Oscars 2024: Oppenheimer takes best film as Al Pacino makes slip up

Published

1 year ago

March 11, 2024

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Oppenheimer has swept this year’s Oscars, winning seven gongs, including best actor, best director and best picture.

The top prize of the night was presented by The Godfather star Al Pacino – who seemed to jump the gun by announcing the winner before listing the nominees.

The movie had been widely expected to rule the night, and didn’t disappoint, possibly leading the 83-year-old actor to speed up the whole announcement process, peeping into the envelope and declaring “I see Oppenheimer”.

While not in the league of the great La La Land / Moonlight mix up of 2017 (when Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty announced that La La Land had taken best picture when in fact it was Moonlight), it certainly added a final frisson to the evening, even allowing it to wrap a few minutes early, rather than running late which is somewhat of an Academy Award tradition.

Director Christopher Nolan – one of Britain’s most commercially successful filmmakers – won his first Oscar for his three-hour epic about J Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb.

He thanked his wife and producer of the film, Emma Thomas, along with its lead actor Cillian Murphy, adding, “Thank you for those who have been there for me and believed in me my whole career.”

All four of the acting prizes were presented in a new way – by five former winners of each prize.

Best actor, which was presented by stars including Matthew Mcconaughey, Nicolas Cage and Brendan Fraser, was won by Oppenheimer star Murphy, who called himself “a very proud Irishman” and dedicated his prize “to the peacemakers everywhere”.

The 47-year-old star kissed his wife before heading to the stage, where Murphy told producers Nolan and Emma Thomas that making the film had “been the wildest, most creatively satisfying journey”.

He ended his speech by speaking in Irish, saying “Go Raibh Maith Agat” which means thank you.

Best actress – presented by performers including Charlize Theron, Sally Field, Jessica Lange and Jennifer Lawrence – went to Emma Stone for her performance as Bella Baxter in Poor Things.

Announcing breathlessly as she entered the stage, “my dress is broken… I think it happened during I’m Just Ken!” Stone said the win felt “overwhelming”.

She said she had been previously “panicking” about “something like this happening,” but was advised by the film’s director Yorgos Lanthimos to “take herself out of it”.

She also paid tribute to her daughter Louise Jean, who she said would be three-years-old in a few days, saying she loved her “more than the whole sky”.

The first prize of the night went to Da’vine Joy Randolph, who won best supporting actress – a win that had been widely considered to be locked in thanks to Randolph’s earlier wins across the awards season.

It was presented by actresses including Jamie Lee Curtis, Lupita Nyong’o, Rita Monero and Regina King.

Nyong’o was tasked with summing up Randolph’s performance in The Holdovers, revealing that she wore her grandmother’s glasses in the film and saying: “What an honour to see the world though your eyes and hers,” which drew a tear from the actress in the audience.

Accepting her prize, Randolph said: “God is so good. I didn’t think I was supposed to do this as a career.”

She went on: “For so long I thought I needed to be different, and I’ve realised I just needed to be myself.”

She also talked about “being the only black girl in the class,” and being forced to forge her own path, before giving a shout out to her publicist as one in a million – but forgetting to mention their name.

The best supporting actor prize was given out by actors including Ke Huy Quan, Sam Rockwell and Mahershala Ali.

Marking the first prize of the night for Oppenheimer, the gong went to Robert Downey Jr who joked: “I’d like to thank my terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order.”

He went on to pay tribute to his wife, Susan Downey, saying: “I’d like to thank my veterinarian, I mean my wife, she found me a snarling rescue (pet and) you loved me back to life. That is why I’m here.” He also gave a shout out to his lawyer and stylist too.

On a more serious note, the first time Oscar-winner said: “What we do is meaningful, and the stuff we decide to make is important”.

It’s been quite the year for the 58-year-old star, whose had a clean sweep of wins this award season, having previously won at the BAFTAs, Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild and Critics’ Choice awards.

Achievement in cinematography, which was presented by singer and actress Zendaya, also went to Oppenheimer.

Poor Things took four prizes in total, as well as best actress for Stone, it took three on the trot earlier in the night – best production design, best make-up and hairstyling and best costume design.

In a night with plenty of comedy moments, the costume prize was announced with a skit referencing the 1974 Oscars which infamously saw a naked streaker run across the stage.

Wrestler John Cena was tasked with handing out the gong seemingly naked -except for the envelope containing the winner’s name. He went on to be wrapped in a curtain before handing over the prize, to preserve his modesty.

Best original screenplay went to French film Anatomy Of A Fall, with director and co-writer Justine Triet joking that it would help her through her “mid-life crisis”.

She said she and husband Arthur Harari came up with the idea for the film when they were stuck in the house during the pandemic and changing their children’s nappies.

