Here's what Oscars set up looked like on Saturday
Every show needs a run through, with Hollywood's biggest night being noe exception. Here's a look inside the Dolby Theatre the day before the ceremony.
Oscar presenters Emma Stone, Andrew Garfield, Oprah and Whoopi Goldberg were among the stars who cycled in and out of the Dolby Theatre on Saturday to rehearse before the show, the Associated Press reported.
What’s inside the more than $200,000 Oscars gift bag
For the 23rd straight year, Oscar nominees will be receiving the “Everybody Wins” gift bag from L.A.-based marketing company Distinctive Assets. This year’s bag — which is not affiliated with the Academy Awards — is valued at nearly $220,000, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It.
Now well into his third decade of putting the gift bags together, Distinctive Assets founder Lash Fary says that the task only gets easier each year. Rather than try to outdo himself, Fary only tries to achieve one thing.
“My goal when I’m building this bag is that I go, ‘There’s some cool s–t here that I would love to get if I were a celebrity,’” he tells CNBC Make It.
This year’s bag, which is filled with more than 60 gifts ranging from cannabis pre rolls to an invitation to a $23,000 stay at a Maldives resort, is being delivered to nominees in luggage from high-end bag brand Nomatic.
‘Nickel Boys’ director talks adapting Colson Whitehead’s book
“Nickel Boys” director RaMell Ross’ first narrative feature is set at the fictional Nickel Academy, based on the notoriously cruel Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys near Tallahassee, Florida, which operated for 111 years before the Justice Department shut it down in 2011.
Ross and producer Joslyn Barnes adapted the film from Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 2019 novel, “The Nickel Boys.”
The film is nominated in two categories: best picture and best adapted screenplay.
What were this year’s biggest snubs?
Oscar voters honored an eclectic mix of films and performances this year — but of course, as with any awards season, there wasn’t room for everyone.
Daniel Craig, star of Luca Guadagnino’s “Queer,” failed to land a best actor nomination. Guadagnino’s “Challengers,” an erotic drama starring Zendaya, got shut out entirely. Marianne Jean-Baptiste, who earned some of the best reviews of the year for her starring role in Mike Leigh’s “Hard Truths,” didn’t appear in the best actress race.
Three acclaimed dramas that were seen as best picture contenders — “A Real Pain,” “September 5” and “Sing Sing” — didn’t make the cut, though they were all recognized in other categories.
Fans are placing their bets for who is going to take home an Oscar
NBC News’ Gadi Schwartz explains what goes into betting on an actor and the history of the gamble.
Academy Museum restaurant showcases movie-themed drinks
At Fanny's, the Academy Museum's restaurant and café, films like "A Complete Unknown" and "Anora" aren't just Oscar nominees — they're cocktails too.
The restaurant is now offering an Oscar-themed cocktail menu featuring a signature drink for each best picture nominee.
The festive drinks encapsulate each film's unique persona — "The Substance" is adorned with a boozy syringe, "Dune: Part Two" is dusted with desert-like graham cracker crumbs, and "Wicked" features a pink cream foam reminiscent of Glinda's bubble.
How the PGA and DGA awards could foreshadow tonight's Oscars
Sean Baker’s Brooklyn comedy “Anora” took top honors at both the Producers Guild Awards and the Directors Guild Awards in February, catapulting it to Oscar favorite status.
Both guild ceremonies were held in Beverly Hills, California. The PGA’s top prize, the Darryl F. Zanuck Award, has matched the Oscar winner for best picture in 16 of the last 21 years. Since 2009, when the guild and the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences both adopted a preferential ballot to pick a winner from 10 nominees, they’ve corresponded all but three times.
Hollywood’s award season has been uncharacteristically up for grabs, with half a dozen films viewed as legitimate best picture contenders. Some had pegged “Anora” as the front-runner going into the season after the film won the Palme d’Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
There are 13 first-time nominees this year
From breakout stars to veteran actors who have graced our screens for generations, these 13 artists have received their first Oscar nominations in this year’s acting categories.
- Mikey Madison — nominated for best actress for her role as Ani in “Anora.”
- Demi Moore — nominated for best actress for transforming into Elisabeth Sparkle in body-horror film “The Substance.”
- Ariana Grande — nominated for best supporting actress for her dazzling performance as Galinda/Glinda (if you know, you know) in the musical film “Wicked.”
- Monica Barbaro — nominated for best supporting actress for portraying folk icon Joan Baez in the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown.”
- Yura Borisov — nominated for best supporting actor for his role as Igor in “Anora.”
- Kieran Culkin — nominated for best supporting actor for his role as Benji in Jesse Eisenberg’s “A Real Pain.”
- Karla Sofía Gascón — nominated for best actress for her performance in the titular role of Jacques Audiard’s highly debated film “Emilia Pérez.” She is the first openly trans actor ever nominated for an Oscar.
- Zoe Saldaña — nominated for best supporting actress for her performance as Rita Mora Castro, an unappreciated lawyer searching for her worth in “Emilia Pérez.”
- Sebastian Stan — nominated for best actor for playing a young Donald Trump in “The Apprentice.”
- Jeremy Strong — nominated for best supporting actor for his role as Trump’s notorious fixer, attorney Roy Cohn, in “The Apprentice.”
- Guy Pearce — nominated for best supporting actor for his role as wealthy Pennsylvania businessman Harrison Lee Van Buren in “The Brutalist.”
- Isabella Rossellini — nominated for best supporting actress for her role as Sister Agnes in “Conclave.”
- Fernanda Torres — nominated for best actress for her role as Eunice Paiva in “I’m Still Here.”
The state of the best picture race
The battle for best picture has been filled with twists and turns.
“Emilia Pérez” started off as a front-runner, winning best musical/comedy film and best foreign language film at the Golden Globes, but controversial social media posts from the movie’s star appear to have doomed its Oscar chances.
“The Brutalist” nabbed best drama film at the Globes and then “Conclave” snagged top honors at the British Academy Film Awards. But they could both be edged aside by “Anora,” which won the marquee prizes from Hollywood’s producers, directors and writers guilds.
'Conclave' won big at the SAG Awards
The papal thriller “Conclave” won best ensemble and Timothée Chalamet took best actor at the 31st Screen Actors Guild Awards last month, a pair of twists that added a few final wrinkles to an unusually unpredictable awards season.
“Wow,” said “Conclave” star Ralph Fiennes taking the stage. “I’ve not been elected to speak. I’ve been designated to speak on behalf of our conclave, our ensemble.”