Oscars 2021 Live Updates: Academy Awards Winners and News - The New York Times
April 25, 2021, 9:03 p.m. ET
Zhao in 2015. She has been sweeping up awards for her work on “Nomadland.”Charly Triballeau/Agence France-Presse, via Getty Images
Chloé Zhao on Sunday became the first woman of color, first Chinese woman and second woman ever to win the Oscar for directing, capping off a historically impressive run of honors she has amassed this awards season for her work on the drama “Nomadland.”
Zhao was also nominated in the film editing and adapted screenplay categories. She has a chance at another Oscar as one of the producers of “Nomadland,” which is up for best picture.
This year’s Oscars marked the first time in its history that more than one female filmmaker was nominated for the best director in a single year. In addition to Zhao, Emerald Fennell scored a nomination for “Promising Young Woman.”
Before this year, only five female filmmakers had been recognized in the director category. In 2010, Kathryn Bigelow became the first and only woman to be named best director until Zhao won the category on Sunday.
“Nomadland” has also garnered wide praise and several honors. The movie tells the story of a widow who travels the country in a van and joins the itinerant work force while connecting with other Americans she meets along the way. Zhao adapted the movie from Jessica Bruder’s nonfiction book of the same name and used several nonprofessionals in the cast, including people featured in Bruder’s book.
April 25, 2021, 9:00 p.m. ET
A scene from the trailer for the new adaptation.ABC
The first trailer for Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” film is here, and it looks to be worth the wait.
The promo, broadcast during the Oscars, opens on a city at sunrise as a man sweeps along a deserted sidewalk. Shadows of men from rival gangs fade into one another as they close the distance between them. Women in billowing dresses run through the streets, and the fence climbing is dramatic as ever.
The release date was pushed back a year because of the pandemic, to Dec. 10, but the film is ideal fare to be appreciated on an oversized screen.
Ansel Elgort stars as the streetwise Tony and Rachel Zegler as the pure-hearted Maria, two teenagers who fall in love despite their connections to rival street gangs in 1950s New York City.
The film is the latest iteration of the classic 1957 musical, which is itself a loose retelling of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.” The musical, with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by Arthur Laurents, came to the silver screen in 1961, in a film adaptation that won 10 Academy Awards, including best picture and best supporting actress for Rita Moreno, who also appears in a supporting role in the new film. A Broadway revival directed by Ivo Van Hove opened last February, but it ran for only a few weeks before being shut down by the pandemic.
Even if you’ve never seen the musical on the stage or screen, you’ve probably heard one of its iconic tracks, whether that’s “Maria,” “Tonight” or “I Feel Pretty” (spoofed by Melissa McCarthy’s Sean Spicer on “Saturday Night Live”).
But if the trailer is any indication, Spielberg’s approach will hew closer to the show that rattled Broadway when it opened in 1957 than the high school theater staple whose songs have since become sentimental standards.
The new film boasts a screenplay by Tony Kushner, the “Angels in America” playwright, and choreography by Justin Peck of New York City Ballet. It was originally scheduled to be released last December but was pushed back a year to Dec. 10, 2021 — which now coincides with the 60th anniversary of the original film’s release.
April 25, 2021, 9:00 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
The “Nomadland” filmmaker Chloé Zhao just became the first woman of color to be named best director. She is only the second woman ever to win this Oscar, after Kathryn Bigelow (“The Hurt Locker”).
April 25, 2021, 9:01 p.m. ET
Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic
I respect that Chloé Zhao is accepting her award in sneakers. That is staying on-brand no matter what the producers say.
April 25, 2021, 8:59 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Bong Joon Ho just announced the best-director nominees in subtitled Korean.
Best Director
Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland”
Our Projectionist predicted correctly!
April 25, 2021, 8:59 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
My brain has been asked to handle a lot lately but it can’t quite process the idea of the directing Oscar been awarded at 9 p.m.
April 25, 2021, 9:03 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Yes, what’s the plan here? I guess it’s an acknowledgment or where the movies are — or aren’t — this year, in terms of popularity or plain old name recognition.
April 25, 2021, 8:56 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Bryan Cranston just gave the night’s first Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award via both tracking shot and voice-over to the Motion Picture & Television Fund. Soderbergh is doing the most with the most dutiful. The show ditched the broadcast of these prizes years ago.
