Spies”
Carter Burwell, “Carol”
Jóhann Jóhannsson, “Sicario”
John Williams, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”
‘Son of Saul’ wins foreign language film
Here’s our review.
The other nominees were:
“Embrace of the Serpent” (Colombia) | Review
“A War” (Denmark) | Review
“Mustang” (France) | Review
“Theeb” (Jordan) | Review
‘Stutterer’ wins live action short
The other nominees were:
“Ave Maria”
“Day One”
“Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)”
“Shok”
‘Amy’ wins documentary feature
Here is our review of “Amy.”
The other nominees were:
“Cartel Land” | Review
“The Look of Silence” | Review
“What Happened, Miss Simone?” | Review
“Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom” | Review
‘A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness’ wins documentary short
The other nominees were:
“Body Team 12”
“Chau, Beyond the Lines”
“Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah”
“Last Day of Freedom”
Mark Rylance wins supporting actor
He won for his role in “Bridge of Spies.” Our critic Kenneth Turan approved of his performance.
The other nominees were:
Christian Bale, “The Big Short”
Tom Hardy, “The Revenant”
Mark Ruffalo, “Spotlight”
Sylvester Stallone, “Creed”
‘Inside Out’ wins animated feature
Here is our review.
The other nominees were:
“Anomalisa” | Review
“The Boy and the World” | Review
“Shaun the Sheep Movie” | Review
“When Marnie Was There” | Review
‘Bear Story’ wins animated short
The other nominees were:
“Prologue”
“Sanjay’s Super Team”
“We Can’t Live Without Cosmos”
“World of Tomorrow”
‘Ex Machina’ wins visual effects
Andrew Whitehurst, Paul Norris, Mark Ardington and Sara Bennett win for “Ex Machina.”
The other nominees were:
“Mad Max: Fury Road,” Andrew Jackson, Tom Wood, Dan Oliver and Andy Williams
“The Martian,” Richard Stammers, Anders Langlands, Chris Lawrence and Steven Warner
“The Revenant,” Rich McBride, Matthew Shumway, Jason Smith and Cameron Waldbauer
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan and Chris Corbould
‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ wins sound mixing
Chris Jenkins, Gregg Rudloff and Ben Osmo win for “Mad Max: Fury Road,” which is really cleaning up.
The other nominees were:
“Bridge of Spies,” Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Drew Kunin
“The Martian,” Paul Massey, Mark Taylor and Mac Ruth
“The Revenant,” Jon Taylor, Frank A. Montaño, Randy Thom and Chris Duesterdiek
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Andy Nelson, Christopher Scarabosio and Stuart Wilson
‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ wins sound editing
Mark Mangini and David White win for “Mad Max.”
The other nominees were:
“The Martian,” Oliver Tarney
“The Revenant,” Martin Hernandez and Lon Bender
“Sicario,” Alan Robert Murray
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Matthew Wood and David Acord
‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ wins film editing
Margaret Sixel wins for “Mad Max.”
The other nominees were:
“The Big Short,” Hank Corwin
“The Revenant,” Stephen Mirrione
“Spotlight,” Tom McArdle
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Maryann Brandon and Mary Jo Markey
‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ wins makeup and hair styling
Lesley Vanderwalt, Elka Wardega and Damian Martin won for makeup and hair styling.
The other nominees were:
“The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out the Window and Disappeared,” Love Larson and Eva von Bahr
“The Revenant,” Siân Grigg, Duncan Jarman and Robert Pandini
‘The Revenant’ wins cinematography
Emmanuel Lubezki wins for “The Revenant.”
The other nominees were:
“Carol,” Ed Lachman
“The Hateful Eight,” Robert Richardson
“Mad Max: Fury Road,” John Seale
“Sicario,” Roger Deakins
‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ wins production design
Colin Gibson won for production design and Lisa Thompson for set decoration.
The other nominees were:
“Bridge of Spies,” Adam Stockhausen (production design); Rena DeAngelo and Bernhard Henrich (set decoration)
“The Danish Girl,” Eve Stewart (production design); Michael Standish (set decoration)
“The Martian,” Arthur Max (production design); Celia Bobak (set decoration) | Interview
“The Revenant,” Jack Fisk (production design); Hamish Purdy (set decoration)
Jenny Beavan wins costume design for ‘Mad Max’
The other nominees were:
“Carol,” Sandy Powell
“Cinderella,” Sandy Powell
“The Danish Girl,” Paco Delgado
“The Revenant,” Jacqueline West
Alicia Vikander wins supporting actress
She won for “The Danish Girl.”
