Los Angeles: At the prestigious Globe Theatre here, Christopher Nolan's biopic on the father of the atom bomb, J.Robert Oppenheimer, "Oppenheimer" won big at the 96th Academy Awards on Sunday. The Cillian Murphy starrer, which features the birth of the atomic bomb itself, won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Director and Actor.
It was Nolan's first Best Director Oscar, while Cillian Murphy won Best Actor for his portrayal of physicist J Robert Oppenheimer. Emma Stone won Best Actress for playing Bella Baxter in "Poor Things", the film which also won prizes for production design, costume design, makeup and hair.
"Oppenheimer", which had 13 nominations, won Best Supporting Actor for Robert Downey Jr, along with Best Editing, Cinematography and Original Score. It won the Best Film, running against "American Fiction", "Killers of the Flower Moon," "Anatomy of a Fall", "Barbie", "Maestro", "The Holdovers", "Poor Things" etc.
Da'Vine Joy Randolph was named best supporting actress for playing a boarding school cook in "The Holdovers".
"Anatomy of a Fall" won Original Screenplay, while "American Fiction" won Best Adapted Screenplay. "Godzilla Minus One" won Best Visual Effects, and "The Zone of Interest" won Best International Feature Film.
However, Martin Scorcese's directorial "Killers of the Flower Moon" had nine nominations but was left empty-handed. Leonard Bernstein's biopic "Maestro" also won nothing after seven nominations. "Barbie", with six nominations, didn't win any.
Ukraine war documentary "20 Days in Mariupol," produced by The Associated Press and PBS "Frontline," won the prize for best documentary.
Chernov said the story of the city and its fall into Russian occupation "is a symbol of struggle and a symbol of faith. Thank you for empowering our voice, and let's just keep fighting."
Variety reported that blocks away from the venue, the Globe Theatre, several hundred protesters demanded a ceasefire in Palestine. Winners also used their speeches to decry the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. They condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine, too.