ARRIVAL: Al Pacino is charged with DWI in Indiana…
The seasoned actor presented the last prize of the evening during the star-studded Los Angeles event on Sunday.
However, there was confusion when, according to usual, he declared Oppenheimer the winner without first enumerating the nominees.
“I didn’t mean to leave them out,” Pacino stated in a statement.
The eighty-three-year-old claimed that the reason for this was “a decision by the producers not to have [the nominees] said again since they were highlighted individually throughout the ceremony.”
The Oscar-winning actor said in his statement, released on Monday afternoon, that he “chosen to follow” the producers’ wishes regarding the award’s presentation.
“I realise being nominated is a huge milestone in one’s life and to not be fully recognised is offensive and hurtful,” Pacino stated.
“I say this as someone who profoundly relates with film-makers, actors and producers so I deeply empathise with those who have been slighted by this oversight and it’s why I felt it necessary to make this statement.”
With no typical pomp and circumstance around the night’s grand award, Pacino’s declaration meant that the evening concluded in a bewildering manner.
He muttered, “my eyes see ‘Oppenheimer,'” opening the envelope and briefly confusing the crowd as to whether the movie had truly won.
She claimed that although it wasn’t as bad as the commotion that followed the 2017 Oscars when Moonlight and La La Land were tied for the best picture prize, it nevertheless gave reporters backstage “a panic attack right at the end of the ceremony”.
Oscars producer Molly McNearney noted, “We were very worried that the show was going to be long” while discussing the choice to go right to the winner during the prize presentation in Variety.
“You’ve seen all 10 best picture clip packages by the time you get to the end of the show,” said McNearney, who is married to Oscars presenter Jimmy Kimmel.
People are eager for the event to end and simply want to know who wins. That’s what we expected, anyway. Thus, we did not provide him a package of clips. He wasn’t nominated to read by us.”
She apologized to Pacino, saying that the choice had “put him in a tough spot”.
That caused some confusion. But see, that’s what makes watching live TV exciting. You never know what precisely you’re going to get!”
Ratings increase
American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, Barbie, The Holdovers, Killers of the Flower Moon, Maestro, Oppenheimer, Past Lives, Poor Things, and The Zone of Interest were the ten movies that were nominated for best picture.
Oppenheimer won four major awards during the ceremony: best picture, best director for Christopher Nolan, best actor for Cillian Murphy, and best supporting actor for Robert Downey Jr.
The network ABC reports that 19.5 million viewers watched the 96th Academy Awards on Sunday night.
