A drama written and directed by Shai Carmeli-Pollak, the film tells the story of a 12-year-old Palestinian boy from the West Bank (played by Muhammad Ghazawi) who disappears in Israel on his way to visit the sea. Earlier this week, it won best picture at the Ophir Awards, Israel’s equivalent of the Oscars, and automatically became the country’s Oscar entry for international feature.

But following the win, Israeli Culture Minister Miki Zohar announced that he would pull government funding for the Ophirs, which are run by the Israeli Film and Television Academy. Calling the film “pro-Palestinian,” Zohar wrote on Instagram, “This great absurdity that the citizens of Israel are still paying out of their own pockets for the shameful ceremony of the Ophir Awards, which represents less than one percent of the Israeli people — is over.”

This came after Hannah Einbinder’s call to “Free Palestine” at the Emmys last week drew some ire on the Internet. And it followed the Film Workers for Palestine petition signed by 4,500 people — including Emma Stone, Ava DuVernay, Andrew Garfield and Joaquin Phoenix — to boycott Israeli institutions that are “implicated in genocide” in an effort to “end our complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza,” according to the group’s statement. (On Sept. 16, a United Nations inquiry said that Israel’s military actions in Gaza qualified as war crimes under the 1948 Genocide Convention.)

In an illustration of just how fraught and complicated this issue is, that boycott would include the organization that financed “The Sea.”

In short, the film is entering awards season amid a storm of discord. But judging from history, “The Sea’s” timely subject matter is more likely to help its chances with Academy voters than hurt it. “I think the relevancy will help,” said an insider who works on Oscar campaigns in the international film category. “The Academy membership at-large is very much interested in promoting the works of filmmakers who are bringing attention towards world crises. Specifically, this category and the documentary category always seem to make some kind of a statement.”

It’s significant that best international feature is decided by Academy members across all branches, a group that does not shy away from movies with a political bent, either current or historical. Since 2021, it has nominated “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” “I’m Still Here,” “The Zone of Interest,” “Io Capitano” “All Quiet on the Western Front,” “Argentina, 1985” and “Quo Vadis, Aida?”

And last year, another controversial movie that grappled with the war in Gaza, “No Other Land,” weathered its share of public battles before winning the Academy Award for best documentary. Directed by the Palestinian-Israeli collective of Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, the film offered an unflinching look at life in Masafer Yatta, a group of Palestinian villages in the West Bank targeted by the Israeli military. The doc was such a lightning rod that it ended up self-distributing in the U.S. when no company dared to pick it up. After its Academy Award win, a backlash ensued, with Zohan among the voices calling for a boycott.

This year, in addition to “The Sea,” Oscar voters will also contend with Tunisia’s entry, “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” a docudrama written and directed by Kaouther Ben Hania that depicts the true story of a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed in 2024 during the Israeli forces’ invasion of Gaza. It won the Silver Lion in Venice.

The Israeli Film and Television Academy did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment on “The Sea.” But as first reported by Variety, the organization’s president, Assaf Amir, stated on Wednesday, “In the face of attacks by ministers in Israel’s government on Israeli cinema, and calls from parts of the international film community to boycott us, the selection of this film is a resounding and decisive answer. I am proud that an Arabic-language film, born out of collaboration between Jewish and Palestinian Israelis, has been chosen to represent Israel in the Oscar competition.”

Representatives from the Israeli Film Fund also did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment. But the mission statement of the organization, whose long history of backing acclaimed films includes “Beyond the Walls,” “Waltz with Bashir,” “Ajami” and Footnote,” says plenty: “The Israeli Film Fund encourages creative freedom and creates a rich platform that brings to the screen a variety of stories that help to express the cultural wealth of Israeli society.”

The post Oscars International Film Race Heats Up With a Controversial Contender From Israel appeared first on TheWrap.

The telecast, which has aired on ABC since 1976, has a contract with the Disney owned-company through 2028. Before that, the show alternated between NBC and ABC since it was first televised in 1953.

NBC, which carried the Oscars for most of the 1950s and 1960s, is also a suitor, Bloomberg reported. But two people familiar with the inquiry told the outlet that YouTube is also actively interested.

The most-watched video platform in the world has been open about its interest in streaming high-profile live events, and the Academy Awards would certainly be a crown jewel in its stable, which now includes the NFL Sunday ticket and a small but growing roster of live sports.

Messages sent to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which is in the middle of negotiations for the telecast beyond 2028, were not immediately returned Sunday. Inquiries sent to Google and YouTube were also not immediately returned.

YouTube offers a huge audience on streaming, but it lacks the broadcast component of other companies – all of which also have their own streaming platforms. And at least three active bidders own major movie studios that send product to movie theaters – a huge priority for the Oscars and the films they showcase.

The 97th Academy Awards, which aired on March 25, drew an average of 19.6 million viewers across TV and streaming, according to Nielsen, a slight uptick from 2024, and the highest viewership in five years.

The post YouTube Inquires About Becoming Next Home of the Academy Awards | Report appeared first on TheWrap.

Joining Taylor-Coleman on the Academy Foundation Board are four fellow officers. Brooke Breton, who hails from the visual effects branch of the Academy, will serve as vice president. Isis Mussenden of the costume designers branch will likewise be a vice president for the board. Documentary branch member Simon Kilmurry will be the board’s treasurer. The animation branch’s Marlon West was named secretary.

Seven additional members were also named to the Academy Foundation Board on Thursday: Paul Cameron (cinematographers branch), Patricia Cardoso (directors branch), Peter Devlin (sound branch), Lynette Howell Taylor (producers branch), Larry Karaszewski (writers branch), Stephen Rivkin (film editors branch) and Dana Stevens (writers branch).

The Academy Foundation functions as the branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences responsible for all educational, preservational and cultural activities. This includes the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, which opened in 2021. The Academy Foundation also oversees the Academy Collection, the Academy Film Archive, the Academy’s Margaret Herrick Library and the Academy’s talent development programs.

“Through the work of the Academy’s museum, collection and educational programs, the Academy Foundation furthers our mission to celebrate artistry and innovation in filmmaking, inspire new generations of filmmakers and preserve our global film history,” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer in a statement. “I am deeply thankful to our Academy Foundation Board members, whose leadership and dedication help advance these meaningful initiatives.”

Each of the 12 new members to the Academy Foundation Board are trustees who are also Academy Board of Governors members. The 12 members and officers will serve one-year terms. Three of them (Howell Taylor, Kilmurry and Taylor-Coleman) will represent the Academy Foundation Board on the Academy Museum Board of Trustees for the same term.

The post AMPAS Elects Casting Director Kim Taylor-Coleman as Academy Foundation Board President appeared first on TheWrap.

The list of prospective new members, which tops last year’s 487 (at the time the biggest group to be invited in four years), includes several other nominees for the 2025 Academy Awards: actors Ariana Grande, Monica Barbaro, Yura Borisov Adriana Paz, Margaret Qualley, Sebastian Stan, Jeremy Strong and Fernanda Torres; directors Coralie Fargeat and Brady Corbet; documentary filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Basel Adra (who won for “No Other Land”) producers Maria Carlota Bruno, Alex Coco and Samantha Quan; writer Greg Kwedar, Magnus von Horn and Gints Zilbalodis; editor Nick Emerson; and composers Daniel Blumberg (who won for “The Brutalist”), Abraham Alexander and Adrian Quesada and Brandi Carlile. (Notably, 2025 Best Actress nominee Karla Sofía Gascón was not invited.)

