Friday, 29th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search

Five Things To Watch Out For On Oscars Night

All eyes will be on the battle for Oscars supremacy between The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri on Sunday. But if there's one thing previous ceremonies have demonstrated, it's that it's a good idea never to expect the expected on Hollywood's biggest night. Here are five things to watch for: The…

All eyes will be on the battle for Oscars supremacy between The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri on Sunday.

The Shape of Water. Photo credit: Urban Daddy

But if there’s one thing previous ceremonies have demonstrated, it’s that it’s a good idea never to expect the expected on Hollywood’s biggest night.

Here are five things to watch for:

The spectre of ‘Envelopegate’

It may have been the most embarrassing flub in Oscars history, but don’t expect host Jimmy Kimmel to shy away from mining Envelopegate for comedy gold at the Academy’s expense.

The embarrassing mix-up at last year’s show saw the best picture Oscar incorrectly given to musical La La Land before the actual winner, coming-of-age drama Moonlight, was finally handed the prize.

Accountants for PricewaterhouseCoopers, the firm responsible for tabulating Oscar ballots, had handed Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway the wrong envelope.

Oscar watchers expect the mistake, which made for a chaotic end to the film industry’s biggest night, to be fodder for both Kimmel’s opening monologue and jokes from the presenters.

Best picture photo finish

The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro’s much-admired Cold War-era fairy tale love story, goes into the Oscars with the most nominations — 13 — compared to just seven for its main rival, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Photo: PopSugar

But Martin McDonagh’s Three Billboards, an early favourite in the prestigious best picture race, has weathered a backlash against its treatment of race issues to launch a late assault on the statuette.

It has regained its status as the narrow frontrunner at odds of 13/10 against 2/1 for The Shape of Water, according to awards prediction website Gold Derby.

Every Oscars ceremony serves up some shocks, however, so don’t count out Get Out, the third favourite ahead of outsiders Lady Bird and Dunkirk.

#MeToo and Time’s Up

The #MeToo and Time’s Up movements — against sexual misconduct and gender inequality, respectively — have featured prominently in the awards season, inspiring many powerful speeches and turning the red carpet into a sea of symbolic black dresses at the Golden Globes and the Baftas.

While there is no official repeat planned, some actresses have indicated they will again wear black in support of #MeToo on Sunday.

Ryan Seacrest, an Academy Awards mainstay interviewing the rich and famous on the red carpet for E! News, is facing his own backlash following allegations of repeated sexual harassment from a former stylist.

The channel is standing by Seacrest, host of ABC’s American Idol and Live With Kelly and Ryan, and says he’ll be on the red carpet as usual.

Oscar rarities and firsts

Don’t be alarmed if you hear glass ceilings shattering at this year’s Oscars, with numerous breakthroughs to cheer among the nominees.

Mudbound director Dee Rees is the first black woman nominated for best-adapted screenplay, while her director of photography Rachel Morrison is the first woman to be nominated for best cinematography.

Mudbound scored another first, with soul diva Mary J. Blige the first person nominated for acting and best original song in the same film.

Yance Ford (Strong Island) is the first openly transgender director ever nominated, and Jordan Peele (Get Out) is the first black filmmaker nominated for directing, writing, and producing.

Jordan Peele. Photo credit: Scream Magazine

He is also only the fifth black person ever nominated for best director — after John Singleton, Lee Daniels, Steve McQueen and Barry Jenkins — and could be the first to win.

Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird) is the fifth woman in history nominated for best director” and the first to land the nod for a directorial debut.

Other firsts include a superhero film nominated for best-adapted screenplay (Logan) and the first person over the age of 87 to be nominated for an acting award — Christopher Plummer in All the Money in the World.

Photo Credit: CNN.com

Hosting test for Kimmel

Comedian and late-night host Jimmy Kimmel will preside over the Oscars for the second consecutive time, with critics tuning in to see how he navigates the tricky balancing act of being funny without making light of the #MeToo victims.

Keeping the more than three-hour show — usually the most-watched non-sports telecast each year in the United States — upbeat in a year overshadowed by allegations of sexual assault will also be a tough challenge.

The Jimmy Kimmel Live! host was presenting last year when Beatty and Dunaway wrongly gave best picture to La La Land instead of rightful winner Moonlight after being handed the wrong envelope.