Best adapted screenplay went to American Fiction, a film about a Black author satirizing offensive tropes of Black entertainment in his book, and finding to his immense irritation that it’s a hit with the publishers.

Accepting the prize, writer and director Cord Jefferson thanked his collaborators on the film for “trusting a 40-year-old black guy who’d never directed anything before,” and gave a shout out to the next generation of writer and directors out there sriving to bring their work to the screen.

Actors Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt paired up to pay tribute to the stunt people in showbiz, with the pair enacting a mock-squabble which saw Gosling criticise Oppenheimer for “riding on the coat tails of Barbie all summer,” and Blunt accuse Gosling of “drawing on his six pack”. Their jokes were warmly received by the audience.

English film The Zone Of Interest, directed and written by Jonathan Glazer, took best international film.

Referencing the themes of his unsettling holocaust drama, Glazer said: “Our film shows where dehumanization leads, at its worst.”

He went on: “Right now, we stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which has led to conflict for so many innocent people.

“Whether the victims of October the seventh in Israel, or the ongoing attack on Gaza, all the victims, this humanization, how do we resist?”

His comments drew a round of applause from the audience, and tears from his leading actress, Sandra Huller.

Best live action short film went to The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar, directed by Wes Anderson.

A short film inspired by the music of John and Ono Lennon – War Is Over! – took best animated short film, with Lennon’s son Sean who was an executive producer on the show part of the team accepting the prize.

Stepping up to the microphone, Sean said: “My mother turned 91 today, and it’s Mother’s Day today in the UK, so could everyone just say ‘Happy Mother’s Day Yoko'”.

The visual effects prize – presented by odd couple Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito, the stars of comedy films Twins and Junior – went to Japanese epic Godzilla Minus One.

Created by Takashi Yamazaki – who also oversaw the visual effects – it was a seeming underdog in the category thanks to its small team (35-peope) and comparatively small budget ($12m). They brought two mini-reptilian monsters on stage to accept their prize.

Schwarzenegger and DeVito also gave out the best editor prize, which went to Oppenheimer.

The Boy And The Heron, written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, took best animated feature film.

Best documentary short film went to The Last Repair Shop, a film celebrating music education in public schools across America.

Best documentary feature went to 20 Days in Mariupol, which harrowingly documents the early days of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Accepting the prize, the film’s director Mstyslav Chernov spoke movingly as he accepted the prize, saying: “This is the first Oscar in Ukrainian history, and I’m honoured. But I will be the first director on this stage to say I wish I’d never made this film, I wish I could exchange this for Russia never attacking Ukraine, and taking over our cities…”

During the night, many ceremony attendees wore red lapel pins from Artists4Ceasefire, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Outside of the ceremony around 300-500 pro-Palestinian protesters made their way down Sunset Boulevard shouting “ceasefire now” and “free Palestine” ahead of the show.

The In Memoriam section of the night – which included a tribute to Friends star Matthew Perry – was accompanied by a rendition of Time To Say goodbye by opera singer Andrea Bocelli and his son Matteo.

There were performances on the night from all the nominated acts in the best song category – Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas got a standing ovation after singing What Was I Made For, the first performance of the night.

There were also performances from Becky G, singing Diane Warren’s The Fire Inside, from Flamin’ Hot, Jon Batiste and Dan Wilson’s It Never Went Away from American Symphony, and Scott George’s Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People) from Killers Of The Flower Moon.

But the performance of the night was from Barbie star Ryan Gosling, who sang power ballad I’m Just Ken with ten backing dancers, accompanying giant Barbie cardboard cutout heads and a surprise cameo from Guns And Roses guitarist Slash.

Starting out his performance from his seat in the audience, Gosling paraded onto the stage, dressed in a hot pink suit, gloves and absolutely nailed his performance to the delight of the audience.

After all the performances, the original score was presented by Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, going to Oppenheimer.

They followed up with best original song which went to Billie Eillish for What Was I Made For. The only win of the night for Barbie.

Accepting her second Oscar aged just 22, Eilish said: “I had a nightmare about this last night!” She thanked the film’s director Greta Gerwig, while her brother Finneas thanked Margot, and they both thanked their parents.

Eilish also thanked her “best friend Zoe, for playing Barbie’s with me when I was little”.

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Reservoir Dogs actor Michael Madsen died from heart failure, says cardiologist

Published

5 hours ago

July 9, 2025

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Reservoir Dogs actor Michael Madsen died from heart failure, says cardiologist

Actor Michael Madsen, who starred in Reservoir Dogs and Thelma & Louise, died from heart failure, his cardiologist has said.

The 67-year-old was found unresponsive in his home in Malibu, California, last Thursday and pronounced dead.