Several invitees, including Corbet (“The Brutalist”), Fargeat (“The Substance”), Matīss Kaža (“Flow”), Ema Ryan Yamazaki (“Black Box Diaries”) and Molly O’Brien (“The Only Girl in the Orchestra”) were invited to join more than one branch. (Corbet and Fargeat were invited to both the directors and writers branches.) If they accept the Academy’s invitation (most people do), they must choose one branch to belong to.

With the latest group of invitees, total Academy membership will reach 11,120 and voting members will hit 10,143 — a significant milestone for an exclusive group that for years kept membership below 6,000 people. The growth reflects the Academy’s near decade of efforts to diversify its ranks which, after the #OscarsSoWhite protests of 2016, were revealed to be 75% male and 90% white. This year’s crop of newcomers reflects the Academy’s sustained drive to double the number of women and people of color: 41% of the potential new members are women; 45% are from underrepresented ethnic and racial communities; and 55% are international. With the new class of members, the Academy is now 35% women, 22% from underrepresented communities and 21% international.

Here is the full list of people invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Actors
Naomi Ackie – “Mickey 17,” “Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody”
Aml Ameen – “Rustin,” “Yardie”
Gillian Anderson – “The Last King of Scotland,” “The House of Mirth”
Adria Arjona – “Blink Twice,” “Hit Man”
Monica Barbaro – “A Complete Unknown,” “Top Gun: Maverick”
Dave Bautista – “Dune: Part Two,” “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”
Yura Borisov – “Anora,” “Compartment No. 6”
Rachel Brosnahan – “The Amateur,” “I’m Your Woman”
Jodie Comer – “The Bikeriders,” “The Last Duel”
Emma Corrin – “Nosferatu,” “My Policeman”
Raymond Cruz – “Training Day,” “Clear and Present Danger”
Kieran Culkin – “A Real Pain,” “Igby Goes Down”
Danielle Deadwyler – “The Piano Lesson,” “Till”
Stephen Graham – “Boiling Point,” “The Irishman”
Ariana Grande – “Wicked,” “Don’t Look Up”
Kamal Haasan – “Vikram,” “Nayakan”
Paul Walter Hauser – “Richard Jewell,” “I, Tonya”
John Kani – “Murder Mystery,” “Black Panther”
Karren Karagulian – “Anora,” “Tangerine”
Ayushmann Khurrana – “Article 15,” “Andhadhun”
Payman Maadi – “Life and a Day,” “A Separation”
Mikey Madison – “Anora,” “Once upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Jason Momoa – “Dune,” “Aquaman”
Adriana Paz – “Emilia Pérez,” “Perpetual Sadness”
Adam Pearson – “A Different Man,” “Under the Skin”
Aubrey Plaza – “My Old Ass,” “Emily the Criminal”
Margaret Qualley – “The Substance,” “Poor Things”
Andrew Scott – “All of Us Strangers,” “Catherine Called Birdy”
Justice Smith – “I Saw the TV Glow,” “The American Society of Magical Negroes”
Sebastian Stan – “The Apprentice,” “A Different Man”
Jeremy Strong – “The Apprentice,” “The Big Short”
Fernanda Torres – “I’m Still Here,” “Love Me Forever or Never”
Emily Yancy – “Origin,” “Cotton Comes to Harlem”

Animation
Sandra Andersen – “Wolfwalkers,” “The Breadwinner”
Lucrèce Andreae – “Grandpa Walrus,” “Trois Petits Points”
Cinzia Angelini – “Hitpig,” “Mila”
Richard Beek – “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl,” “Early Man”
Julie Bernier Gosselin – “The Sea Beast,” “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”
Mary Blee – “The Wild Robot,” “The Boss Baby: Family Business”
Joyce Borenstein – “Lida Moser Photographer,” “The Colours of My Father: A Portrait of Sam Borenstein”
Neysa Bové – “Encanto,” “Raya and the Last Dragon”
Alex Budovsky – “Algorithm Takedown,” “Bathtime in Clerkenwell”
Eunyoung Choi – “The Colors Within,” “Inu-Oh”
Merlin Crossingham – “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl,” “Early Man”
Mike Defeo – “The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run,” “Ice Age”
Ricardo Delgado – “How to Train Your Dragon,” “The Incredibles”
Robert DeSue – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio,” “Missing Link”
Nina Gantz – “Wander to Wonder,” “Edmond”
Heidi Jo Gilbert – “The Wild Robot,” “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish”
Kelsey Hurley – “Wish,” “Raya and the Last Dragon”
Matīss Kaža* – “Flow”
Kim Keukeleire – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio,” “Isle of Dogs”
Nicola Lavender – “The Mitchells vs. the Machines,” “Smallfoot”
Robert Lence – “Beauty and the Beast,” “Toy Story”
Kelsey Mann – “Inside Out 2,” “Onward”
Deanna Marsigliese – “Inside Out 2,” “Incredibles 2”
Hossein Molayemi* – “In the Shadow of the Cypress,” “Run Rostam Run”
Becky Neiman-Cobb – “Elemental,” “Bao”
Daisuke Nishio – “Magic Candies,” “The File of Young Kindaichi 2: Murderous Deep Blue”
Seiji Okuda – “The Boy and the Beast,” “Summer Wars”
Alex Orrelle – “Klaus,” “Condorito: La Película”
Rodrigo Perez-Castro – “Night of the Zoopocalypse,” “Koati”
Bill Perkins – “Fantasia/2000,” “Aladdin”
Jelena Popović – “Boat People,” “Hedgehog’s Home”
Karen Ryan – “Nimona,” “Moana”
Anna Samo – “The Wild-Tempered Clavier,” “Conversations with a Whale”
Shirin Sohani* – “In the Shadow of the Cypress,” “Run Rostam Run”
Siqi Song – “Sister,” “The Coin”
Alessandra Sorrentino – “Inside Out 2,” “Nimona”
Rosana Sullivan – “Inside Out 2,” “Kitbull”
Takashi Washio – “Magic Candies,” “Go! Princess Pretty Cure: Go! Go!! Gouka Sanbon Date!!!”
Julie Zackary – “Nimona,” “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”
Gregory Zalcman – “Flow,” “Sirocco and the Kingdom of Winds”
Gints Zilbalodis* – “Flow,” “Away”

Artist Representatives
Bryan Besser
Laura Brokaw
Sue Lee Carls
Jon Cassir
Brooke Ehrlich
Ryan Feldman
Rick Genow
Ari Greenburg
Sue Greenleaves
Jason Ian Gutman
Christian Hodell
Courtney Kivowitz
Eric Kranzler
Molly Madden
Jenny Maryasis
Max Michael
Gaby Morgerman
Elan Ruspoli
Sarah Schweitzman
Nina Shaw
Adam Shulman
Sarah Spear
Jay Sures
Larry Taube
Doug Wald

Associates
Eric Esrailian
Ray Halbritter
Raj Kapoor
Jimmy Kimmel
Molly McNearney
Katy Mullan
Dominic Ng
Conan O’Brien
Rob Paine