April 25, 2021, 8:56 p.m. ET
Photographs of Cary Grant and Doris Day decorate the Motion Picture & Television Fund home.Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times via, Getty Images
And the Oscar goes to … a nursing home?
Yes! Sort of.
The nonprofit Motion Picture & Television Fund, which underwrites a nursing home and retirement village for aging and ailing “industry” people (actors, executives, choreographers, lighting technicians, camera operators), received one of two honorary Academy Awards. The organization, founded in 1921 by Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin and other stars, also provides a wide range of other services to Hollywood seniors.
The 48-acre campus in Woodland Hills, a community on the northwest edge of Los Angeles, has been home over the years to Oscar-winning actresses (Hattie McDaniel, Mary Astor); career assistants (Leah Bernstein, who tended to Stanley Kramer’s professional needs on 28 films); television stars (Katherine MacGregor, known as Harriet Oleson on “Little House on the Prairie”); and studio moguls (Terry Semel, the former Warner Bros. chief). Residents must be 70 years or older and have worked in Hollywood for more than two decades. Spouses and life partners are also eligible.
Challenges over the years have included severe financial hardship, a deadly 2001 fire and the coronavirus. Leading fund-raising efforts for decades has been Jeffrey Katzenberg, the former DreamWorks Animation executive.
When the academy announced in January that the M.P.T.F., as it is known, would get an honorary Oscar, some of Hollywood’s cattier eyebrows arched in response: Was this a way to burnish Katzenberg after his latest business endeavor, the Quibi streaming service, crashed in epic fashion?
But Katzenberg, who raised $2 million for the fund at a virtual event on Saturday, did not accept the award. Instead, more than 70 health professionals who work for the nonprofit — coronavirus frontline workers, all of them — were invited to come onto the telecast as a group.
April 25, 2021, 8:55 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
If you came into this ceremony unfamiliar with the nominated films and performances ... well, don’t expect to see any clips of them. We’re an hour in, and the stripped-down ceremony hasn’t played anything from this year’s movies.
April 25, 2021, 8:56 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
God. Good point, Kyle.
April 25, 2021, 8:57 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Ultimately, no matter how much I like this, at the end of the day, it’s live theater.
April 25, 2021, 8:45 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
Another first: The “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” costume designer Ann Roth just became the oldest woman to ever win an Oscar, at age 89.
April 25, 2021, 8:46 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
I really like all of this pre-win trivia and the explanations of intentionality with some of the craft nominees. Also: How many is that for her, Kyle?
April 25, 2021, 8:48 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
Roth has been nominated five times and won once before, for “The English Patient.”
April 25, 2021, 8:49 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
NO. Wow. She always seems so ... inevitable. But what do I know?!
Costume Design
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Our Projectionist predicted correctly!
April 25, 2021, 8:42 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
Mia Neal and Jamika Wilson (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) just became the first Black women to win the Oscar for makeup and hairstyling.
April 25, 2021, 8:43 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
That was a speech, too.
Makeup and Hairstyling
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Our Projectionist predicted correctly!
April 25, 2021, 8:41 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Don Cheadle, presenter of the hair and makeup and costume Oscars, is wearing a Godzilla-hide bow tie.
April 25, 2021, 8:34 p.m. ET
Television Critic
Do we think everyone will be able to give long speeches, or will people start getting played off in the second half of the show?
April 25, 2021, 8:36 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
I doubt anybody gets played off tonight. It feels somehow anti-Soderberghian.
April 25, 2021, 8:32 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
The reaction shots from winners’ family members (in this case Daniel Kaluuya’s mother and sister) is a new addition to the show and it’s a very warm and welcome one.
April 25, 2021, 8:34 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Agreed, Dave. This is a remarkable speech and Daniel Kaluuya’s mother can’t even believe he’s giving it.
April 25, 2021, 8:30 p.m. ET
A scene from “Judas and the Black Messiah,” starring Kaluuya as Fred Hampton, a leader of the Black Panther Party.Glen Wilson/Warner Bros. Pictures, via Associated Press
Daniel Kaluuya won the Academy Award for best supporting actor for his nuanced portrayal of Fred Hampton in “Judas and the Black Messiah,” beating out his co-star, Lakeith Stanfield, who was also nominated in the category.
“To chairman Fred Hampton,” Kaluuya said in his acceptance speech. “What a man. How blessed we are that we lived in a lifetime where he existed.”
