26th April, 2021
Agency Report
Britain’s Daniel Kaluuya was among the early winners on Sunday at a pandemic-era Oscars.
He was named best supporting actor for his role as 1960s Black Panther activist Fred Hampton in “Judas and the Black Messiah.”
The ceremony at the Union Station in Los Angeles brought back glamour and in-person appearances after a year of mostly Zoom awards shows.
“What a man!. How blessed we are that we lived in a lifetime where he existed,” Kaluuya said, referring to Hampton.
“There is so much work to be done,” the 32 year-old added.
Kaluuya won the same award at BAFTA two weeks ago.
Hollywood’s drive for diversity over the past five years could lead to all four acting prizes, as well as the best director trophy, going to people of colour for the first time in the 93-year history of the highest honours in the movie business.
Denmark’s alcoholism dark comedy tale “Another Round” was named the best international feature film.
An emotional Thomas Vinterberg dedicated his Oscar to his daughter, who died in a car accident shortly before he started shooting the film.
The #MeToo revenge tale “Promising Young Woman” won an original screenplay trophy for Briton Emerald Fennell. French playwright Florian Zeller won adapted screenplay for “The Father,” and accepted via a satellite link.
Social distancing and travel restrictions forced a complete rethink of the ceremony, moving it to Union Station in downtown Los Angeles and shifting the nominated original song performances into a pre-show that was recorded in advance.
After strict COVID-19 testing and quarantine protocols, many celebrities were not wearing masks and were shown chatting in an outdoor courtyard ahead of the ceremony, which took place on a nightclub-style set inside the Mission Revival-style train station.