Casting Directors
María Laura Berch – “Society of the Snow,” “Los Inoportunos”
An Dorthe Braker – “The Baader Meinhof Complex,” “Run Lola Run”
Courtney Bright – “Priscilla,” “The Bling Ring”
Ann Goulder – “We the Animals,” “Requiem for a Dream”
Aurélie Guichard – “Meet the Barbarians,” “In the Arms of My Enemy”
Luci Lenox – “Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant,” “Victoria”
Karan Mally – “Toofaan,” “Gully Boy”
Maurilio Mangano – “Maria,” “Queer”
Monika Mikkelsen – “10 Cloverfield Lane,” “The Devil’s Rejects”
Laura Muccino – “The Best Years,” “The Past”
Kate Rhodes James – “Gladiator II,” “House of Gucci”
Elina Ternyaeva – “Loveless,” “Leviathan”
Seth Yanklewitz – “The Hangover,” “Blades of Glory”

Cinematographers
Pooyan Aghababaei – “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” “Mysteries of the Lake”
Rachel Aoun – “Farha,” “Solitaire”
Kate Arizmendi – “National Anthem,” “Monica”
Stuart Bentley – “We Live in Time,” “Surge”
Valentina Caniglia – “Adieu, Lacan,” “David Chase: A Sopranos Session”
Cao Yu – “Decoded,” “The Cord of Life”
Rachel Clark – “Edge of Summer,” “Pirates”
Lol Crawley – “The Brutalist,” “White Noise”
Drew Daniels – “Anora,” “Red Rocket”
Sophie Darlington – “Penguins,” “Earth: One Amazing Day”
Ranabir Das – “All We Imagine as Light,” “A Night of Knowing Nothing”
Cristina Dunlap – “Am I OK?,” “American Fiction”
Ali Ghazi – “Residents of Nowhere,” “Day Zero”
Gorka Gómez Andreu – “The Antique,” “Cabrini”
Paul Guilhaume – “Emilia Pérez,” “The Five Devils”
Kira Kelly – “Rez Ball,” “Skin in the Game”
Jacek Laskus – “Schindler Space Architect,” “Viva Verdi!”
Suzie Lavelle – “Bridget Jones: Mad about the Boy,” “The End We Start From”
Monika Lenczewska – “Animal,” “City of Lies”
Yorick Le Saux – “Blitz,” “Little Women”
Samuel Levy – “His Three Daughters,” “Lady Bird”
Eric Lin – “House of Spoils,” “The Perfect Find”
Gin Loane – “The Convert,” “The Justice of Bunny King”
Suki Medenčević – “League of Legends: Origins,” “The Pixar Story”
Oren Soffer – “Allswell in New York,” “The Creator”
Adrian Teijido – “I’m Still Here,” “River of Desire”
Rina Yang – “The Fire Inside,” “Nanny”

Costume Designers
Sergio Ballo – “The Return,” “The Emperor’s New Clothes”
Maxima Basu – “All We Imagine as Light,” “Bajirao Mastani”
Eva Coen – “Terraferma,” “Respiro”
Thierry Delettre – “The Count of Monte Cristo,” “Before Sunset”
Nic Ede – “Hysteria,” “Wilde”
Margrét Einarsdóttir – “Touch,” “Lamb”
Bunmi Ademilola Fashina – “Mami Wata,” “Light in the Dark”
Frauke Firl – “The End,” “Antichrist”
Cynthia Flynt – “A League of Their Own,” “Awakenings”
Kate Forbes – “The Brutalist,” “Fair Play”
Małgorzata Fudala – “A Real Pain,” “The Girl with the Needle”
Tanja Hausner – “The Devil’s Bath,” “Sisi and I”
Cappi Ireland – “Better Man,” “Mortal Kombat”
Claudia Kopke – “I’m Still Here,” “The House of Sand”
Lisa Lovaas – “Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1,” “Renfield”
Elaine Montalvo – “A Better Life,” “Real Women Have Curves”
Eva Nathena – “Murderess,” “Man of God”
Dora Ng – “Where the Wind Blows,” “Better Days”
Carlos Rosario – “Alien: Romulus,” “The Girl in the Spider’s Web”
Kazuhiro Sawataishi – “Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends,” “13 Assassins”
Katarína Štrbová Bieliková – “Waves,” “Charlatan”
Györgyi Szakács – “Semmelweis,” “Sunshine”

Directors
Kamila Andini – “Yuni,” “The Mirror Never Lies”
Danielle Arbid – “Passion Simple,” “A Lost Man”
Emily Atef – “Someday We’ll Tell Each Other Everything,” “More than Ever”
Bi Gan – “Long Day’s Journey into Night,” “Kaili Blues”
Mong-Hong Chung – “The Falls,” “A Sun”
Gia Coppola – “The Last Showgirl,” “Palo Alto”
Brady Corbet* – “The Brutalist,” “Vox Lux”
Mamadou Dia – “Demba,” “Nafi’s Father”
Coralie Fargeat* – “The Substance,” “Revenge”
Daniel Filho – “Silence of the Rain,” “Golden Mouth”
Mike Flanagan – “Doctor Sleep,” “Gerald’s Game”
Rose Glass – “Love Lies Bleeding,” “Saint Maud”
Miguel Gomes – “Arabian Nights,” “Tabu”
Maha Haj* – “Mediterranean Fever,” “Personal Affairs”
Azazel Jacobs – “His Three Daughters,” “The Lovers”
Soudade Kaadan* – “Nezouh,” “The Day I Lost My Shadow”
Michel Khleifi – “Canticle of the Stones,” “Wedding in Galilee”
Stanley Kwan – “Lan Yu,” “Rouge”
Gabriel Mascaro – “The Blue Trail,” “Neon Bull”
David Pablos – “Dance of the 41,” “The Chosen Ones”
Halina Reijn – “Babygirl,” “Bodies Bodies Bodies”
Saeed Roustayi – “Leila’s Brothers,” “Life and a Day”
Jane Schoenbrun – “I Saw the TV Glow,” “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair”
Albert Serra – “Pacifiction,” “Story of My Death”
Elia Suleiman – “It Must Be Heaven,” “Divine Intervention”
Daniela Thomas – “O Banquete,” “Vazante”
Rose Troche – “The Safety of Objects,” “Go Fish”
Magnus von Horn* – “The Girl with the Needle,” “The Here After”
Gints Zilbalodis* – “Flow,” “Away”