“There’s so much work to do,” Kaluuya added, speaking about Hampton’s legacy. “That’s on everyone in this room.”
Kaluuya previously had earned a best actor Oscar nomination for his turn in the 2017 smash “Get Out.” Sunday marked his first Oscar win.
Kaluuya’s rousing call-and-response speeches drive some of the most electric scenes in “Judas and the Black Messiah.” But in an interview with The New York Times, Kaluuya detailed the great lengths he went to in order to understand Hampton and, in so doing, come to capture his idiosyncratic voice and style of speaking. “I gave it everything I had. I gave. I gave. I gave,” he said then.
In his review of the film, The New York Times co-chief film critic A.O. Scott acknowledged Kaluuya’s efforts, writing that the actor “finds inflections of Southernness in his voice and manner — undertones of humor and courtliness, an appreciation of the expressive possibilities of language.”
“I don’t feel like I’m entitled to anyone’s attention,” Kaluuya told The Times. “I have to offer, or channel, or shape something that’s going to make you want to give it to me.”
Best Supporting Actor
Daniel Kaluuya, “Judas and the Black Messiah”
Our Projectionist predicted correctly!
April 25, 2021, 8:29 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
People have always complained to me about how indulgent these actor-on-actor tributes are but I don’t care. They swell my heart.
April 25, 2021, 8:31 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Laura Dern just shouted out all five supporting-actor nominees.
April 25, 2021, 8:29 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
This is an Oscar ceremony that isn’t afraid to let winners go long. The “Another Round” director Thomas Vinterberg would have been played off early at any other show before he got to the part of his acceptance speech that he movingly dedicated to his late daughter.
April 25, 2021, 8:33 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
They have time now, right? There are no musical performances!
April 25, 2021, 8:27 p.m. ET
Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic
I appreciate an Oscars presenter who puts on her reading glasses when she has to open her envelope. Here’s looking at you, Laura Dern.
April 25, 2021, 8:25 p.m. ET
Regina King spoke of her concerns about police violence when she opened the show.ABC
Regina King opened the Oscars by striding onto the stage at Union Station and immediately bringing up events of the past week.
Without preamble, she offered blunt commentary on the recent trial and verdict handed down in the case of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer, who was found guilty of second-degree murder in the death of George Floyd.
“It has been quite a year, and we are still smack-dab in the middle of it,” she said in her opening monologue. “We are mourning the loss of so many, and I have to be honest, if things had gone differently this past week in Minneapolis, I might have traded in my heels for marching boots.
“Now, I know that a lot of you people at home want to reach for your remote when you feel like Hollywood is preaching to you, but as a mother of a Black son, I know the fear that so many live with, and no amount of fame or fortune changes that,” she added.
April 25, 2021, 8:24 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
My 6-year-old son just asked about the Oscars broadcast, “Is it in the part where it’s exciting still?”
April 25, 2021, 8:27 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Well, Thomas Vinterberg just mentioned that he dedicated his movie and now his new Oscar to his late daughter. So it’s definitely the part where it’s heavy.
April 25, 2021, 8:24 p.m. ET
Thomas Vinterberg winning for “Another Round.”ABC
This is the story of a group of teachers (including one played by Mads Mikkelsen) who think they can solve their midlife crisis by getting a little drunk every day on the job, a plan that goes about as well as you think it would. (Don’t try this at work or over Zoom.) The gonzo premise turns reflective as Mikkelsen’s character tries to rescue his marriage, and the movie culminates in a justly celebrated dance scene in which the actor shows off his moves. The cast initially included the 19-year-old daughter of the director, Thomas Vinterberg, but a few days into filming, she was killed when a distracted driver slammed into a car she was riding in. The filmmaker, who was nominated for best director, opted to continue the production. He told IndieWire: “My life was destroyed,” adding, “We decided to make the movie for her. that was the only way we could do this.” Read our review.
April 25, 2021, 8:22 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
It’s international film time, presented by Laura Dern to “Another Round.” “Collective” was my personal favorite.
International Feature
“Another Round,” Denmark
Our Projectionist predicted correctly!
April 25, 2021, 8:20 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Guys, while I’m remembering 1989 and “Dangerous Liaisons,” I just want to pre-pour one out for Glenn Close, who is likely going to lose her eighth Oscar tonight.
