The 96th Academy Awards took place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, celebrating the best in cinema. The biographical thriller directed by Christopher Nolan, bagged seven awards out of its 13 nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director. Cillian Murphy, who won Best Actor, became the first Irish-born actor to win in this category.
Murphy expressed his gratitude and dedicated his award to “the peacemakers of the world.” The film also won awards for Cinematography, Editing, and Original Score. Robert Downey Jr received a standing ovation for his Best Supporting Actor win.
Despite earning 26 Oscar nominations over the last 11 years, Martin Scorsese did not win any awards this year. Emma Stone won the Best Actress award for her role in “Poor Things,” beating Lily Gladstone from “Killers of the Flower Moon.” Gladstone, the first Native American woman to be nominated for Best Actress, did not win.
Several celebrities, including Billie Eilish, Ramy Youssef, and Mark Ruffalo, wore artists for ceasefire pins on the red carpet to show support for an end to fighting and for humanitarian aid to be provided to Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
Jonathan Glazer, director of “Zone of Interest,” spoke about the message of his film while accepting the award for Best International Film. Mstyslav Chernov, director of “20 Days in Mariupol,” highlighted the “humanitarian catastrophe” in Ukraine while accepting the award for Best Documentary Feature.
Ryan Gosling and the cast of “Barbie” performed at the event. The film won the Best Original Song award for Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell’s ‘What Was I Made For?’.
The film “Godzilla: Minus One” won the award for Best Visual Effects. Director Takashi Yamazaki emphasized that the award proved that “everyone has a chance.”
Host Jimmy Kimmel’s performance received mixed reviews. His joke about Robert Downey Jr’s past drug issues and a comment about the film “Poor Things” were not well received. However, his response to Donald Trump’s review of his hosting was a standout moment.
The ceremony ended with Al Pacino announcing the winner of Best Picture in a confusing yet humorous manner, declaring “Uhh … my eyes see Oppenheimer?”