Documentary
Beth Aala – “This Is Brighton,” “Uncharted”
Yuval Abraham – “No Other Land”
Basel Adra – “No Other Land”
Cecilia Aldarondo – “You Were My First Boyfriend,” “Landfall”
Hamdan Ballal – “No Other Land”
Ben Bernhard – “All That Breathes,” “Aquarela”
Arun Bhattarai – “Agent of Happiness,” “The Next Guardian”
Eliza Capai – “Incompatible with Life,” “Your Turn”
Heather Courtney – “Breaking the News,” “For the Record”
Margje de Koning – “Daan’s Inheritance,” “Burma VJ”
Judith Ehrlich – “The Boys Who Said No!,” “The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers”
Asmae El Moudir – “The Mother of All Lies,” “The Postcard”
Sam Feder – “Heightened Scrutiny,” “Disclosure”
Elena Fortes – “A Cop Movie,” “Midnight Family”
Abby Ginzberg – “Barbara Lee: Speaking Truth to Power,” “Waging Change”
Lea Glob – “Apolonia, Apolonia,” “Venus”
Rémi Grellety – “Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat,” “I Am Not Your Negro”
Rabab Haj Yahya – “Coexistence, My Ass!,” “Another Body”
Marc Hoeferlin – “Marianne & Leonard: Words of Love,” “My Father and Me”
Bing Liu – “All These Sons,” “Minding the Gap”
Elizabeth Lo – “Mistress Dispeller,” “Stray”
Cynthia López – “Strong Island,” “Where Soldiers Come From”
Smriti Mundhra* – “I Am Ready, Warden,” “St. Louis Superman”
Mette Cheng Munthe-Kaas – “Hidden Letters,” “Nowhere to Hide”
Michel Dimitri Negroponte – “Herd,” “My Autonomous Neighbor”
Raphaela Neihausen – “Joe’s Violin,” “Miss Gulag”
Bao Minh Nguyen – “The Greatest Night in Pop,” “Be Water”
Eric Nyari – “Black Box Diaries,” “Instruments of a Beating Heart”
Molly O’Brien* – “The Only Girl in the Orchestra,” “The Disappearance of Shere Hite”
Benjamin Olafsen Ree – “The Remarkable Life of Ibelin,” “The Painter and the Thief”
Kazuhiro Soda – “The Cats of Gokogu Shrine,” “Campaign”
Sam Soko – “Free Money,” “Softie”
Johnny Symons – “Assembly,” “Out Run”
Rachel Szor – “No Other Land”
Stan Warnow – “Deconstructing Dad: The Music, Machines and Mystery of Raymond Scott,” “Woodstock”
Ema Ryan Yamazaki* – “Instruments of a Beating Heart,” “Koshien: Japan’s Field of Dreams”
Jia Zhao – “A Marble Travelogue,” “Kabul, City in the Wind”

Executives
Ravi Ahuja
Erik Baiers
Chris Brearton
Alison Cohen
Daniel Thomas Cohen
Amy Entelis
Kristen Figeroid
Natalie Fischer
Simon Gillis
Micah Green
Kim Hendrickson
Andrew Herwitz
Charlotte Koh
Matthew Leaf
Nancy Lefkowitz
Rachel Levy
Sirena Liu
Andrew Mackie
Leon Morgan
Doris Pfardrescher
Tom Quinn
Jason Ropell
Christopher Slager
Christian Vesper
Deborah Wettstein
Derval Whelan
Eva Yates

Film Editors
Jonathan Alberts – “All of Us Strangers,” “45 Years”
Avril Beukes – “Respect,” “Yesterday”
Julia Bloch – “Bodies Bodies Bodies,” “Green Room”
Jacob Craycroft – “Out of My Mind,” “Brigsby Bear”
Yann Dedet – “The Goldman Case,” “Police”
Kelley Dixon – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” “The Goldfinch”
Nick Emerson – “Conclave,” “Lady Macbeth”
Valentin Feron – “The Substance,” “Black Box”
Stephanie Kezia Filo – “We Grown Now,” “Root Letter”
Yang-Hua Hu – “The Accidental Getaway Driver,” “Mass”
David Jancso – “The Brutalist,” “Monkey Man”
Célia Lafitedupont – “The Count of Monte Cristo,” “What’s in a Name?”
Arik Lahav-Leibovich – “Zero Motivation,” “Afterthought”
Ching-Sung Liao – “Stonewalling,” “Us and Them”
Susan Littenberg – “Easy A,” “13 Going on 30”
Nicholas Monsour – “Nickel Boys,” “Nope”
Bill Murphy – “Memoir of a Snail,” “Lake Mungo”
Matthew Newman – “The Neon Demon,” “Drive”
Kristen Nutile – “Homegrown,” “Turn Every Page – The Adventures of Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb”
Alex O’Flinn – “The Rider,” “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night”
Colby Ryan Parker – “Gran Turismo,” “Ant-Man”
Arthur Tarnowski – “Kidnapping Inc.,” “Drunken Birds”
Jennifer Vecchiarello – “My Old Ass,” “C’mon C’mon”
James D. Wilcox – “Thirteen Lives,” “Hillbilly Elegy”
Ema Ryan Yamazaki* – “Black Box Diaries,” “The Making of a Japanese”

Makeup Artists and Hairstylists
Matiki Anoff – “The Book of Clarence,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Tarra Day – “The Idea of You,” “Green Book”
Stéphanie Guillon – “The Substance,” “Infested”
Traci Loader – “Nosferatu,” “The Lighthouse”
Pierre-Olivier Persin – “The Substance,” “The Count of Monte Cristo”
Tricia Sawyer – “Saturday Night,” “Jumanji: The Next Level”
Matteo Silvi – “The Last Duel,” “Thor: Love and Thunder”
Suzanne Stokes-Munton – “Nosferatu,” “Dalíland”
Vincent Van Dyke – “Nope,” “I, Tonya”

Marketing and Public Relations
Giselle Abbud Manzur
Danielle Bekas
Eric Carr
Missy Davy
Danielle DePalma
Catherine (Cat) Rose Flores
David Fruchbom
Gregory Higgins
Seanna Hore
Catherine Hsia
Len Iannelli
John Ibsen
Evan Langweiler
Lauren Martin
Steven Newman
Heta Paarte
Ella Robinson
Shannon Ryan
Michelle Rydberg
Andrew Saffir
Carlos Salcines
Nicole Schlegel
Luke Silver-Greenberg
Debi Struzan
Adam Waldman

Music
Segun Akinola – “The Bayou,” “Girl You Know It’s True”
Abraham Alexander – “Sing Sing”
Chris Bacon – “Heretic,” “Men in Black: International”
Diego Baldenweg – “In the Land of Saints and Sinners,” “The Reformer. Zwingli: A Life’s Portrait.”
Andranik Berberyan – “Yasha and Leonid Brezhnev,” “Amerikatsi”
Daniel Blumberg – “The Brutalist,” “The World to Come”
René G. Boscio – “Lake George,” “Emergency”
Camille – “Emilia Pérez,” “Corsage”
Brandi Carlile – “Elton John: Never Too Late,” “Onward”
Kwong Wing Chan – “Peg O’ My Heart,” “The Dumpling Queen”
Toby Chu – “The Monkey King,” “Found”
Lorenz Dangel – “September 5,” “Dying”
Jack Dolman – “Wicked,” “Bones and All”
Clément Ducol – “Emilia Pérez,” “Chicken for Linda!”
Maxence Dussère – “Emilia Pérez,” “Le Principal”
Stephanie Economou – “My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3,” “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken”
Wei San Hsu – “Invisible Nation,” “Another Woman”
Amanda Delores Patricia Jones – “Mea Culpa,” “Moving On”
Siddhartha Khosla – “A Family Affair,” “The Idea of You”
Tom Kramer – “Chupa,” “Captain Marvel”
Michael A. Levine – “Outbreak,” “Atypical Wednesday”
Branford Marsalis – “Rustin,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Nami Melumad – “Thor: Love and Thunder,” “The Adventures of Thomasina Sawyer”
Youssou N’Dour – “Youssou N’Dour: I Bring What I Love,” “Kirikou and the Sorceress”
Ré Olunuga – “Drift,” “Girl”
Adrian Quesada – “Home Free,” “Sing Sing”
Nic Ratner – “Bottoms,” “The Humans”
Carlos Rafael Rivera – “Ezra,” “Chupa”
Linda Thompson – “The Bodyguard,” “Pretty Woman”
Amritha Vaz – “Little Stones,” “Miss India America”
Isobel Waller-Bridge – “Magpie,” “Wicked Little Letters”
Andrew Watt – “Elton John: Never Too Late,” “Barbie”
Anthony Willis – “M3GAN,” “Saltburn”
Rihards Zaļupe – “Flow,” “Kaka, Pavasaris un Draugi”