April 25, 2021, 8:20 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
My mom took me to see “The Empire Strikes Back,” Laura Dern’s mom took her to see “La Strada.” I guess we had different upbringings.
April 25, 2021, 8:14 p.m. ET
Television Critic
Christopher Hampton doesn’t get to talk at all?
April 25, 2021, 8:14 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Christopher Hampton’s name not being read in 1989 for adapting “Dangerous Liaisons” is one of my first Oscar memories. Now he’s a winner.
April 25, 2021, 8:12 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
I appreciate the effort that went into getting all of the “Borat” screenwriters on the TV screen at the same time.
Adapted Screenplay
Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller, “The Father”
Our Projectionist predicted correctly!
April 25, 2021, 8:07 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
Original-screenplay winner Emerald Fennell is the first woman to win a screenplay Oscar in 13 years, since Diablo Cody triumphed in this same category for “Juno.”
April 25, 2021, 8:10 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
That is the strongest script of these five. (Lots of things that drove me crazy about it, but still ...)
Original Screenplay
Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman”
Our Projectionist predicted correctly!
April 25, 2021, 8:06 p.m. ET
Television Critic
This is a real departure from the traditional opening monologue. Regina King is sharing little biographical details about some of the nominees.
April 25, 2021, 8:06 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
Kinda love those Oscar lamps, though ...
April 25, 2021, 8:06 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
So to recap, the Academy Awards are now the Golden Globes, the Golden Globes are a Zoom conference and the Tony Awards are yet to be determined.
April 25, 2021, 8:06 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Yes, Dave. We’re also learning a little about what it’s like to be directed by Regina King. She’s not hosting the show but she might as well be.
April 25, 2021, 8:02 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
My viewing companion for the evening just perplexedly asked me: “So it’s all pretaped?” I imagine lots of similar conversations taking place as we type.
April 25, 2021, 8:01 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Regina King is opening this show like it’s an “Ocean’s” movie. She’s got an Oscar in her hand as she makes her way into the house via a tracking shot.
April 25, 2021, 8:02 p.m. ET
Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic
I like the whole entrance walk idea. It’s the first time it’s ever felt like this show really HAD an entrance.
April 25, 2021, 8:01 p.m. ET
In one of those you-couldn’t-make-it-up moments, Carey Mulligan and Andra Day, both nominees for best actress, showed up on the red carpet in gold midriff-baring gowns — Mulligan in Valentino haute couture and Day in custom Vera Wang.
The resemblance to Oscar himself was immediately apparent.
Andra DayPool photo by Chris Pizzello
Carey MulliganPool photo by Chris Pizzello
Though the silhouettes were quite different (how would Mulligan manage to sit down in that skirt?), the general idea was quite similar. How could such a mind meld happen?
Well, if you want to manifest winning a gold statuette … dress like a gold statuette! Besides, this way, even if you don’t get to take home the prize, you get to win in the entrance-making stakes.
April 25, 2021, 8:00 p.m. ET
Amanda Seyfried on the “Red” Carpet on Sunday.Pool photo by Chris Pizzello
No, it’s not just you.
The red carpet is pink.
Or is it magenta? Watermelon? A fuzzy expanse of reddish-purple?
We could’ve passed it off as a color correction blip in the broadcast. But then Amanda Seyfried, who’s up for best supporting actress for her role in “Mank,” showed up in a bright red Armani gown, and, well …
Pink, we tell you. Pink.
April 25, 2021, 7:58 p.m. ET
Critic at Large
Evening, everybody. I’m one of the critics at The Times. And I have to say that even though these 93rd Academy Awards are taking place amid a bunch of health and culture crises (what is a movie now?), I’m still excited about Steven Soderbergh’s broadcast. It’s set at a train station and is being filmed to resemble film (what is TV?). And even though it’s likely that "Nomadland," Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Daniel Kaluuya, and Yuh-Jung Youn are your likely winners, it still feels like something happily unforeseen could happen at these host-less, pandemic-plagued Academy Awards. So stick around. We’ve got insights. We got jokes.
April 25, 2021, 7:55 p.m. ET
Culture Reporter
I’m Dave Itzkoff, a culture reporter for The Times. I look forward to seeing if and how the full-fledged Oscars broadcast can maintain the laid-back, chilling with Lil Rel Howery and talking about sports bars energy of its preshow. I also hope that the executive producer Steven Soderbergh sprinkles in references to “Schizopolis” throughout the night.