“We were like, we have 10 seconds to say goodbye, we don’t know how long the speech is going to be, and it affects your rating in a very negative way if you go on past midnight,” Kimmel recalled in an interview with news portal AZ Central.

“And then all of a sudden it was like, ‘Forget midnight. This might go on into ‘Good Morning America.'”

***AFP

In this article

0 Comments

Guardian Life

1 hour ago
Spotify, a global streaming platform, says Nigeria’s Podcast listenership and gospel music streams have increased from 2022 to 2024 by 482 per cent and 1228 per cent respectively. Phiona Okumu, Spotify’s Head of Music, Sub-Saharan Africa, who disclosed this in a statement on Friday, said this was in celebration of Easter. Okumu said “the growth…
1 hour ago
Oscar best picture winner "Oppenheimer" was finally released on Friday in Japan, where its subject -- the man who masterminded the creation of the atomic bomb -- is a highly sensitive and emotional topic.
1 day ago
Nigerian singer, Yemi Alade, has debunked a claim credited to her that she was not getting awards because she refused to give in to sexual demands from organisers. “So yall gonna start creating false stories every time you get bored; SMH, stupidity at its peak, very unintelligent write-up," Yemi Alade said in an Instagram reel…
1 day ago
The Bidens' dogs grabbed headlines with their bad behavior, but "First Feline" Willow is getting a book all to herself.
1 day ago
American Musician, Taylor Swift, has joined the club of world billionaires, according to Hurun’s world richest people's list. The report revealed that “At 34, Taylor Swift joins the billionaire club with US$1.2 billion, not from typical celebrity side hustles, but uniquely through her music. "Over half her fortune stems from royalties and touring, including US$190…

Music

1 day ago
Audio streaming platform, Spotify has revealed that Gen Z are now turning to streaming platforms for a modern way of worship.
1 day ago
Singer, Akinsanya Hammed. Aka SpiceBoy, has said his new single song, Grace, is inspired by the challenges he has experienced in life. He told journalist during press conference in lagos. “My life story inspired my song, Grace,” he said in an interview with The Gardian. “The kind of life my parents and I led before…
23 Mar
Barely three weeks ago, Korede Bello returned with a two-track release, one of which was the Minding My Business duet with his former label boss, Don Jazzy.
22 Mar
Popular singer, David Adedeji Adeleke, also known as Davido, has agreed to settle the breach of contract suit filed against him at the High Court of Delta State Effurun by the Amaju Pinnick-led Brownhill Investment Company Limited out of court.
22 Mar
Gospel singer, songwriter, and impactful worshipper, Joy Ezeh, has unveiled her latest work, titled 'I am Healed'.

Film

24 Mar
Veteran Nollywood actor, Amaechi Muonagor, has died after a prolonged illness, at the age of 62. Muonagor was said to have suffered kidney failure and was on dialysis. The sudden news of his demise comes just a few days after a viral video where he solicited funds to help him have a Kidney transplant. The…
12 Mar
Nigerian actress Rita Dominic has disclosed that she took a caregiver job in the United Kingdom after taking a break from her acting career in Nigeria. Dominic, who graced the screen with her captivating performances, said she took a step back from her rising acting career to deal with personal challenges between 2001 and 2002.…
11 Mar
From Ryan Gosling's show-stopping "I'm Just Ken" to a naked John Cena coming to the stage, there were several stand-out moments at the 96th Oscars in Hollywood on Sunday. Here are some of the most memorable things that happened on Tinseltown's glitziest evening: John Cena naked As he readied to introduce the award for best…
11 Mar
Here are the winners in key categories for the 96th Academy Awards, which were handed out in Hollywood on Sunday. Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" was the big winner of the night with seven awards, while "Poor Things" -- a female take on the Frankenstein story -- won four. Best picture: "Oppenheimer" Best director: Christopher Nolan, "Oppenheimer"…
11 Mar
"Oppenheimer" swept the board on Sunday at the Oscars, Hollywood's biggest night of the year, with seven awards including best picture and best director, crowning a triumphant year for filmmaker Christopher Nolan. Nolan's masterful drama about the father of the atomic bomb, half of last summer's massive "Barbenheimer" phenomenon, also bagged acting prizes for lead…