Oppenheimer blows away Oscars rivals as Cillian Murphy and Christopher Nolan take home awards (but Ken steals the show)
Christopher Nolan’s epic Oppenheimer has swept the Oscars, winning seven prizes including best actor for its star Cillian Murphy.
The film about J Robert Oppenheimer was also named best picture and won best director for Nolan, ending his 22- year wait for an Academy Award.
Robert Downey Jr was named best supporting actor for his turn as Lewis Strauss, head of the Atomic Energy Commission, securing him his first Oscar win.
The film was also celebrated for its editing, score and cinematography.
The best picture prize, the final trophy of the night, was handed out by veteran actor Al Pacino, who undercut any tension by opening the envelope and bluntly telling the Hollywood audience: “My eyes see Oppenheimer.”
Murphy kissed his wife, artist Yvonne McGuinness, before heading to the stage, where he said making the film had “been the wildest, most creatively satisfying journey”.
Acknowledging “we are all living in Oppenheimer’s world now”, he added: “I would like to dedicate this to the peacemakers of the world.”
There was disappointment for Barbie, Greta Gerwig’s film about the Mattel doll, which only won one award — best original song for What Was I Made For? by Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas.
It also provided one of the highlights of the ceremony with Ryan Gosling reprising his role of Ken for a rendition of I’m Just Ken from the film.
He donned a pink suit and gloves for the performance and was joined by co-stars including Ncuti Gatwa, Simu Liu and Kingsley Ben-Adir, as well as Guns N’ Roses star Slash.
The best actress award went to Emma Stone for the surreal comedy Poor Things, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos.
She revealed she was battling a wardrobe malfunction as she walked up on stage to collect her prize and blamed Gosling’s performance.
She said: “My dress is broken, I think it happened during I’m Just Ken.” Stone appeared overwhelmed and wept as she said: “I don’t know what I’m saying.”
Da’Vine Joy Randolph was named best supporting actress for her role as a grieving cook in The Holdovers, about a grumpy teacher who stays at school over the holidays.
One of the night’s most emotional speeches came from the director of 20 Days In Mariupol, which won for best documentary feature — the first time Ukraine has won an Oscar.
Mstyslav Chernov said he was “honoured” to win for the film about the time he spent with colleagues from the Associated Press news agency in Mariupol after Russia invaded.
He said he wanted to exchange his win for “Russia never attacking Ukraine”.
Lighter moments were provided by some of the award presenters, including wrestler and actor John Cena who was naked to present the costume design Oscar to Poor Things. Preserving his modesty with the nominations envelope, he said: “Costumes, they are so important.”
Twins co-stars and former Batman villains Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito reunited to present the visual effects gong to Godzilla Minus One and the film editing prize to Oppenheimer. “Arnold and I are presenting together for a very obvious reason,” DeVito said. “We both tried to kill Batman,” Schwarzenegger added.
Margot Robbie and Florence Pugh were among the stars celebrating after the ceremony.
The Winners
Best picture: Oppenheimer
Best director: Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
Best actor: Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
Best actress: Emma Stone, Poor Things
Best supporting actor: Robert Downey Jr, Oppenheimer
Best supporting actress: Da’Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers
Best original screenplay: Anatomy of a Fall
Best adapted screenplay: American Fiction
Best song: What Was I Made For? Billie Eilish and Finneas
Best international feature: The Zone of Interest
Best documentary feature: 20 Days in Mariupol