April 25, 2021, 7:53 p.m. ET
The Projectionist
Hey, all! It’s Kyle Buchanan, your Projectionist. The ceremony is about to begin, and I’m predicting a very big night for “Nomadland” and its director, Chloé Zhao. But this chaotic awards season may have some big surprises left, including the best-actress contest, which is stocked full of heavy hitters with no clear front-runner.
April 25, 2021, 7:52 p.m. ET
Television Critic
Hi, friends. Margaret here, one of the TV critics for the Times. I’m most curious about the ceremony-qua-ceremony tonight. We’ve had several awards shows during the pandemic (is that ... cool? is a question for another day, I guess), with varying degrees of success in terms of pace, purpose and razzle-dazzle.
April 25, 2021, 7:38 p.m. ET
Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic
Taking a page from Emerald Fennell, I’m going to describe Regina King’s gown as “butterfly about to fly off for the summer and not even worrying about which way the wind is blowing.”
April 25, 2021, 7:29 p.m. ET
What did a dress code of “inspirational and aspirational” actually mean?
So far, it means male nominees just saying “no” to boring black tie, and trading the whole penguin suit for peacocking.
First there was Colman Domingo in a tone-on-tone hot pink Versace suit …
Colman DomingoPool photo by Chris Pizzelo
… then Leslie Odom Jr. in head-to-toe gold Brioni …
Leslie Odom Jr., nominated for “One Night in Miami,” and Nicolette Robinson.Pool photo by Chris Pizzello
… Paul Raci in all black, down to his polished fingernails …
Paul Raci, a best supporting actor nominee for his role in “Sound of Metal,” walks the red carpet with his wife (and black nail polish).Pool photo by Chris Pizzello
… and Lakeith Stanfield in a Louis Vuitton jumpsuit.
Lakeith StanfieldPool photo by Alberto Pezzali
Meanwhile, young Alan Kim of “Minari,” wearing Thom Browne shorts and knee socks, pretty much showed us how to do age-appropriate fancy dress without making it look as if he were in costume. More like playing follow the leader.
Alan S. Kim and Christina Oh.Pool photo by Chris Pizzello
April 25, 2021, 7:10 p.m. ET
CelesteRichard Harbaugh/A.M.P.A.S., via Getty Images
Leslie Odom, Jr.Richard Harbaugh/A.M.P.A.S., via Getty Images
Leslie Odom, Jr.Richard Harbaugh/A.M.P.A.S., via Getty Images
Molly SandénOrly Orlyson/A.M.P.A.S. via Getty Images
H.E.R.Richard Harbaugh/A.M.P.A.S., via Getty Images
Laura PausiniABC
Diane WarrenRichard Harbaugh/A.M.P.A.S., via Getty Images
The performances for this year’s best song Oscar nominees were prerecorded and broadcast during the event’s preshow for the first time.
April 25, 2021, 6:51 p.m. ET
Alan Kim and Christina Oh.Pool photo by Chris Pizzello
Alan S. Kim, the 9-year-old star of “Minari,” stole viewers’ hearts in March when he accepted the Critics’ Choice Award for best supporting actor over video. While reading from a list of people to thank, he broke suddenly and exuberantly into tears.
“Oh my goodness, I’m crying,” he said. As he spoke through tears, that crying intensified. The clip, if you haven’t seen it, is extremely sweet.
Tonight, Kim is at his first Oscars. He walked the red carpet with Christina Oh, a producer of “Minari.”
Kim recently celebrated a birthday and shared with E!’s Giuliana Rancic that he received a bike, an iPad and a Fitbit for the occasion.
Asked by Rancic if there’s anyone he’s excited to see tonight, Kim responded: “No, not really. I’m fine with everybody.”
The designer Thom Browne has dressed Kim throughout awards season. For his first Academy Awards, the actor arrived in a shorts suit by Browne with knee-length socks.
April 25, 2021, 6:48 p.m. ET
Clockwise from top left, scenes from “Minari,” “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Soul” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” all films expected to win at least one Oscar.David Lee/Netflix, via Associated Press; Disney/Pixar
Will “The Trial of the Chicago 7” pull off an upset win for best picture? Is the eighth nomination the charm for the perpetual bench-warmer Glenn Close to take home her first statuette?
