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Actor Al Pacino attempted to explain his awkward and abrupt announcement of “Oppenheimer” as the best picture winner at the Academy Awards, saying in a statement Monday that producers had decided he would not read the full list of nominees.
“I just want to make it clear that it was not my intention to omit them, but rather a decision by the producers not to say them again, as they were highlighted individually throughout the ceremony,” Pacino said in the statement. “I was honored to be a part of the evening and chose to follow the way they wanted this award to be presented.”
Instead of the typical preamble to the night’s biggest announcement, Pacino omitted the usual “And the Oscar goes to,” followed by a dramatic pause, and instead opened the envelope and proclaimed, “And my eyes see ‘Oppenheimer ‘”. That led to what seemed to be a moment of uncertainty that soon subsided when the film’s cast and crew, including its director, Christopher Nolan, realized they had won and began to take the stage.
The show’s disappointing finale became fodder for online chatter and social media memes as viewers tried to figure out if something had gone wrong. (Comparisons to the confusion between “Moonlight” and “La La Land” as best picture of 2017 were perhaps inevitable, but the temporary confusion at Sunday’s ceremony did not come close to reaching those levels.)
In an interview with varietyOne of the show’s producers, Molly McNearney, said that Pacino’s introduction was “always supposed to be quick” because the show had included video packages for each of the 10 nominees during the night, and that there were fears that the transmission will be passed. his allotted time.
McNearney acknowledged in the interview that the unconventional presentation had “made it a little confusing,” but said that “that’s the thrill of live television.”
After Sunday night’s ceremony, Bill Kramer, the academy’s chief executive, said in an interview that he was pleased with Pacino’s performance. “Everything went very well,” Kramer said. “He was just having fun up there.”
Pacino, who won the best actor Oscar for his role in the 1992 film “Scent of a Woman” and has been nominated eight other times, said he had felt the need to make a statement about the reaction to his speech because he “deeply felt “relates” to filmmakers, actors and producers who might feel underappreciated.
“I realize that being nominated is a huge milestone in one’s life and that not being fully recognized is offensive and hurtful,” he said in the statement.
Nicole Sperling and Matt Stevens contributed reports.