His doctor said heart disease and alcoholism will be listed as factors which contributed to the star’s death, reported NBC Los Angeles.

With no suspicious circumstances and the death listed as being from natural causes, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department considers the case closed.

In a career spanning more than 40 years, Madsen’s film credits include Free Willy, Donnie Brasco and Sin City.

He was also known for his collaborations with director Quentin Tarantino, including in Kill Bill: Vol. 2, The Hateful Eight and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.

The Chicago-born actor also linked up with Tarantino when he played Mr Blonde in 1992’s Reservoir Dogs.

His sister, Oscar-nominated actress Virginia Madsen, paid tribute to her brother in a statement to Variety.

She wrote: “My brother Michael has left the stage.

“He was thunder and velvet. Mischief wrapped in tenderness. A poet disguised as an outlaw. A father, a son, a brother – etched in contradiction, tempered by love that left its mark.”

Madsen was preparing to release a new book called Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts And Poems.

A statement by managers Susan Ferris and Smith, and publicist Liz Rodriguez, said the book by “one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors” was currently being edited.

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Fantasy v reality: Lena Dunham’s Too Much is a new spin on the London romcom

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9 hours ago

July 9, 2025

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Fantasy v reality: Lena Dunham's Too Much is a new spin on the London romcom

Horse-drawn carriages, picturesque gardens and endless cups of tea are just some of the stereotypical tropes that have shaped America’s romanticised image of England before even stepping foot on the island.

Thanks to classical literature and a steady stream of period dramas, Lena Dunham was no exception.

“I had so many fantasies,” she tells Sky News about growing up slightly obsessed with British culture.

“I loved Jane Austen, I loved Charlotte Bronte, I love British film, I was one of those little Anglophile kids.”

The writer and director believed it would be that area of classically depicted England that would fill her time when she first moved to “jolly old London” as a teenager with her mother for a brief time.

Instead, her attention was taken by another, and possibly equally influential group of artists.

“There was a pop show about S Club 7 and all I did was just sit in the hotel and obsessively watch things relating to [the group],” she said.

“So, I didn’t go home with all this cultural British knowledge. I went home with a deep abiding love of S Club 7 and came back to school when everyone was obsessed with the Backstreet Boys and NSYNC.

“For me, I was literally like, ‘Guys, you got to hear this hot track right off the presses, it’s called Reach For The Stars’.”

It wasn’t until her 30s, when the actress moved again to the city, that reality took hold and she quickly learned the difference between the imagined London and the real city.

Some stereotypes hold true, like the universal love for Paddington. Still, TV tropes like renting a flat on a single income in the city does not necessarily mean you’ll be treated to lavish rooms and a picturesque garden.

She says it was social cues she found most challenging to adjust to, as well as the different dictionaries used when speaking, technically, the same language.

“You come to a new country and even though you speak the same language, you’re totally absent from those tools,” she says.

“And I found that really striking as an adult in my 30s, trying to make friends, trying to date. I found it confusing enough to be a person in my own city of origin, so this was extra confounding.”

Too Much, her new Netflix series, is loosely inspired by her own London chapter and follows a workaholic New Yorker in her 30s who is sent across the Atlantic to work on a new project.

The 10-episode show is produced by Working Title – the company behind Bridget Jones, Notting Hill, About A Boy and Love Actually – and stars Hacks breakout actress Megan Stalter and The White Lotus actor Will Sharpe.

Dunham says she always wanted to write about her time in the UK, but it was a conversation with Irish actor Andrew Scott that got the ball rolling.

“Actually, he’s the reason that I came to know Meg as an actor because he loved her on Hacks and he loved her videos, and he said: ‘Have you watched this woman’s work? I feel like there’s a real connection between you two’, and I started watching because of him and built a show around her.”

In a full circle moment, Scott appears in the series briefly as an arrogantly odd man who crosses paths with Megan Stalter’s character Jessica.

The Ridley actor isn’t the only famous face joining the cast in a cameo role. Dunham put a call out to most of Hollywood, and luckily lots were on board.

To name just a few, guest stars include Jessica Alba, Stephen Fry, Adwoa Aboah, Kit Harington, Rita Wilson, Rita Ora, Richard E Grant, Emily Ratajkowski, Andrew Scott, Prasanna Puwanarajah and Jennifer Saunders.

“It was one of those situations where you just reach for the stars, literally, and then you can’t believe when they appear,” says Dunham.

“It was just a non-stop parade of people that I was fascinated by, wanted to be around, completely enamoured of.”

She adds: “I remember asking Naomi Watson, thinking, there’s absolutely no way that you’re going to want to come play this slightly demented woman. And she’s so playful and she’s so joyful and she just wanted to come and engage.

