“My Eyes See Oppenheimer” – Al Pacino Delivered Another Chaotic Best Picture Winner Announcement At The Oscars

Matt Fitzgerald·
CULTURE
·
Al Pacino Oscars
ABC

At least he got the movie correct. Legendary actor Al Pacino didn’t quite have a “La La Land instead of Moonlight“-level gaffe while announcing Oppenheimer as Best Picture winner at The Oscars on Sunday night, but thanks to a most unconventional delivery, he got everyone out of the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles about five minutes early.

That’s because Pacino revealed Oppenheimer right out of the gates. Zero chill. Suspense immediately sucked out of the room. No need to highlight any of the other Best Picture nominees. Get on with it, right? And the thing is, nobody is going to give Al Pacino too much sh*t for this, because he is a national treasure who was instrumental in changing the face of contemporary acting as we all know it.

However, maybe The Academy could’ve been a little clearer in stating the objectives for awarding Best Picture to Pacino before he walked onto the stage. Then again, perhaps he couldn’t be bothered at this point in his life to give a damn. Like, “What do you want me to do? Just walk out there, read the award, say goodnight? I got it.”

All we can really do is speculate about what happened that led to this, um, abbreviated ending. At least it provided viewers with the gift of an instantly iconic, unforgettable Oscars moment.

I love how Pacino says right at the end, “What happened?”

I think it was Pacino who once eloquently stated the difference between acting on camera versus acting in the theatre. That is, stage acting is a high-wire act with no safety net, whereas on-camera acting gives you the security of another take. In this instance, those two art forms crossed over to create something epic.

Isn’t that what’s great about The Oscars in the first place? Live TV, baby!! You never know what you’re gonna get. Whether it’s both Oscar-nominated Barbie songs bringing the house down with live performances, or a wild, naked John Cena presenting Best Costume Design, anything can happen!

Not much left for me to do here, save for directing you to some funny reactions to Pacino’s gaffe. Which again, to be abundantly clear, we’ve already forgiven him for. Not like he, you know, slapped another grown man across the face or anything. Hope all this helps your impending, inevitable case of the Mondays, dear reader.

If you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing Pacino act in his prime, or even some of the excellent work he put out later in his career, might I recommend my personal favorite of somewhat recent years? I swear I’m not saying what I’m about to say 100% in jest. What you’ll hopefully lay eyes and ears upon in the video below shows Pacino flexing his comedic chops, his surprisingly nimble aptitude for choreography, and his willingness to commit to strong choices as a performer, no matter the context. Salute this man.

Also, the La La Land and Moonlight controversy is even more awkward than I remember.

A beer bottle on a dock

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