Producers
Nai An – “The Shadow Play,” “Summer Palace”
Habib Attia – “Four Daughters,” “The Man Who Sold His Skin”
Chris Bender – “Under the Silver Lake,” “A History of Violence”
Maria Carlota Bruno – “I’m Still Here,” “In the Intense Now”
Pascal Caucheteux – “Emilia Pérez,” “A Prophet”
Julio Chavezmontes – “Bergman Island,” “Memoria”
Peggy Chiao – “Empire of Silver,” “Beijing Bicycle”
Agustina Chiarino – “Desperté con un Sueno,” “Bosco”
Dylan Clark – “The Batman,” “War for the Planet of the Apes”
Alex Coco – “Anora,” “Red Rocket”
Mike Goodridge – “Santosh,” “Touch”
Michael Gottwald – “Patti Cake$,” “Beasts of the Southern Wild”
Max Handelman – “Cocaine Bear,” “Pitch Perfect”
Juliette Howell – “Conclave,” “The Wonder”
Michael A. Jackman – “Conclave,” “The Good Nurse”
Rocío Jadue – “In Her Place,” “El Conde”
Giorgos Karnavas – “Inside,” “The Harvesters”
Kerry Kohansky-Roberts – “Foe,” “Boy Erased”
Julia Lebedev – “A Thousand and One,” “Bad Hair”
Dan Levine – “Arrival,” “Why Him?”
Stephen “Dr” Love – “Shadow Force,” “They Cloned Tyrone”
Ben Pugh – “The Silent Twins,” “The Courier”
Samantha Quan – “Anora,” “Red Rocket”
Jussi Rantamäki – “Compartment No. 6,” “The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Maki”
Myriam Sassine – “Costa Brava, Lebanon,” “1982”
Kevin Walsh – “Napoleon,” “Manchester by the Sea”
Monique Walton – “Sing Sing,” “Bull”
Jing Wang – “Land of Broken Hearts,” “Old Stone”
Vincent Wang – “Whether the Weather Is Fine,” “Stray Dogs”
Mariusz Włodarski – “The Girl with the Needle,” “Sweat”

Production and Technology
Michael Dixon Beugg
Freddy Bouciegues
Chaitanya Chinchlikar
Mark Dinicola
David Emmerichs
Sarah Franzl
Andy Given
Steven Gizicki
Mike Jutan
Joanne Kim
Lou Levinson
Hao Li
Kathy McHugh
Anton Monsted
Tony Ngai
John Polito
Greg Powell
AJ Sciutto
Momita SenGupta
Christina Lee Storm
Munira Tayabji
Kevin Weaver
Des Whelan
Jan A. Yarbrough
Justin Yu

Production Design
Caroline Amies – “Miss Julie,” “In the Name of the Father”
Marco Bittner-Rosser – “Tár,” “Only Lovers Left Alive”
Beatrice Brentnerová – “Nosferatu,” “Underworld: Blood Wars”
Dawn Brown – “Spiderhead,” “Alita: Battle Angel”
Matthew Cavaliero – “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “La La Land”
Robbie Consing – “Kraven the Hunter,” “Madame Web”
Carlos Conti – “I’m Still Here,” “The Roads Not Taken”
Patricia Cuccia – “The Brutalist,” “Brokeback Mountain”
Leann Emmert – “The Fabelmans,” “Dune”
Kasra Farahani – “Captain Marvel,” “Star Trek Into Darkness”
Kevin Ishioka – “Dunkirk,” “Avatar”
Chad Keith – “The Bikeriders,” “Scream”
Paul D. Kelly – “They Cloned Tyrone,” “A Man Called Otto”
Craig Lathrop – “Nosferatu,” “The Lighthouse”
Lydia Marks – “tick, tick…BOOM!,” “Money Monster”
Naaman Marshall – “Alien: Romulus,” “Knock at the Cabin”
Tom Meyer – “Black Adam,” “Finch”
Beth Alyce Mickle – “Megalopolis,” “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3”
Cristina Onori – “House of Gucci,” “John Wick: Chapter 2”
John Panzarella – “Hail, Caesar!,” “L.A. Confidential”
Stanislas Reydellet – “The Substance,” “Hawaii”
Simon Rogers – “Hope Gap,” “Official Secrets”
Jesse Daniel Rosenthal – “Black Panther,” “American Hustle”
Denis Schnegg – “Napoleon,” “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”
Lisa Sessions Morgan – “Megalopolis,” “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
Cynthia Sleiter – “Conclave,” “The Art of Racing in the Rain”
Ethan Tobman – “Madame Web,” “Room”
Luca Tranchino – “La Dolce Villa,” “The Doorman”
Julian R. Wagner – “September 5,” “The Colony”

Short Films
Annick Blanc – “Fauve,” “The Colour of Your Lips”
Gaël Cabouat – “Bazigaga,” “Rise of a Star”
Kate Chamuris – “The Breakthrough,” “Nuevo Rico”
Christine W. Chen – “Jamgasm,” “En Route”
Johnson Cheng – “Only the Moon Stands Still,” “Lonely Blue Night”
Jeffrey Gee Chin – “Beta,” “Anastasia’s Journey”
David Cutler-Kreutz – “A Lien,” “Flounder”
Sam Cutler-Kreutz – “A Lien,” “Flounder”
Sam Davis – “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó,” “You Know Where to Find Me”
Elham Ehsas – “Yellow,” “Your Hand Found Mine”
Eduardo Moises Escribano Solera – “Five Seasons of My Childhood,” “How She Didn’t Die”
Flavio Gerber – “Our Child,” “Ala Kachuu – Take and Run”
Adam J. Graves – “Anuja,” “Cycle Verité”
Joyce Liu-Countryman – “Don’t Be Sorry,” “A Family Guide to Hunting”
Carlo Francisco Manatad – “Cross My Heart and Hope to Die,” “Shoredust”
Bongani Mlambo – “Bertie the Brilliant,” “The Goldfish”
Hossein Molayemi* – “In the Shadow of the Cypress,” “Run Rostam Run”
Smriti Mundhra* – “I Am Ready, Warden,” “St. Louis Superman”
Molly O’Brien* – “The Only Girl in the Orchestra,” “Wild Things”
Danijel Pek – “The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent,” “Penalty Shot”
Nebojša Slijepčević – “The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent,” “My Neighbour Wolf”
Shirin Sohani* – “In the Shadow of the Cypress,” “Run Rostam Run”
Trent – “I’m Not a Robot,” “Mustachio”
Sean Wang – “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó,” “Still Here”
Diana Ward – “Family Time,” “The Goldfish”
Victoria Warmerdam – “I’m Not a Robot,” “Mustachio”
Ema Ryan Yamazaki* – “Instruments of a Beating Heart,” “Wheels of Fate: The Story of the Rickshaw Man”