The other nominees were:
Jennifer Jason Leigh, “The Hateful Eight”
Rooney Mara, “Carol”
Rachel McAdams, “Spotlight”
Kate Winslet, “Steve Jobs”
The Oscars greenroom is nicer than your house
This plush greenroom behind the stage at the Dolby Theatre is where Oscar presenters and performers go to grab a drink, kick off their heels and quietly freak out. By the middle of the Oscars, the greenroom is a traffic jam of A-listers offering each other congratulations, catching up on gossip and looking for snacks after their marathons in hair and makeup, the limo line and the red carpet.
A temporary space designed by Rolex, the greenroom has beige leather sofas, Venetian stucco walls and a gas fireplace flickering beneath a 65-inch flat screen TV (playing the Oscar telecast, of course). The warm, luxurious space is decorated with a massive chandelier made by a Venetian glassmaker, black and white framed photos of classic film stars like Paul Newman and Audrey Hepburn and arrangements of fresh calla lilies and orchids.
On one wall, a floor-to-ceiling lightbox creates the illusion of a picture window with a panoramic view of Los Angeles, completing the Hollywood Hills vibe. Just like your house, right?
‘The Big Short’ wins adapted screenplay
“The Big Short” was written by Charles Randolph and Adam McKay.
The other nominees were:
“Brooklyn” by Nick Hornby
“Carol” by Phyllis Nagy
“The Martian” by Drew Goddard
“Room” by Emma Donoghue
‘Spotlight’ wins original screenplay
“Spotlight,” was written by Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy.
The other nominees were:
“Bridge of Spies,” by Matt Charman and Ethan Coen & Joel Coen
“Ex Machina,” by Alex Garland
“Inside Out,” screenplay by Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, Josh Cooley; original story by Pete Docter, Ronnie del Carmen
“Straight Outta Compton,” screenplay by Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff; story by S. Leigh Savidge & Alan Wenkus and Andrea Berloff
‘Son of Saul’ is a blistering tale of the Holocaust
The debut feature by Hungarian director Laszlo Nemes is a collage of the unimaginable, a tick-tock through the slaughter of a Nazi death camp as witnessed by a ghost-like everyman.
The new Academy Award winner for best foreign-language film has the power of a documentary and the poetic barbarism of the finest Holocaust films, including Steven Spielberg’s “Schindler’s List.” “Son of Saul,” shot by cinematographer Matyas Erdely, is more visceral and claustrophobic than its predecessor, plunging deeper into an all-consuming madness that extinguishes hope the instant it glimmers.
“The Holocaust often ends up being a story of survival,” Nemes, who lost ancestors at Auschwitz, told The Times in a recent interview. “That’s problematic. The Holocaust was not about survival. Survival was an exception, an accident.”
The mass murder in “Son of Saul” is at once blurry and succinct, flickering incessantly through the clanging inner workings of a concentration camp, where Jewish slave workers known as Sonderkommandos lead fellow Jews to gas chambers, collecting their wallets, jewels, spectacles and shoes in a cruel and final degradation.
“It was a factory,” said Nemes. “That’s something that we tend to forget. How real and ordinary, in a way, it was. It was a factory. It just happened to be a factory of death. When people arrived to Auschwitz and were told to go to a building, they didn’t necessarily think of hell. It was just an ordinary building — that was also hell.”
Mexican cinematographer makes Oscar history
With his Oscar win tonight for “The Revenant,” Emmanuel Lubezki becomes the first cinematographer to receive three consecutive Academy Awards, a remarkable run that is a testament to the virtuosity and allure of Mexican filmmakers.
It is Lubezki’s second Oscar working with Mexican director Alejandro G. Inarritu -- the pair each won statuettes last year for “Birdman.” Lubezki, who has been nominated eight times, won his first Academy Award in 2014 for “Gravity,” a trapped-in-space film directed by fellow countryman Alfonso Cuaron, who also won that year.
The power of Inarritu and Cuaron’s recent work is the magician-like way Lubezki slips into the directors’ imaginations to create, not so much his own style, but startling visuals that at once define and are subsumed by the story. In “Gravity,” the cinematographer summoned the eerie vacuum of the galaxy. In “Birdman,” he followed a fretful Michael Keaton through a tangle of Broadway theater hallways, and in “The Revenant” he used natural light and the grandeur of the forest to convey the beauty and brutality of the frontier.
Much of Lubezki’s success comes from a penchant for risk: “He loves to live on the edge,” Inarritu said of the cinematographer, who goes by the nickname Chivo. “If failure is not a possibility, he doesn’t seem interested.”