On March 23, 2003, as the rest of the world watched images of captives and corpses identified as American soldiers on television, limousines carrying high-fashion-clad celebrities pulled up in front of what was then known as from Kodak Theater in Los Angeles.
The United States had invaded Iraq three days earlier, and until this morning there was still a possibility that the Oscars might not take place.
While celebrities like Nicole Kidman, Halle Berry and Steve Martin – the host – were herded through metal detectors amid a large law enforcement presence, just blocks away, police officers holding batons clashed with protesters trying to get closer to the theater (none did).
This year, another war is making headlines as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences hosts new Oscars. So far, almost no one has spoken out at the trailblazer awards ceremonies, but the situation was very different in 2003.
“It was weird getting dressed up and going to this thing while our fellow Americans were all overseas about to get involved in something very dangerous,” director Chris Sanders recalled in a recent interview. Sanders was nominated that year for best animated feature for directing and writing “Lilo & Stitch” with Dean DeBlois.
In the weeks leading up to the ceremony, more than 100 artists, including Matt Damon, Jessica Lange, Helen Hunt, George Clooney and Danny Glover, signed a letter urging President George W. Bush not to attack Iraq. The day before, actors Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins, as well as Oscar-nominated director Pedro Almodóvar, were among thousands of demonstrators in Hollywood protesting the war.
And within hours of the war's start, several anchors, including Cate Blanchett and Jim Carrey, withdrew, citing safety concerns and respect for military families. Peter Jackson, whose film “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” was nominated for best picture, also decided not to participate in the series.
“It was a little bit like, ‘Is this going to happen?’” Sanders said. “And if they do, who will come?”
The Oscars, which will be awarded on Sunday for the 96th year, have never been canceled outright. During the pandemic, they took place partly remotely, with some nominees and presenters appearing from centers in London and Paris. During World War II, after an initial cancellation, the Academy Awards ceremony went ahead as planned, but with formal wear banned and the ceremony described as a “dinner” rather than a “banquet.”
In 2003, the show's broadcast network, ABC, begged the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to take a similar course, but the academy refused, in part because the Kodak Theater would not be available later. Instead, the academy decided to hold the ceremony as planned, but with a few changes: arriving candidates and their guests would not walk a red carpet – a first – and would instead be asked to wear darker colors and more sober outfits.
Sanders said he knew “Lilo & Stitch” was far from winning. “We competed against Miyazaki for 'Spirited Away,'” he said. But other candidates were left wondering whether they should address the war if they won.
“Before, stars were more reluctant to say anything that might alienate ticket buyers,” said Jules Dixon-Green, a professor at the University of North Carolina who teaches a course on entertainment public relations. “But as social media platforms have become more vibrant and robust, celebrities are realizing that people are truly looking for authentic perspectives from the people they admire, respect and follow.”
In 2003, the favorite of the night was “Chicago,” with 13 nominations, including best picture, best director for Rob Marshall and best actress and supporting actress for Renée Zellweger and Catherine Zeta-Jones. Martin Scorsese's historical detective novel “Gangs of New York” is close behind with 10 nominations, and psychological drama “The Hours” has nine, including best actress for Nicole Kidman as the writer Virginia Woolf.
The first prize of the evening went to “Spirited Away”. The filmmaker, Hayao Miyazaki, was not present and provided no explanation at the time. In a 2009 interview with the Los Angeles Timeshe said he boycotted the awards because of the invasion.
“I didn’t want to visit a country that was bombing Iraq,” he said. “At the time, my producer shut me up and wouldn't allow me to say that, but I don't see it here today.”
The first winner to reference the war was Chris Cooper, who won best supporting actor for his portrayal of the nearly toothless orchid thief in “Adaptation.”
“In light of all the problems in this world, I wish us peace,” he said.
Then things went off the rails.
After Zeta-Jones, nearly nine months pregnant, won the award for her portrayal of vaudevillian villainess Velma Kelly in “Chicago,” Michael Moore took the stage to accept the best documentary award for “Bowling for Columbine.” .
As the other documentary contestants joined him on stage, he said they were making a joint statement: “We are against this war,” he said and was greeted with a chorus of loud boos. (“Music, music!” Oscar broadcast director Louis J. Horvitz was heard shouting.)
“It was so nice behind the scenes,” Steve Martin said a few minutes later. “You should have seen it. The Teamsters help Michael Moore into the trunk of his limousine.
And then came one of the biggest shocks of the evening: Halle Berry announced that Adrien Brody had won best actor for his portrayal of an unlikely Holocaust survivor in Roman Polanski's “The Pianist,” thus ahead of Nicolas Cage, Michael Caine and Daniel Day-Lewis. and Jack Nicholson.
An exuberant Brody – who, at 29, became the youngest actor to win that category – walked on stage, dazed, kissed a surprised Berry (she later said the episode made him uncomfortable) and used his speech to call for peace and the safe return of American soldiers.
“Whether you believe in Allah or God, may he watch over you and pray for a peaceful and speedy resolution to this war,” he said.
Minutes later, the Best Actress award went to Kidman, who, accepting her award, asked, “Why are you coming to the Oscars when the world is in such turmoil?” Because art is important.
Momentum seemed to be building for the “Pianist” best picture after Brody won best actor and Ronald Harwood won best adapted screenplay for the film. Then Polanski, who has not returned to the United States since fleeing while awaiting sentencing for rape, was named best director ahead of favorites Marshall and Scorsese.
The evening ended as expected, however, with “Chicago” winning its sixth statuette, for best picture, making it the first musical to win since “Oliver!” (1968).
Ratings for the ceremony, which lasted three and a half hours and was the first Academy Awards to be broadcast in high definition, showed that it attracted 33 million viewers, making it the most televised Oscar ceremony least watched and lowest rated to date. A significant number of viewers had instead turned to coverage of the war in Iraq.
The references to Iraq that pervaded the evening stood in stark contrast to this season's awards ceremonies, where – after two years in which the war in Ukraine was acknowledged at almost every ceremony – the conflict between Israel and Hamas has remained largely silent.
“It’s too heavy,” studio executive told New York Times awards season columnist Kyle Buchanan last week.. “People worry about their careers.”
Outside the United States, however, actors and filmmakers have been more outspoken. At the BAFTA Awards last month in London, producer James Wilson, accepting the award for best non-English language film for his Holocaust film, “The Zone of Interest,” called for an end to “the selective empathy”, drawing parallels between his film and Israel's bombing and invasion of Gaza strip These last months.
It's unlikely, Dixon-Green said, that we'll see such a bold speech Sunday at the Oscars. But she added that she expected at least one of the winners to refer to either the war or the election.
“There’s just something different about Oscar night,” she said. “Winners – even if it's just one or two brief mentions – feel a responsibility to say something about whatever is happening in our country or the world. »