“For over a century, movies have played an important role in comforting, inspiring, and entertaining us during the darkest of times. They certainly have this year. Our hope, in extending the eligibility period and our Awards date, is to provide the flexibility filmmakers need to finish and release their films without being penalized for something beyond anyone’s control,” Academy president David Rubin and Academy CEO Dawn Hudson said in a statement last year. “This coming Oscars and the opening of our new museum will mark a historic moment, gathering movie fans around the world to unite through cinema." Karey Burke, president of ABC Entertainment, added, “We find ourselves in uncharted territory this year and will continue to work with our partners at the Academy to ensure next year’s show is a safe and celebratory event that also captures the excitement of the opening of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures." While the Emmys and Golden Globes went virtual as a result of the ongoing health crisis, the 2021 Oscars were held in person. From the 2021 Oscars winners to how they happened safely, here’s what you’ll want to know.
Who are the 2021 Oscar winners and nominees?
Best Picture
“The Father” (Sony Pictures Classics) “Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros.) “Mank” (Netflix) “Minari” (A24) “Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures) - WINNER “Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features) “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix)
Best Director
Thomas Vinterberg (“Another Round”) David Fincher (“Mank”) Lee Isaac Chung (“Minari”) Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”) - WINNER Emerald Fennell (“Promising Young Woman”)
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Riz Ahmed (“Sound of Metal”) Chadwick Boseman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”) - WINNER Gary Oldman (“Mank”) Steven Yeun (“Minari”)
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Viola Davis (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) Andra Day (“The United States v. Billie Holiday”) Vanessa Kirby (“Pieces of a Woman”) Frances McDormand (“Nomadland”) - WINNER Carey Mulligan (“Promising Young Woman”)
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Sacha Baron Cohen (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”) Daniel Kaluuya (“Judas and the Black Messiah”) - WINNER Leslie Odom Jr. (“One Night in Miami”) Paul Raci (“Sound of Metal”) Lakeith Stanfield (“Judas and the Black Messiah”)
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Maria Bakalova (‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”) Glenn Close (“Hillbilly Elegy”) Olivia Colman (“The Father”) Amanda Seyfried (“Mank”) Yuh-jung Youn (“Minari”) - WINNER
Best Animated Feature Film
“Onward” (Pixar) “Over the Moon” (Netflix) “A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon” (Netflix) “Soul” (Pixar) - WINNER “Wolfwalkers” (Apple TV Plus/GKIDS)
Best Adapted Screenplay
“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.” Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Peter Baynham, Erica Rivinoja, Dan Mazer, Jena Friedman, Lee Kern; Story by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Nina Pedrad “The Father,” Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller - WINNER “Nomadland,” Chloé Zhao “One Night in Miami,” Kemp Powers “The White Tiger,” Ramin Bahrani
Best Original Screenplay
“Judas and the Black Messiah.” Screenplay by Will Berson, Shaka King; Story by Will Berson, Shaka King, Kenny Lucas, Keith Lucas “Minari,” Lee Isaac Chung “Promising Young Woman,” Emerald Fennell - WINNER “Sound of Metal.” Screenplay by Darius Marder, Abraham Marder; Story by Darius Marder, Derek Cianfrance “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Aaron Sorkin
Best Original Song
“Fight for You,” (“Judas and the Black Messiah”). Music by H.E.R. and Dernst Emile II; Lyric by H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas - WINNER “Hear My Voice,” (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”). Music by Daniel Pemberton; Lyric by Daniel Pemberton and Celeste Waite “Húsavík,” (“Eurovision Song Contest”). Music and Lyric by Savan Kotecha, Fat Max Gsus and Rickard Göransson “Io Si (Seen),” (“The Life Ahead”). Music by Diane Warren; Lyric by Diane Warren and Laura Pausini “Speak Now,” (“One Night in Miami”). Music and Lyric by Leslie Odom, Jr. and Sam Ashworth
Best Original Score
“Da 5 Bloods,” Terence Blanchard “Mank,” Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross “Minari,” Emile Mosseri “News of the World,” James Newton Howard “Soul,” Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste - WINNER
Best Sound
“Greyhound,” Warren Shaw, Michael Minkler, Beau Borders and David Wyman “Mank,” Ren Klyce, Jeremy Molod, David Parker, Nathan Nance and Drew Kunin “News of the World,” Oliver Tarney, Mike Prestwood Smith, William Miller and John Pritchett “Soul,” Ren Klyce, Coya Elliott and David Parker “Sound of Metal,” Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés and Phillip Bladh - WINNER
Best Costume Design
“Emma,” Alexandra Byrne “Mank,” Trish Summerville “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Ann Roth - WINNER “Mulan,” Bina Daigeler “Pinocchio,” Massimo Cantini Parrini
Best Animated Short Film
“Burrow” (Disney Plus/Pixar) “Genius Loci” (Kazak Productions) “If Anything Happens I Love You” (Netflix) - WINNER “Opera” (Beasts and Natives Alike) “Yes-People” (CAOZ hf. Hólamói)
Best Live-Action Short Film