Sound
Niels Barletta – “Emilia Pérez,” “The Animal Kingdom”
Michael Barosky – “A Quiet Place Part II,” “A Quiet Place”
Antonio Betancourt-Márquez – “Plane,” “Fortress”
Angelo Bonanni – “Ferrari,” “Don’t Be Bad”
Kevin Cerchiai – “Red One,” “Blue Beetle”
Benjamin L. Cook – “Ghosts of the Ozarks,” “The Night”
Margaret Crimmins – “On Broadway,” “Out of My Head”
Aymeric Devoldère – “Emilia Pérez,” “Woman at War”
Corrin Ellingford – “Ash,” “Bookworm”
Kim Foscato – “More than Robots,” “Groomed”
Jonathan Fuh – “Amsterdam,” “Nope”
Chris Gridley – “The Last of the Winthrops,” “Gay Chorus Deep South”
Katie Halliday – “The Fire Inside,” “Family Switch”
Tom Hartig – “Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody,” “Once upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Gord Hillier – “Love Hurts,” “Bad Genius”
Gareth John – “Dune: Part Two,” “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
Brandon Jones – “Drive Back,” “A Quiet Place”
Erwan Kerzanet – “Emilia Pérez,” “The Goldman Case”
Dmitriy Kliminov – “This Summer Will End,” “The Buried Talent”
Heikki Kossi – “A House Made of Splinters,” “Despicable Me 4”
Viktor Krivosudský – “Černák,” “Gabriela Soukalova: Pravda Se Porad Vyplati”
Douglas Parker – “Captain America: Brave New World,” “Wish”
Eric Potter – “Dune: Part Two,” “Joker: Folie à Deux”
P. M. Satheesh – “Agni,” “Baahubali: The Beginning”
Douglas W. Shamburger – “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Oppenheimer”
Kira Smith – “Dumb Money,” “Motherless Brooklyn”
Balazs Varga – “The Beautiful Game,” “Stockholm Bloodbath”
Darren Warkentin – “Harold and the Purple Crayon,” “Venom: The Last Dance”
Bonnie Wild – “Hitpig,” “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania”

Visual Effects
Ravi Bansal – “Nyad,” “The Jungle Book”
Rodney Burke – “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” “Poker Face”
André Bustanoby – “Abigail,” “Scream”
David Caeiro Cebrian – “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “War for the Planet of the Apes”
Alejandro Damiani – “The Obituary of Tunde Johnson,” “Don’t Breathe”
Kim Davidson
Keith Herft – “Better Man,” “Jungle Cruise”
Joker Huang – “Only Fools Rush In,” “The Wandering Earth”
Stephen James – “Dune: Part Two,” “Dune”
Mat Krentz – “Thunderbolts*,” “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice”
Daniel Macarin – “Alien: Romulus,” “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”
Cordell McQueen – “The Woman King,” “Maze Runner: The Death Cure”
Abishek Nair – “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” “The Fate of the Furious”
Alex Nowotny – “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” “Avatar: The Way of Water”
Paul Murray Raeburn – “Better Man,” “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”
Rhys Salcombe – “Dune: Part Two,” “Dune”
Oliver Schulz – “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Doctor Strange”
Peter Stubbs – “Better Man,” “Mortal Kombat”
Francois Sugny – “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”
Yugandhar Tammareddy – “Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo,” “Rangasthalam”
Marcus Antony Taormina – “Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire,” “Bird Box”
Jateen Thakkar – “Leo: Bloody Sweat,” “Mirzya”
Rob van den Bragt – “Boy Kills World,” “The Kitchen”
Chris Voy – “Wicked,” “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”
Ben Warner – “Gemini Man,” “War for the Planet of the Apes”

Writers
Clint Bentley – “Sing Sing,” “Jockey”
Theodore Edward Braun – “Betting on Zero,” “Darfur Now”
Brady Corbet* – “The Brutalist,” “Vox Lux”
Coralie Fargeat* – “The Substance,” “Revenge”
Mona Fastvold – “The Brutalist,” “The Sleepwalker”
Maha Haj* – “Mediterranean Fever,” “Personal Affairs”
Murilo Hauser – “The Blue Trail,” “I’m Still Here”
Soudade Kaadan* – “Nezouh,” “The Day I Lost My Shadow”
Payal Kapadia – “All We Imagine as Light,” “A Night of Knowing Nothing”
Matīss Kaža* – “Flow,” “Neon Spring”
Greg Kwedar – “Sing Sing,” “Jockey”
Line Langebek – “The Girl with the Needle,” “I’ll Come Running”
Heitor Lorega – “The Blue Trail,” “I’m Still Here”
Chris Morgan – “The Fate of the Furious,” “Wanted”
Julius Onah – “Captain America: Brave New World,” “Bad Genius”
Drew Pearce – “The Fall Guy,” “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation”
Channing Godfrey Peoples – “Miss Juneteenth”
Astrid Rondero – “Sujo,” “Identifying Features”
Jeymes Samuel – “The Book of Clarence,” “The Harder They Fall”
Danny Strong – “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1,” “Lee Daniels’ The Butler”
Apolline Traoré – “Sira,” “Moi Zaphira!”
Magnus von Horn* – “The Girl with the Needle,” “The Here After”
Lena Waithe – “Beauty,” “Queen & Slim”
Richard Wesley – “Let’s Do It Again,” “Uptown Saturday Night”
Ti West – “Pearl,” “The House of the Devil”
David Zellner – “Sasquatch Sunset,” “Damsel”
Gints Zilbalodis* – “Flow,” “Away”

The post Mikey Madison, Fernanda Torres, Kieran Culkin Among 534 Invited to Join the Academy appeared first on TheWrap.

It’s the second in a row for O’Brien, Ross and Sweeney, and third in a row for Kapoor and Mullan. The 98th Oscars ceremony will air on ABC Sunday, March 15, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. Eastern (4:00 p.m. Pacific).

“The only reason I’m hosting ‘The Oscars’ next year is that I want to hear Adrien Brody finish his speech,” O’Brien said Monday.

“We are thrilled to bring back Conan, Raj, Katy, Jeff and Mike for the 98th Oscars!” Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a statement. “This year, they produced a hugely entertaining and visually stunning show that celebrated our nominees and the global film community in the most beautiful and impactful way. Conan was the perfect host — skillfully guiding us through the evening with humor, warmth and reverence. It is an honor to be working with them again.”

Craig Erwich, president of Disney Television Group said, “Conan delivered an unforgettable performance at ‘The Oscars,’ and we’re honored to have him and
the producing team back next year. Conan’s unique comedic style perfectly captured the moment, and I’m excited to have his talents
back onstage next year to helm another indelible performance.”

Meanwhile Kapoor and Mullan said, “We can’t wait to work with Conan and his entire team as we continue to explore even more special and heartfelt opportunities to celebrate next year’s nominees and the impact of film around the world.”

