Smiles, selfies and joy: The 2019 Oscars in photos
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Putting the final exclamation point on an unusually tumultuous and unpredictable Oscar season, “Green Book” — the period road movie about a black virtuoso pianist and his white chauffeur and bodyguard from director Peter Farrelly — claimed the top prize Sunday night at the 91st Academy Awards, beating out a diverse field ranging from the intimate, poetic “Roma” to the superhero smash “Black Panther” to the crowd-pleasing Freddie Mercury biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
Rami Malek, who swept virtually every major acting award leading up to the Oscars, won the lead actor prize for his turn as Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody,” one of four awards earned by the hit biopic.
On the red carpet
In one of the evening’s bigger surprises, Olivia Colman won the lead actress award for her turn as the insecure, demanding Queen Anne in “The Favourite,” coming out on top in a strong field that included seven-time nominee Glenn Close, who many expected to finally win her first Oscar for “The Wife.” “Glenn Close, you’ve been my idol for so long, and this is not how I wanted it to be, and I think you’re amazing,” Colman said.
Along with the academy’s stumbles, issues of representation once again loomed large over this year’s awards season, and on that score, this year’s Oscars presented a number of firsts. Hannah Beachler and Ruth Carter became the first African Americans to win the awards for production design and costume design, respectively, for their work in “Black Panther.” “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” co-director Peter Ramsey became the first African American to win an Oscar for animated feature film.
The show
Adam Lambert fronted Brian May and the rest of Queen in the opening number as celebrities and awards contenders, including Emma Stone and Jordan Peele, sang along from their seats in Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre. Jennifer Hudson performed “I’ll Fight” from the documentary “RBG” about Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Lady Gaga sang “Shallow,” her Grammy- and now Oscar-wining song from “A Star Is Born,” with Bradley Cooper.
Backstage
The lack of a master of ceremonies inspired better gags too — ones that didn’t involve selfies, snacks or pizzas. Keegan-Michael Key dropped from the ceiling holding an umbrella like Mary Poppins to introduce Bette Midler’s musical performance. And the Oscars poked fun early in the show at its hostless conundrum with an appearance from Tina Fey, Maya Rudolph and Amy Poehler.
“Good evening and welcome to the one-millionth Academy Awards,” Fey said. “We are not your hosts, but we’re going to stand here a little too long so the people who get USA Today tomorrow will think that we hosted.”
Parting shot
From the Oscars to the Emmys.
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