“Feeling Through” “The Letter Room” “The Present” “Two Distant Strangers” - WINNER “White Eye”
Best Cinematography
“Judas and the Black Messiah,” Sean Bobbitt “Mank,” Erik Messerschmidt - WINNER “News of the World,” Dariusz Wolski “Nomadland,” Joshua James Richards “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Phedon Papamichael
Best Documentary Feature
“Collective” (Magnolia Pictures and Participant) “Crip Camp” (Netflix) “The Mole Agent” (Gravitas Ventures) “My Octopus Teacher” (Netflix) - WINNER
Best Documentary Short Subject
“Colette” (Time Travel Unlimited) - WINNER “A Concerto Is a Conversation” (Breakwater Studios) “Do Not Split” (Field of Vision) “Hunger Ward” (MTV Documentary Films) “A Love Song for Latasha” (Netflix)
Best Film Editing
“The Father,” Yorgos Lamprinos “Nomadland,” Chloé Zhao “Promising Young Woman,” Frédéric Thoraval “Sound of Metal,” Mikkel E.G. Nielsen - WINNER “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Alan Baumgarten
Best International Feature Film
“Another Round” (Denmark) - WINNER “Better Days” (Hong Kong) “Collective” (Romania) “The Man Who Sold His Skin” (Tunisia) “Quo Vadis, Aida?”(Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
“Emma,” Marese Langan, Laura Allen, Claudia Stolze “Hillbilly Elegy,” Eryn Krueger Mekash, Patricia Dehaney, Matthew Mungle “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal, Jamika Wilson - WINNER “Mank,” Kimberley Spiteri, Gigi Williams, Colleen LaBaff “Pinocchio,” Mark Coulier, Dalia Colli, Francesco Pegoretti
Best Production Design
“The Father.” Production Design: Peter Francis; Set Decoration: Cathy Featherstone “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” Production Design: Mark Ricker; Set Decoration: Karen O’Hara and Diana Stoughton “Mank.” Production Design: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Jan Pascale - WINNER “News of the World.” Production Design: David Crank; Set Decoration: Elizabeth Keenan “Tenet.” Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Kathy Lucas
Best Visual Effects
“Love and Monsters,” Matt Sloan, Genevieve Camilleri, Matt Everitt and Brian Cox “The Midnight Sky,” Matthew Kasmir, Christopher Lawrence, Max Solomon and David Watkins “Mulan,” Sean Faden, Anders Langlands, Seth Maury and Steve Ingram “The One and Only Ivan,” Nick Davis, Greg Fisher, Ben Jones and Santiago Colomo Martinez “Tenet,” Andrew Jackson, David Lee, Andrew Lockley and Scott Fisher - WINNER
Who presented at the Oscars 2021?
The all-star cast that presented at the 93rd Oscars included Angela Bassett, Halle Berry, Bong Joon Ho, Don Cheadle, Bryan Cranston, Laura Dern, Harrison Ford, Regina King, Marlee Matlin, Rita Moreno, Joaquin Phoenix, Brad Pitt, Reese Witherspoon, Renée Zellweger and Zendaya.
Was there an Oscars 2021 host?
Like the past two years, the Oscars did not have a host. Following the hostless 2019 show, Burke told The Hollywood Reporter, “We are extremely happy with how the show went. Odds are you’ll see us repeating what we consider to be a successful formula.”
Where do the Oscars traditionally take place?
The ceremony is usually held at The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
How did the 2021 Oscars take place?
The stars didn’t Zoom in on Hollywood’s biggest night! In a letter to nominees (via PEOPLE), the show’s producers Steven Soderbergh, Stacey Sher and Jesse Collins wrote, “For those of you unable to attend because of scheduling or continued uneasiness about traveling, we want you to know there will not be an option to Zoom in for the show.” “We are going to great lengths to provide a safe and ENJOYABLE evening for all of you in person, as well as for all the millions of film fans around the world, and we feel the virtual thing will diminish those efforts,” they added. This year’s ceremony was an “intimate, in-person event” held at Union Station in Los Angeles with additional elements taking place live from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The event was treated as “an active movie set.” The producers explained, “With specially designed testing cadences to ensure up-to-the-minute results, including an on-site COVID safety team with PCR testing capability.”
Are there changes for the 2021 Oscars?
Last April, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences updated its awards rules for the upcoming ceremony allowing streamed films, for this awards year only, to be eligible for an Oscar. Previously, the Academy required that a “film be shown in a commercial motion picture theater in Los Angeles County for a theatrical qualifying run of at least seven consecutive days, during which period screenings must occur at least three times daily.” However, for the 2021 Oscars, films “that had a previously planned theatrical release but are initially made available on a commercial streaming or VOD service may qualify in the Best Picture, general entry and specialty categories" under certain provisions. In a joint statement, Rubin and Hudson said, “The Academy firmly believes there is no greater way to experience the magic of movies than to see them in a theater. Our commitment to that is unchanged and unwavering. Nonetheless, the historically tragic COVID-19 pandemic necessitates this temporary exception to our awards eligibility rules. The Academy supports our members and colleagues during this time of uncertainty. We recognize the importance of their work being seen and also celebrated, especially now, when audiences appreciate movies more than ever." Next, enjoy the best outfits and dresses from the 2021 Oscars.