The 2025 Oscars — the 97th ceremony — was a ratings win for ABC with 19.69 million viewers across ABC and Hulu, the largest audience since 2020. It was also a success with the key demo, with a 4.5 rating among 18-49 viewers, a 19% increase over 2024, and in the 18-34 demo it was 3.05, up 28% from last year. Overall, it was the the show’s biggest audience in the younger demo since 2019, though it was the fifth consecutive year that the Oscars have failed to reach 20 million viewers.

This year’s Oscars and received largely positive reviews, with TheWrap’s Brian Lowry noting that the show “largely mastered the delicate … juggling act, acknowledging weightier matters … while seeking to provide a sense of playfulness, even silliness, courtesy of (O’Brien).”

The back-to-back hosting gigs make O’Brien only the fifth person to host the Oscars solo in consecutive years, following Bob Hope (whose 19 shows included eight back-to-backs), Johnny Carson (whose five turns as host included three back-to-backs), Billy Crystal (who also did it in consecutive years three times) and Jimmy Kimmel (who did it in 2017 and 2018 and again in 2023 and 2024).

The March 15 date for the 98th Academy Awards will extend awards season for an additional two weeks past this year’s season, which came to an end with a March 2 Oscars. After a 17-year stretch beginning in 2004 in which the Oscars were held in February  13 times, the last five shows have taken place later than that, including a Covid-delayed April 25 show  in 2021.

While the prospect seems unlikely, O’Brien could conceivably be an Oscar host and a nominee on the same night. The comic plays a supporting role in director Mary Bronstein’s “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” which will be released by A24 after a well-received debut at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.

The post Conan O’Brien to Return as Oscars Host in 2026 appeared first on TheWrap.

“Thanks to the members of The Academy for the nomination for Best Actress, for the invitation to the gala; I really enjoyed it, very amiable and funny, especially your fabulous host Jimmy Kimmel, he is fantastic, every day he looks more like the great Conan O’Brien,” the “Emilia Pérez” star joked on Instagram on Monday, translated from Spanish via Meta.

“Loved hugging so many friends and colleagues on this homecoming. Congratulations to all the winners, especially to Clément Ducol, Camille, Zoe Saldaña,” she added. “Thank you Jacques Audiard, Netflix, Why Not Productions. Thank you ‘Emilia Pérez’ for teaching me so many things.”

Speculation on whether Gascón would show up at the show was high after her awards campaign was derailed by years-old racist tweets resurfaced by a freelance journalist. Her fellow “Emilia Pérez” nominees – including Zoe Saldaña – distanced themselves following the scandal, but Gascón showed up on the big night nonetheless.

Still, she didn’t make it through the Oscars unscathed. O’Brien singled out Gascón during his monologue with a joke that earned him some audible “oohs” from the audience.

“’Anora’ uses the f-word 479 times. That’s more than the record set by Karla Sofía Gascón’s publicist,” he joked, pretending to be said publicist and angrily screaming into a fake phone.

O’Brien continued with a bit that Gascón called back to in her social media message, saying, “Karla, if you are going to tweet about the Oscars tonight, my name is Jimmy Kimmel.”

The post Karla Sofía Gascón Thanks the Academy for Inviting Her to Oscars Despite ‘Emilia Pérez’ Controversy appeared first on TheWrap.

Of all the surprises Sunday’s 97th Academy Awards had to offer, few were as shocking as Mikey Madison’s Best Actress win for her performance in Sean Baker’s Best Picture-winning dramedy “Anora.” Heading into Sunday, Moore was considered the favorite to take home the Oscar for her triumphant late-career turn in “The Substance.”

In the weeks leading up to the Oscars, Moore beat Madison at the Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice Awards and SAG Awards. Madison’s biggest pre-Oscars win, conversely, was for Best Leading Actress at the 2025 BAFTAs.

In the wake of her mother’s loss, Willis, Moore’s second daughter with Bruce Willis, shared a photo on Instagram of her and her sisters Tallulah and Rumer standing with their mother. “I’ve never been more proud to be a part of this family,” Willis captioned the post.

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A post shared by ☆ Scout Willis ☆ (@scoutlaruewillis)

In two Instagram stories, Willis also posted photos of her mother and wrote, “So beyond proud, this woman is nothing but integrity, bright beaming light and love! What Grace. I’ve never been more proud to be her daughter.” Willis also called Moore the “queen of my heart.”

Tallulah, Moore’s third daughter with Willis, shared on her Instagram a photo of her mother after the Oscars sitting with her dog Pilaf and two bowls of fries. In her caption, Tallulah called Moore “MY winner.”

Moore garnered immense goodwill for her acceptance speeches at this year’s Golden Globes, Critics Choice and SAG ceremonies. She spoke eloquently following her wins at those shows about everything from the difficulty of persevering in an industry like Hollywood to voting awards bodies’ long history of ignoring high-concept genre and horror films like “The Substance.”

Her speeches weren’t enough, however, to give her this year’s Best Actress win over Madison, whose performance in “Anora” was widely considered — like Moore’s in “The Substance” — one of the best of 2024. While she may have left the Oscars empty-handed, though, it’s clear she has plenty of support at home.

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Before Sunday’s Oscars ceremony even began, Moore’s first daughter Rumer wrote an Instagram tribute to her mother.

“Watching you today, standing in your power, in your brilliance, in the culmination of decades of hard work, resilience, and undeniable talent — I have never been more proud. You have dedicated your life to your craft,” Willis penned. “Tonight, the world gets to witness what I have always known: you are a force.”

“No matter what happens tonight, you are already victorious in my eyes,” she continued. “Because your legacy isn’t just in the awards or accolades — it’s in the way you have redefined what’s possible, for yourself and for every woman who dares to dream. I love you more than words can say.”

The post Demi Moore’s Daughters Respond to Mom’s Surprise Oscar Loss: ‘Never Been More Proud’ appeared first on TheWrap.

The artists came together Sunday at John’s 33rd Annual AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party at West Hollywood Park. The event raised over $8.6 million to help end AIDS. Attendees included Machine Gun Kelly, Megan Thee Stallion, Brandi Carlile, Camila Cabello, Heidi Klum, Jean Smart, Neil Patrick Harris, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Julia Fox, Maria Bakalova, Nikki Glaser, Walton Goggins and Zooey Deschanel.

Together, Roan and John performed duet renditions of the latter’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” and the former’s 2024 hit “Pink Pony Club.” John, who has previously won two Best Original Song Oscars for his “Lion King” ballad “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” and “Rocketman” anthem “I’m Gonna Love Me Again,” posted a clip Monday on Instagram of his and Roan’s performance of “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.”

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A post shared by Elton John (@eltonjohn)

“Sharing this moment together at #EJAFOscars was nothing short of magical,” John captioned his Instagram post. “For one night, we transformed West Hollywood Park into our own Pink Pony Club — a space filled with love and community, where everyone can be unapologetically themselves.”

Roan also performed a cover of John’s beloved 1970 classic “Your Song” and took a moment onstage to pay tribute to all the work he’s done as a spokesperson and advocate for queer people everywhere. “You have sacrificed so much for the queer community and made it so I can be the artist I can be,” Roan told him Sunday night.

