Mar 10, 2024,03:40pm EDT
Sunday night’s 96th Academy Awards could bring the first Native American acting winner in a tight Best Actress race, a record number of awards for a biopic about the atomic bomb—while protestors have threatened to shut it down.
KEY FACTS
Lily Gladstone’s performance in “Killers of the Flower Moon” positions her as a potential trailblazer, potentially becoming the first Native American or Indigenous actor to secure an Academy Award for acting.
However, the Best Actress category remains fiercely competitive, with Gladstone locked in a tight race against Emma Stone, acclaimed for her role in “Poor Things,” and also recognized by various awards this season.
In contrast, the other three major acting categories have seen consistent winners across multiple award ceremonies: Da’Vine Joy Randolph secured Best Supporting Actress for “The Holdovers,” Robert Downey Jr. clinched Best Supporting Actor for “Oppenheimer,” and Cillian Murphy emerged victorious as Best Actor, also for “Oppenheimer.”
In anticipation of protestors, some of whom “would like to stop the Academy Awards,” Los Angeles police are stepping up their presence at the Dolby Theater, the site of Sunday’s Oscar ceremony, according to an LAPD spokesman who spoke with The New York Times.
According to The Times, some performers are scheduled to don red lapel pins, which stand for a demand for the release of “all hostages” and an ongoing cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
With 13 Academy Award nominations, “Oppenheimer” has the potential to surpass the record for most Oscars won by a single movie if it wins more than 11 (experts predict the Christopher Nolan-helmed picture will win eight).
International films may also shine bright on Sunday night, having garnered numerous nominations, including three out of the 10 in the Best Picture category: “Anatomy of a Fall,” “The Zone of Interest,” and “Past Lives.”
“The Holdovers” could find itself embroiled in a significant scandal if it clinches the award for Best Original Screenplay, following allegations reported by Variety that the credited screenwriter, David Hemingson, plagiarized the story.
Should singer Billie Eilish, 22, and her brother Finneas O’Connell, 26, secure an Oscar for Best Original Song with “What Was I Made For?” from the film “Barbie,” they would become the two youngest individuals to win two Academy Awards, both in the Original Song category.
Presenting this year’s acting awards will be the five previous winners of each acting category, gracing the Oscars stage once again, including esteemed actors like Michelle Yeoh, Mahershala Ali, Lupita Nyong’o, and Matthew McConaughey.
Sunday’s event will also showcase performances of all five songs nominated for Best Original Song: Ryan Gosling will perform “I’m Just Ken” (“Barbie”), Eilish will render “What Was I Made For?” (“Barbie”), Jon Batiste will present “It Never Went Away” (“American Symphony”), Becky G will deliver “The Fire Inside” (“Flamin’ Hot”), and Scott George and the Osage Singers will enchant the audience with “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)” (“Killers of the Flower Moon”).