Speaking on stage for his Directing win, Nolan noted how young an artform cinema remains, with so much potential for the future. “Movies are just over 100 years old. Imagine being 100 years into painting,” he said. “We don’t know where this incredible journey is going from here.” He also hailed Emma Thomas, “producer of all our films, and all our children. I love you.” Shortly after, Thomas repaid the favour as Oppenheimer won Best Picture. “The reason this movie was the movie it was, was Chris Nolan,” she said. “He is singular, he is brilliant, and I’m so grateful for you.”
Cillian Murphy called himself “a very proud Irish man standing here tonight”, as he won Leading Actor. He closed his speech by saying: “We made a film bout the man who created the atomic bomb. For better or worse, we’re all living in Oppenheimer’s world. I’d like to dedicate this to the peacemakers everywhere.” Downey Jr. noted how impactful Oppenheimer has already been on his career. “I needed this job, more than it needed me. Chris knew it,” he said of his director. “I stand here before you a better man because of it.” Oppenheimer also bagged awards for Original Score for Ludwig Goransson, Cinematography for Hoyte Van Hoytema, and Film Editing for Jennifer Lame.
The other big winner of the night was Poor Things, which received four awards – including Actress In A Leading Role for Emma Stone, who was overwhelmed as she took to the stage. She called the role of Bella Baxter “the gift of a lifetime”, and spoke to the collaborative nature of filmmaking. “It’s not about me,” she said. “It’s about a team that came together to make something greater than the sum of its parts. That’s the best part of making movies.” The film also won Production Design, Costume Design, and Makeup And Hairstyling.
Da’Vine Joy Randolph won Actress In A Supporting Role for her performance in The Holdovers, delivering a hugely emotional speech as she collected the award. “For so long, I’ve always wanted to be different,” she says, looking back on the experiences that brought her to acting. “And now I realised, I just need to be myself.”
Adapted Screenplay went to Cord Jefferson for American Fiction – his feature debut, no less – while Original Screenplay went to Justine Triet and Arthur Harari for Anatomy Of A Fall. Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone Of Interest won two awards on the night: International Feature Film, and Sound. In his speech for the former, Glazer spoke to the situation currently playing out in Gaza. “Our film shows where dehumanisation leads at its worst,” he noted.
While Barbie largely missed out on awards, it did bag Original Song – not for ‘I’m Just Ken’, but for Billie Eilish’s heartfelt ballad, ‘What Was I Made For?’ But the film seemed to dominate proceedings anyway – particularly when Ryan Gosling, as reported, delivered an all-out rendition of Ken’s signature song, complete with support from fellow Kens, Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Ncuti Gatwa. The performance was rapturously received by the crowd, with Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie singing along, and guitarist Slash popping up for a squealing solo.
Elsewhere, there were notable wins for Wes Anderson, earning his first ever Oscar for Live Action Short with The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar (even if he wasn’t there to pick up the trophy); Hayao Miyazaki, whose The Boy And The Heron came out on top in Animated Feature (though Miyazaki, too, was absent); Sean Ono Lennon was on hand to accept Animated Short Film for War Is Over! Inspired By The Music Of John & Yoko; and, best of all for kaiju fans, Takashi Yamazaki brought a gold Godzilla figure on stage as he accepted the Visual Effects award for Godzilla Minus One.
It, in all, proved a strong ceremony – no slaps, no slips, and no slights from host Jimmy Kimmel. Oh, and John Cena actually stripped naked. For real. For a full rundown of the night, read back through the Empire Oscars 2024 live blog – and find the complete list of winners below.