John co-hosted the event alongside Smart, Ralph, Harris, David Burtka and Elton John AIDS Foundation Chair David Furnish.

“What an unforgettable night! Chappell Roan lit up the stage,” Furnish said in a statement. “We want to thank everyone who bought a ticket, bid in the auction, or made a donation—you made this night a true success. Because of your generosity, we were able to celebrate with purpose, helping communities around the world access life-saving HIV prevention, treatment, and mental health support.”

“I can’t believe this is the 33rd year of hosting our annual Academy Awards Viewing Party. Nothing means more to me than being surrounded by friends, family, and supporters, for a cause so close to my heart,” John commented.

“At a time when HIV resources are being cut, our work has never been more urgent. Thousands are being denied life-saving care, and decades of hard-fought progress are at risk,” Anne Aslett, CEO of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, added. “But tonight proved what’s possible when we unite—people coming together to fight for a future where lives are saved, stigma is shattered, and no one is left behind.”

The post Chappell Roan and Elton John Perform on Each Other’s Songs at Oscars Party | Video appeared first on TheWrap.

“First of all, I’m very, very sorry that many Mexicans felt offended. That was never our intention. We spoke from a place of love. I don’t share your opinion,” she told press at the 97th Academy Awards. “For me, the heart of this movie was not Mexico. We were making a film about friendship. We were making a film about four women. These women could have been Russian, could have been Dominican, could have been Black from Detroit, could have been from Israel, could have been from Gaza.

“These women are still very universal women that are struggling every day, but trying to survive systemic oppression and trying to find the most authentic voices,” Saldaña continued. “So I will stand by that, but I’m also always open to sit down with all of my Mexican brothers and sisters, with love and respect, have a great conversation on how ‘Emilia Pérez’ could have been done better. I welcome it.”

Elsewhere in the ceremony, Oscars host Conan O’Brien acknowledged the more outright scandal associated with Jacques Audiard’s movie when he joked about Best Actress nominee Karla Sofía Gascón, who was in attendance despite skipping a large portion of awards season due to her past racist tweets resurfacing.

“’Anora’ uses the f-word 479 times. That’s more than the record set by Karla Sofía Gascón’s publicist,” he joked. For her part, Gascón appeared to take the joke well as the audience audibly gasped.

During her co-star’s acceptance speech, Saldaña praised her family and heritage, saying, “I am a proud child of immigrant parents with dreams and dignity and hardworking hands, and I am the first American of Dominican origin to accept an Academy Award and I know I will not be the last.”

“The fact that I’m getting an award for a role where I got to sing and speak in Spanish… my grandmother, if she were here, she would be so delighted,” she added. “This is for my grandmother.”

For a full list of winners, click here.

The post Zoe Saldaña Apologizes for Offending Mexicans With ‘Emilia Pérez’ After Oscar Win: ‘I Don’t Share Your Opinion’ appeared first on TheWrap.

Taking that disclaimer into account, the 97th Academy Awards largely mastered the delicate mechanics of that juggling act, acknowledging weightier matters — such as bringing out Los Angeles firefighters for an extended ovation — while seeking to provide a sense of playfulness, even silliness, courtesy of host Conan O’Brien.

The politics wasn’t oppressive, yet nor were issues outside the Dolby Theatre ignored, from Daryl Hannah saying “Slava Ukraine” in presenting an award to Zoe Saldaña noting that she is “a proud child of immigrant parents” at a time when immigration policy remains a point of considerable conflict. Plus, best documentary went to “No Other Land,” the collaboration of Palestinian and Israeli filmmakers about conditions in the West Bank and the plight of Palestinians.

O’Brien saved what might have been the night’s most pointed line till the final portion of the show, citing “Anora’s” wins before wryly deadpanning, “I guess Americans are excited to see somebody finally stand up to a powerful Russian” — a not-so-veiled jab at President Donald Trump — eliciting “oohs” from the crowd.

Prior to the show, O’Brien and the producers acknowledged that they faced a tricky balancing act in terms of tone. The show certainly accomplished that during its opening, following a cinematic tribute to L.A. with a rousing performance by “Wicked” duo Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande of “Defying Gravity,” “Home” and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” which easily could have been a show-stopping finale.

Indeed, the main problem was that the telecast peaked too early, as O’Brien rifled through the Best Picture nominees with a joke for each — including one about Karla Sofía Gascón and her offensive tweets — before segueing to a heartfelt defense of the show going on despite the tragedy that had beset the Los Angeles area.

“In moments such as this, any awards show can seem self-indulgent and superfluous,” O’Brien said, while noting the unifying power of film “even in the face of terrible wildfires and divisive politics.” The former late night host followed that up with some of his trademark goofiness, letting a bit of the air out of the moment and serving notice that the goal, ultimately, was to have fun, after conspicuously giving the room permission to do so.

Gil Cates, the late producer of many Oscar telecasts, often spoke about what he called “the award show gods” smiling on the producers by delivering memorable moments they hadn’t planned, and happily, there were several of those. The best included Saldaña shouting “Mommy!” as she took the stage to accept her award, Paul Tazewell (“Wicked”) becoming the first Black man to win for costume design and Kieran Culkin reminding his wife that she had promised him a fourth child if he won an Oscar, picking up where he left off with his Emmy win for “Succession.”

Even Mick Jagger turned out to be an unexpectedly amusing presenter, with the 81-year-old rock legend cheerfully boasting that he got the gig because he’s younger than 83-year-old Bob Dylan.

Not everything worked — what else is new? — such as an opening bit with a casually dressed Adam Sandler, and lengthy multi-performer introductions to the nominated costume designers and cinematographers that dragged on a bit. A splashy musical tribute to the James Bond franchise, while well timed given the producers’ creative handover to Amazon, also felt too much like a Las Vegas revue.

O’Brien promised to run a tight ship, even threatening to have John Lithgow stare down those who spoke too long, but the Oscars have a way of flummoxing the best of intentions on that front. Despite the questionable decision to dispense with best-song performances, the show clocked in at three hours and 45 minutes, spilling more than 10 minutes past the generous window allotted by ABC.

The unknowns surrounding the death of Gene Hackman provided another hurdle, one the Academy dealt with by having Morgan Freeman provide a brief tribute to him at the outset of the In Memoriam segment, one already crammed with plenty of big names. A boisterous celebration of the late Quincy Jones also came too late in the festivities, with only the four top awards to come.

The awards themselves helped in some respects, spreading the wealth (at least before “Anora” took over) and recognizing numerous first-time winners, even if most of the actors — except perhaps Best Actress winner Mikey Madison — had plenty of acceptance-speech practice throughout awards season. That included Adrien Brody, who somewhat boorishly filibustered past his playoff music before finally making the most of his time with his plea about antisemitism and not to “let hate go unchecked.”

“Anora” director Sean Baker used his third win to issue a “battle cry” to support theatrical distribution and independent film, which seemed particularly notable not only in the current streaming environment but a year where box office hits had a relatively muted presence during the show.

There have surely been better Oscar telecasts, but also plenty of worse ones. And given the handicaps the 97th edition faced, that’s no small feat.

The post Oscars Review: Conan O’Brien and Company Find the Right Delicate Balance in a Chaotic Climate appeared first on TheWrap.