Oscars 2021 – live: Winners, acceptance speeches and highlights from the Academy Awards
Chloé Zhao wins Best Director while Frances McDormand earns Best Actress prize
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Your support makes all the difference.Road movie Nomadland won the top prize at the 93rd Academy Awards, which fulfilled many expectations but threw in a couple of surprise wins in an unusual ceremony.
The film’s director Chloe Zhao also made history, becoming the first woman of colour to win the award for directing, and the second woman in history — and the film scooped the Best Actress prize for its star Frances McDormand.
Sir Anthony Hopkins won the Best Actor Oscar — his first since The Silence of the Lambs in 1992 — for his performance in The Father, about a man slipping into dementia, defeating presumptive favourite Chadwick Boseman, who died last year aged 43 following a private four-year battle with colon cancer.
Daniel Kaluuya, who was born in London to Ugandan parents, is the first black British winner of the best Supporting Actor prize for his turn as community organiser and member of the Black Panther Party Fred Hampton in Judas and the Black Messiah.
There were a number of surprise wins. David Fincher’s Mank led the pack with 10 nominations, but ultimately won two.
Due to coronavirus, the Oscars moved out of their usual venue, the Dolby Theatre, and were based out of Los Angeles’s Union Station instead. The ceremony’s format was overhauled too, with attendees observing social distancing and some joining via video link from other parts of the world.
Nomadland had been a favourite to win Best Picture; it fulfilled that expectation, beating The Father, Judas and the Black Messiah, Mank, Minari, Promising Young Woman, Sound of Metal, and The Trial of the Chicago 7.
Minari actor Youn Yuh-jung also won over the crowd in her acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actress, which was presented to her by Brad Pitt. “Mr Brad Pitt, finally, nice to meet you!” she told him after making her way onto the stage. She then proceeded to acknowledge the ways in which her name has been mispronounced throughout the awards season, telling the crowd: “Tonight, you are all forgiven.”
With her win, Youn became the first Korean actor to take home an Academy Award.
Follow our liveblog for highlights from the ceremony and the buzz-worthy aftermath.
Every ceremony turns up unexpected reactions from winners (and losers) but Frances McDormand howling like a wolf while collecting Nomadland’s award for Best Picture was certainly a first.
The gesture was confirmed to be a tribute to the film’s sound mixer, Michael Wolf Snyder, who died earlier this year.
Frances McDormand howls to the sky after Nomadland wins Best Picture
Gesture was a tribute to the film’s late sound mixer, Michael Wolf Snyder
If you’re just waking up, here’s the run-down of winners from last night.
Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland was the big winner of the evening, taking home Best Picture, Best Director, and a Best Actress win for its lead Frances McDormand.
Here’s the full list below:
Yuh-Jung Youn made history as the first ever Korean acting winner.
The 73-year-old is a household name in her native country but made her US on-screen debut with an Oscar-winning turn in Lee Isaac Chung’s Minari.
She took the opportunity to address the common mispronunciation of her name, although declared: “Tonight, you are all forgiven.”
Yuh-Jung Youn calls out Hollywood for mispronouncing her name while accepting Oscar
Brad Pitt had said it incorrectly moments earlier
Daniel Kaluuya brought some much needed levity to an otherwise awkward ceremony.
When accepting the Best Supporting Actor trophy for his role in Judas and the Black Messiah, the actor spoke about how great it is to be alive, quipping: “My mum and my dad... they had sex – and now I’m here!”
His mum – who was watching from BFI Southbank in London, where a hub had been set up for loved ones to view the ceremony – looked clasped her hands to her face in embarrassment.
Daniel Kaluuya addresses mum’s reaction to sex joke in Oscars acceptance speech
Actor’s mum clasped hands to her face in shock over the sex comment
People are still scratching their heads over Anthony Hopkins beating out Chadwick Boseman for Best Actor.
Boseman had been widely expected to be named the winner for his performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – only to lose out to Hopkins, who was not present at the ceremony.
Viewers at home have joked about the surprise moment, quipping about the black and white image Hopkins sent in and the absence of any acceptance speech.
“anthony hopkins sending that thot pic and saying yall be easy ......... and then winning ........ oh my god,” wrote journalist Hunter Harris.
While yesterday’s ceremony was full of surprises, even prior to the awards itself there had been debate over this year’s nominees.
One of the most notable snubs was Delroy Lindo who missed out on a nod for his phenomenal performance in Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods.
There weren’t many light-hearted moments in a ceremony that has been branded by viewers as awkward to watch – but Harrison Ford’s speech gave audiences at least one chuckle.
Introducing the award for Best Film Editing, Ford read from a crumpled piece of paper that contained a long list of criticism he received about his classic 1982 film Blade Runner.
Harrison Ford reads list of all the mean things people said about Blade Runner at Oscars
Actor read from a list of ‘editorial suggestions’ he had received about the film
Although the Oscars are fraught with controversial choices – who should have won versus who did win – one thing the internet can agree on is that Viola Davis deserves some recognition for her expert impersonation of taking a shot on the red carpet.
The actor was up for Best Actress for lead role in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, but she lost out to Nomadland’s Frances McDormand.
Taking home the coveted Best Actress trophy last night was Frances McDormand.
The actor beat out the likes of Vanessa Kirby, Andra Day, Viola Davis and Carey Mulligan.
Having previously won for Fargo in 1997 and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri in 2018, the 63-year-old now has the second most Best Actress awards ever – here’s who has the most.
Frances McDormand now has the second most Best Actress Oscars – here’s who has the most
Nomadland star previously won for Fargo and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
If you’re just joining us and not bothered by all the details and minutiae of the Oscars but still want to be clued up on what went down – here’s your cheat guide to last night’s ceremony.
The six biggest talking points from last night’s Oscars
This was always going to be an unusual year, but ‘unusual’ doesn’t have to be mean ‘mostly unbearable’
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