From Conan O’Brien’s hosting to Indie and original releases’ dominance, this year’s Oscars was received pretty well among the film community, at least for the most part. The Emilia Pérez movie, which has been at the center of controversy since nabbing four Golden Globe wins, caused a massive uproar after landing a whopping 13 nods at the Oscars.
Although the film did end up losing in most categories, including Best Picture and Best International Picture, some felt Karla Sofía Gascón’s resurfaced tweets might’ve contributed to the Academy voters’ final verdict. But even if this wasn’t the case, Netflix head Ted Sarandos wasn’t completely assured if the film would’ve been a slam dunk hit at the Oscars otherwise.
Ted Sarandos wasn’t completely sold on the prospect of Emilia Pérez winning
While the debate surrounding its quality is up for debate, most vehemently detested Emilia Pérez‘s overwhelming Oscar nods, especially when films like Challengers and All We Imagine as Light were completely glossed over. The outcry certainly escalated after the lead star’s controversial tweets resurfaced on the web, and even Conan O’Brien would end up taking an amusing jab at Karla Sofía Gascón at the Award ceremony.
Even though it can’t be said for certain if the Academy voters were swayed by her controversial tweets, especially the ones against the Academy itself, even if this wasn’t the case, Ted Sarandos wasn’t certain if they had it in the bag. The Netflix head further pushed back against what-if scenarios, as given the competitive nature of the 97th Academy Awards, the prospect of it 100% nabbing a win in other scenarios “was never a slam dunk”.
He added (via Variety):
I hate that question, because it creates all of these what-if’s. It was the frontrunner, but it was never a slam dunk that “Emilia Pérez” — with all its innovation and thrills — would win best picture. It was a great movie, a great campaign, and I’m bummed we had all that what-if’s thrown at us.
On the bright side, the controversy surrounding the film didn’t overshadow the celebration of the medium, as opposed to the rise of corporate-dominating movies, it was the passion-driven Indie films that dominated the night.
Academy is doubling down on its biggest positive from this year
One of the biggest highlights of this year’s Oscars was the inclusion of Conan O’Brien, arguably one of the most iconic Late Night hosts of this generation. Moreover, following his slam dunk success at the Oscars, the Late Night host is now gearing up for a second round, as the Academy unveiled that O’Brien will return to host the 98th Acadedmy to hear the conclusion to Adrien Brody’s speech. In his true fashion, the beloved TV figure added (via Variety):
The only reason I’m hosting the Oscars next year is that I want to hear Adrien Brody finish his speech.
Considering mid-budget movies were on the verge of becoming obsolete at the mainstream level a few years back, given their dominance in recent years, it seems like cinema’s future isn’t dark after all in the face of corporate greed.
Emilia Pérez is available to stream on Netflix.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
