Oscars: ‘The Shape of Water’ wins big as show embraces #MeToo
After telling Harvey Weinstein to “Get Out,” Hollywood moved on from its “Darkest Hour” Sunday to honor its top talent with an award that means more than “All the Money in the World.”
Best Actress winner Frances McDormand celebrated her win for her role in “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” by asking all the night’s women nominees to stand.
“Look around, ladies and gentlemen, because we all have stories to tell and projects we need financed,” McDormand said.
“Don’t talk to us about it at the parties. Invite us into your office, or you can come to ours.”
Del Toro is latest Mexican to win best director at Oscars
Jordan Peele accepts the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for “Get Out.”
(LUCAS JACKSON/REUTERS)
The Best Actor prize went to Gary Oldman for his acclaimed portrayal of Winston Churchill in “Darkest Hour.”
Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty reprised their roles as Best Picture presenters to give the top award to “The Shape of Water.” Last year, the “Bonnie and Clyde” duo were on stage for one of the biggest bloopers in Academy history when they announced the wrong film for Best Picture.
This year, comedian Jordan Peele became the first black writer to win Best Original Screenplay Oscar for his horror hit “Get Out.” He received a Best Director nomination for the same film — his first effort helming a movie — but lost out to Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, who won the trophy for “The Shape of Water.”
Oscars 2018: Winners, losers and top show moments
“I am an immigrant,” said del Toro, the third Mexican director in five years to win the award. “The best thing our industry does is to help erase the lines in the sand when the world tries to make them deeper.”
Three Harvey Weinstein accusers present together at Oscars
NBA legend Kobe Bryant won an Oscar for Best Animated Short Film — “Dear Basketball.”
“I feel better than winning a championship. I swear I do,” Bryant said backstage. “You know, growing up as a kid, I dreamt of winning championships, and I worked really hard to make that dream come true. But then, like, to have something like this seemingly come out of left field … to have a sense of validation — this is, this is crazy, man.”
Host Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the 90th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on March 4, 2018.
(Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
“Coco,” which paid homage to the Mexican Day of the Dead celebration, won for Best Animated Feature Film.
Allison Janney took the Best Supporting Actress prize for playing skater Tonya Harding’s hard-bitten mom in “I, Tonya.” Sam Rockwell won for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a racist sheriff’s deputy in “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.”
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Among the actors Rockwell beat out was Christopher Plummer, 88, whose nomination for “All the Money in the World” made him the Academy’s oldest nominee ever.
An ebullient Sam Rockwell wins Best Supporting Actor for “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.”
(LUCAS JACKSON/REUTERS)
The 90th annual Academy Awards were the first Oscars ceremony since the anti-sexual harassment MeToo movement surged and took down alleged prolific predator Weinstein, one of Hollywood’s biggest moguls.
At the outset, host Jimmy Kimmel wasted no time addressing the elephant in the room.
“No question about it, Oscar is the most beloved and respected man in Hollywood,” Kimmel told the audience at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre. “And there’s a very good reason why. Just look at him. Keeps his hands where you can see them. Never says a rude word. And most importantly, no penis at all. He is literally a statue of limitations. And that’s the kind of men we need more of in this town.”
Best picture awarded at Oscars without a hitch — this year
From left to right: Lucy Sibbick, Kazuhiro Tsuji and David Malinowski accept the award for best makeup and hairstyling for “Darkest Hour.”
(Chris Pizzello/Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
In his monologue, Kimmel said the movement was an important moment for the entertainment industry.
“What happened with Harvey, what’s happening all over was long overdue,” Kimmel said. “Over the course of this evening, I hope you will listen to many brave and outspoken supporters of movements like MeToo and Time’s Up and Never Again, because what they’re doing is important. Things are changing for the better, they’re making sure of that. It is positive change. This is a night for positivity, and our plan is to shine a light on a group of outstanding and inspiring films — each and every one of which got crushed by ‘Black Panther’ this weekend.”
Ashley Judd, the first big-name actress to go on the record with allegations of sexual misconduct against Weinstein, was among the presenters. She was joined at the podium by two of Weinstein’s most outspoken accusers, Salma Hayek and Annabella Sciorra.
Helen Mirren displayed a jet ski to go the star who gives the night’s shortest speech.
(Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Before he was tossed out of the film academy after more than 100 women accused him of offenses ranging from harassment to rape, Weinstein was the star of the Oscar stage. A recent study found he was thanked more often than God in acceptance speeches.
Not this year.
“The changes we are witnessing are being driven by the powerful sound of new voices, of different voices, of our voices, joining together in a mighty chorus that is finally saying time’s up,” said Sciorra, who had accused Weinstein of raping her in her apartment.
“So we salute those unstoppable spirits who kicked ass and broke through the biased perception against their gender, their race and ethnicity to sell their stories.”
A record 40 women received Oscar nominations outside of acting this year, including in traditionally male-dominated categories such as cinematography, directing and film editing.
Mary J. Blige, who performed her Oscar-nominated “Mighty River” from “Mudbound,” was the first person to be nominated for an acting performance and an original song in a single year.
Meryl Streep, meanwhile, received her 21st nomination for her role in “The Post,” breaking her own record as the most Oscar-nominated actor in history. She keeps her record, but lost the Best Actress trophy to McDormand.
With Nancy Dillon