Our ballot has now closed, and it’s time to see how you — and our awards expert, the Projectionist columnist Kyle Buchanan — did. We’ll be tracking his predictions in all 23 categories all night, so be sure to follow along on our live blog.
He played it safe in the best picture category, picking “Nomadland,” and for acting honors, Chadwick Boseman, Viola Davis, Daniel Kaluuya and Yuh-Jung Youn. If he’s right, this would be the first time in the ceremony’s 93-year history that all the acting awards will go to people of color.
April 25, 2021, 6:22 p.m. ET
This year’s Oscars may not be the first awards show held during the pandemic, but it’s the closest-to-normal ceremony we’ve seen since the last Academy Awards, held in February 2020 — meaning it’s being held mostly in person, not on Zoom.
We’ll be here watching the socially distanced red carpet, as nominees and their plus-ones return to the time-honored tradition of wearing fancy gowns (or tuxedos) and answering interviewers’ questions with varying degrees of awkwardness. All attendees have been instructed that casual wear is not an option. Masks, on the other hand, are not required for on-camera appearances.
April 25, 2021, 6:05 p.m. ET
Will Ferrell, left, and Rachel McAdams in “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.” The Swedish pop singer Molly Sanden will perform the film’s nominated song, “Husavik (My Hometown).”John Wilson/Netflix
Recent Oscars ceremonies have featured performances of the best song nominees. But not this year.
The producers of this year’s telecast, including Steven Soderbergh, decided to change things up. It will be the first time the performances will be taped and broadcast during the Oscars preshow. Part of the reason is logistical, Soderbergh has said. Because of Covid-19 restrictions, many Oscar nominees who live outside the United States can’t travel to Los Angeles, the site of the ceremony.
The performances were shot at the soon-to-open Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, with the exception of “Husavik (My Hometown),” which was taped in Husavik, Iceland, according to the academy. The song, from “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga,” will be performed by the Swedish pop singer Molly Sanden, whose voice was dubbed into Rachel McAdams’s performance in the film.
The nominees for best song are:
“Fight for You” from “Judas and the Black Messiah”
“Hear My Voice” from “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
“Husavik (My Hometown)” from “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga”
“Io sí (Seen)” from “The Life Ahead”
“Speak Now” from “One Night in Miami”
There are several other notable names behind the songs. Leslie Odom Jr., who co-wrote “Speak Now,” is also nominated for best supporting actor for “One Night in Miami.” Diane Warren, who co-wrote “Io sí (Seen)” with Laura Pausini, has been nominated for best song 11 times before but has never won. The R&B singer H.E.R., who won a Grammy earlier this year, co-wrote “Fight for You.” And the British soul singer Celeste co-wrote “Hear My Voice.”
The best song category was introduced in 1934. This is not the first time performances of the songs have been omitted from the show; they were left out of the 1989, 2010 and 2012 ceremonies. But they have been a staple of recent ceremonies, adding star power and breaking up the periods between awards. While we won’t have moments like Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga serenading one another or giant Legos onstage this time around, we’ll have the memories.
April 25, 2021, 5:25 p.m. ET
When you watch tonight’s Oscars, there’s a chance they will look a little different than you expect.
If something feels a little off or tad bit unusual, rest assured, there are technical reasons. The producers of this year’s Oscars have said the ceremony will be broadcast in a wide-screen format at a frame rate of 24 frames per second.
As a point of reference, most television viewers are used to watching their favorite shows at a higher frame rate of either 30 frames per second or, these days, 60 frames per second. The difference can be hard to discern during many shows, but higher frame rates can help smooth out action sequences and live sports.
So what do these changes mean in practice for the Oscars?
“We are just trying to create an experience that has the aesthetics of a film, as opposed to a TV show,” one of the show’s producers, Steven Soderbergh said at a news conference over the weekend. “It means compositionally setting up shots that look more like movie shots than television shots, where people aren’t just nailed to the center of the screen all the time.”
“It’s going to sound different in terms of how Questlove is approaching the scoring of the show,” Soderbergh added. “So we just want the whole thing right out of the gate to announce itself as being different. And if you like movies, you will feel like you are watching a movie.”
That’s about as much specificity as we’ve gotten from officials so far. We’ll update this post after the show begins, and we’ve all gotten a chance to register what exactly is different.
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