“Also, Jennifer Saunders has meant so much to me for so long, I had the AbFab box set as a kid, and I just think Patsy and Edina are the ultimate kind of messy women.

“She really showed me what comedy could be and… the space that women could occupy in comedy, and so having her come and join the show was really incredible.

“That was an episode that someone else was directing, Alicia McDonald, an amazing director, so I just got to sit and watch at the monitor like I was watching a movie, and it was very surreal for me.”

Too Much is out on Netflix now.

Entertainment

‘I will not go quietly,’ Gregg Wallace says amid reports he’s been sacked by the BBC

Published

20 hours ago

July 8, 2025

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'I will not go quietly,' Gregg Wallace says amid reports he's been sacked by the BBC

Former MasterChef host Gregg Wallace has vowed he will “not go quietly”, amid reports that he has been sacked by the BBC.

It comes after the TV host faced an investigation, commissioned by MasterChef’s production company Banijay UK, into alleged inappropriate behaviour while working for the BBC.

In November, the 60-year-old stepped back from presenting the cooking show after accusations that he made sexual comments towards staff and celebrity guests on a range of programmes over 17 years.

Broadcaster Kirsty Wark, author and actor Emma Kennedy, and presenter Kirstie Allsopp, were among the high-profile figures who made claims of inappropriate behaviour against Wallace.

In a statement, released ahead of the publication of the summary of a report into the claims, the 60-year-old said he had been “cleared of the most serious and sensational accusations” made against him.

However, he said the report, carried out by independent law firm Lewis Silkin, had found him “primarily guilty of inappropriate language between 2005 and 2018”.

Wallace’s statement, published on Instagram, came hours before the BBC News reported that 50 more people had made claims to the corporation against the presenter, including allegations he groped one MasterChef worker and pulled his trousers down in front of another.

In his statement, Wallace labelled BBC News’s claims as “uncorroborated tittle-tattle”.

Wallace wrote: “I have taken the decision to speak out ahead of the publication of the Silkin’s report – a decision I do not take lightly.

“But after 21 years of loyal service to the BBC, I cannot sit in silence while my reputation is further damaged to protect others.

“I have now been cleared by the Silkin’s report of the most serious and sensational accusations made against me.

“The most damaging claims (including from public figures which have not been upheld) were found to be baseless after a full and forensic six-month investigation.

“To be clear, the Silkin’s report exonerates me of all the serious allegations which made headlines last year and finds me primarily guilty of inappropriate language between 2005 and 2018.”

‘I was hired as the cheeky greengrocer – now that’s a problem’

Wallace said he recognised that “some of my humour and language” was at times “inappropriate” and, for that, he apologised “without reservation”.

“But I was never the caricature now being sold for clicks,” Wallace, who also referred to his recent diagnosis of autism, added.

“I was hired by the BBC and MasterChef as the cheeky greengrocer. A real person with warmth, character, rough edges, and all.

“For over two decades, that authenticity was part of the brand. Now, in a sanitised world, that same personality is seen as a problem.”

Wallace: Complaints from ‘middle-class women of a certain age’

Shortly after the allegations first emerged, Wallace recorded a video where he dismissed his accusers as “middle-class women of a certain age”.

His remarks were met with huge criticism – including from Downing Street, where a spokesperson for the prime minister described them as “completely inappropriate and misogynistic”.

Wallace responded by posting a follow-up clip where he apologised and said he “wasn’t in a good space” when he posted the comments.

Wallace was replaced in the 20th season of MasterChef, which aired this spring, by restaurant critic and former I‘m A Celebrity contestant Grace Dent. Several Christmas episodes of the show were also pulled from the BBC’s 2024 festive schedule.

In April, Wallace spoke to the Daily Mail, denying all accusations against him and saying he had contemplated suicide following the allegations.

Wallace’s lawyers have previously called allegations that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature “entirely false”.

A spokesperson for the BBC said: “Banijay UK instructed the law firm Lewis Silkin to run an investigation into allegations against Gregg Wallace. We are not going to comment until the investigation is complete and the findings are published.”

A Banijay spokesperson told Sky News: “We won’t be commenting until our report is published.” They have signalled the report will be published later this week or next.

Banijay previously said Wallace is “committed to fully co-operating” with the external review.

Alongside MasterChef, Wallace presented Inside The Factory for BBC Two from 2015 to 2023.

He also featured on various BBC shows over the years, including Saturday Kitchen, Eat Well For Less, Supermarket Secrets, Celebrity MasterChef and MasterChef: The Professionals, as well as being a Strictly Come Dancing contestant in 2014.

More recently, Wallace has been promoting his health and lifestyle website, offering one-to-one coaching from both himself and a team of experts, which includes nutritionists and doctors, and his wife Anna in the role of recipe curator.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.