Award Shows February 26, 2017
Faye Dunaway’s Response to Oscars 2017 Snafu: ‘Warren Is the Right One’
Getty
After the Oscars were handed out, all the stars headed to the Governor's Ball. “Extra's” Jerry Penacoli spoke with some of the big names, many of whom were still stunned by how the show ended. In a moment that will go down as one of the most shocking in Oscar history, "Moonlight" was named Best Picture, but only after "La La Land” was mistakenly announced the winner first.
Jordan Horowitz, one of the producers of “La La Land,” had already finished his acceptance speech when “Moonlight” was announced as the rightful Best Picture. As for what was going on in his mind, he told Jerry that he "hasn't wrapped my head around it... still surreal.” He added that Emma Stone's name was on the card inside the envelope.
Though Horowitz had to hand the award back, he emphasized, “I got to thank my wife and son, I got to accept an Academy Award and then I got to give an Academy Award to my good friends from 'Moonlight.' I got to be a winner and a presenter — it was a real two-fer of a night.”
Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway read the wrong winner, and Beatty still seemed to be at a loss for words when asked what went down onstage, telling Jerry, “I don't know!”
Of the blunder, Faye seemingly pointed the finger at Warren, saying, "I'm not going to speak of that. Warren is the right one."
"Moonlight" director Barry Jenkins had no hard feelings about what went down, elaborating, "It's human. Things happen... I just felt extreme compassion for Jordan. The first thing I did was go offstage and give him a hug.”
“Moonlight” stars Trevante Rhodes and Ashton Sanders were excited to win, but pointed out that they are appreciative of the “La La Land” team for being part of the journey with them.
David Oyelowo, who presented during the ceremony, shared, “It was like watching the Super Bowl. It was crazy.” He thought the mix-up was a joke at first, saying, “Tough way to find out you lost, and tough way to find out you won.”
Jim Parsons, who appeared in “Hidden Figures,” revealed that he heard a guy on a headset, yelling, "'Moonlight! Moonlight!'”
On Monday morning, the accounting firm that handles the winning Oscars envelopes, PricewatershouseCoopers, apologized for the big mistake. In a statement to "Extra," the firm said, “We sincerely apologize to 'Moonlight,' 'La La Land,' Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, and Oscar viewers for the error that was made during the award announcement for Best Picture. The presenters had mistakenly been given the wrong category envelope and when discovered, was immediately corrected. We are currently investigating how this could have happened, and deeply regret that this occurred. We appreciate the grace with which the nominees, the Academy, ABC, and Jimmy Kimmel handled the situation."
