'Green Book' wins Oscar for best picture
February 25, 2019
Hollywood's biggest stars converged on the red carpet Sunday for the 91st Academy Awards, with the 7,900-odd voting Academy members faced with a broad array of choices. In a night where no single movie was favored to win, the civil rights drama Green Book came out on top.
"We made this movie with love, tenderness and respect," producer and director Peter Farrelly said, standing with the cast on the Dolby Theatre stage in Los Angeles. The film tells the story of a friendship between a black musician and his white driver and at its core, Farrelly said, it was "about loving each other despite our differences."
For the first time in three decades, no one hosted the Oscars this year. The Academy took the risk after comedian Kevin Hart withdrew from the gig amid controversy over past tweets that were slammed as homophobic.
In the absence of a host, the show balanced itself on a flow of actors and personalities, which included tennis star Serena Williams, veteran actors like Helen Mirren and Julia Roberts, singers Bette Midler and Barbra Streisand, Congressman John Lewis and comedian Trevor Noah, among many others.
Read more: Artist Gerhard Richter feels 'abused' by Germany's Oscar entry
Best leading role
The top awards for acting went to Olivia Colman and Remi Malek. Though Glenn Close had been considered the favorite to win for The Wife, Colman took home the Oscar for her performance in The Favourite. The award was the biggest surprise of the night, shocking even Colman herself, who jokingly said she hoped her children were watching because "this is not going to happen again."
Malek earned his first Oscar for his performance as the legendary singer Freddy Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody. Malek was the favorite for the top nod, following trophies at the Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild and British BAFTA awards for the role.
The 37-year-old actor dedicated his win to all young people struggling to find their identity, emphasizing his story as a first-generation American born to Egyptian parents, and speaking of the character he portrayed in the film who was gay and a son of immigrants.
Best supporting roles
The award for best supporting roles went to African-American actors Regina King and Mahershala Ali, both of whom had previously been honored at the Golden Globes.
With her work on If Beale Street Could Talk, King prevailed over a talented field that included previous Oscar winners Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone.
"To be standing here, representing one of the greatest artists of our time, James Baldwin, it's a little surreal," King said of the American writer whose novel the movie was based on.
Ali took home his second Oscar, having also won for his supporting role in Moonlight in 2017. This year, Ali was awarded for his performance in the interracial road-trip drama Green Book.
Best foreign-language film: Roma
Director Alfonso Cuaron's black-and-white cinematic remembrance of his childhood in Mexico, Roma, took away the Oscar in the foreign-language category, in a field that included films from Poland, Lebanon, Japan and Germany (Werk ohne Autor/Never Look Away).
Actors Angela Bassett and Javier Bardem presented the award, with Bardem speaking entirely in Spanish, his native tongue.
On receiving the Oscar, the Mexican director reflected on the impact that "foreign-language films" in English and French had on his career and work. Cuaron also picked up top honors in directing and cinematography for the film.
Black Panther, Lady Gaga gain nods
It was a successful night for the action film Black Panther. The movie about a black superhero from the mythical African country of Wakanda racked up three awards for production design, costume design and original score.
Singer Lady Gaga won an Oscar for the original song "Shallow" in the film A Star is Born, for which she had also received a nomination in a leading role. "It's not about winning. But what it's about is not giving up. If you have a dream, fight for it," the 32-year-old said when she accepted her award.
Lists of nominees and winners (in bold)
Best picture
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
The Favourite
Green Book
Roma
A Star Is Born
Vice
Director
BlacKkKlansman, Spike Lee
Cold War, Paweł Pawlikowski
The Favourite, Yorgos Lanthimos
Roma, Alfonso Cuaron
Vice, Adam McKay
Actress in a leading role
Yalitza Aparicio, Roma
Glenn Close, The Wife
Olivia Colman, The Favourite
Lady Gaga, A Star Is Born
Melissa McCarthy, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Actor in a leading role
Christian Bale, Vice
Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born
Willem Dafoe, At Eternity's Gate
Rami Malek, Bohemian Rhapsody
Viggo Mortensen, Green Book
Actress in a supporting role
Amy Adams, Vice
Marina de Tavira, Roma
Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk
Emma Stone, The Favourite
Rachel Weisz, The Favourite
Actor in a supporting role
Mahershala Ali, Green Book
Adam Driver, BlacKkKlansman
Sam Elliott, A Star Is Born
Richard E. Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Sam Rockwell, Vice
Foreign language film
Capernaum, Lebanon
Cold War, Poland
Never Look Away, Germany
Roma, Mexico
Shoplifters, Japan
Animated feature
Incredibles 2
Isle of Dogs
Mirai
Ralph Breaks the Internet
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Adapted screenplay
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
BlacKkKlansman, Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott, and Spike Lee
Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty
If Beale Street Could Talk, Barry Jenkins
A Star Is Born, Eric Roth, Bradley Cooper, and Will Fetters
Original screenplay
The Favourite, Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara
First Reformed, Paul Schrader
Green Book, Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, and Peter Farrelly
Roma, Alfonso Cuaron
Vice, Adam McKay
Original score
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
If Beale Street Could Talk
Isle of Dogs
Mary Poppins Returns
Original song
"All the Stars," Black Panther
"I'll Fight," RBG
"The Place Where Lost Things Go," Mary Poppins Returns
"Shallow," A Star Is Born
"When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings," The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Documentary short
Black Sheep
End Game
Lifeboat
A Night at the Garden
Period. End of Sentence.
Cinematography
Cold War, Lukasz Zal
The Favourite, Robbie Ryan
Never Look Away, Caleb Deschanel
Roma, Alfonso Cuaron
A Star Is Born, Matthew Libatique
Best documentary feature
Free Solo
Hale County This Morning, This Evening
Minding the Gap
Of Fathers and Sons
RBG
Production design
Black Panther
The Favourite
First Man
Mary Poppins Returns
Roma
Sound mixing
Black Panther
Bohemian Rhapsody
First Man
Roma
A Star Is Born
Costume design
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Black Panther
The Favourite
Mary Poppins Returns
Mary Queen of Scots
Film editing
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
The Favourite
Green Book
Vice
Sound editing
Black Panther
Bohemian Rhapsody
First Man
A Quiet Place
Roma
Animated short film
Animal Behavior
Bao
Late Afternoon
One Small Step
Weekends
Live-action short
Detainment
Fauve
Marguerite
Mother
Skin
Makeup and hairstyling
Border
Mary Queen of Scots
Vice
Visual effects
Avengers: Infinity War
Christopher Robin
First Man
Ready Player One
Solo: A Star Wars Story