Brad Pitt and Laura Dern completed their sweeps of major award shows Sunday evening by collecting Oscars for their supporting roles in “Once Upon A Time in Hollywood” and “Marriage Story,” respectively.
The performance wins were career firsts for both, although Pitt previously won an Oscar as a producer of best-picture winner “12 Years a Slave.”
Pitt, 56, was honored for his portrayal of stuntman Cliff Booth in writer/director Quentin Tarantino’s Manson-era fable “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.”
Pitt credited Tarantino for the win.
“You are original, you are one of a kind,” he said on stage at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood during the 92nd Oscars ceremony. “The film industry would be a much drier place without you and I loved the ethos you gave Cliff Booth — look for the best in people, expect the worst but look for the best.”
To his co-star, Leonardo DiCaprio, he added, “Leo, I’ll ride on your coattails any day, man. The view is fantastic.” He also gave a shoutout to an often unheralded group, saying, “I think it’s time we give a little love to our stunt coordinators and our stunt crews.”
But he also reminisced about his time growing up watching movies, moving to Hollywood and getting his big break in film.
“All the wonderful people I’ve met along the way, to stand here now — `Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’? Ain’t that the truth,” he said.
Laura Dern collected her first career Oscar for her supporting role as a divorce attorney in writer/director Noah Baumbach’s Netflix film “Marriage Story.” She won the award on the eve of her 53rd birthday.
“Noah wrote a movie about love and about breaching divisions in the name and in the honor of family and home and hopefully for all of us in the name of our planet,” she said. “… You know, some say never meet your heroes, but I say if you’re really blessed, you get them as your parents. I share this with my acting heroes, my legends, Diane Ladd and Bruce Dern. You got game. I love you.
“Thank you all for this gift. This is the best birthday present ever.”
Bong Joon Ho and Han Jin Won took home the Oscar for penning the South Korean psychological thriller “Parasite.” It was the first career Oscar win for both.
With the help of an interpreter, Bong Joon Ho said, “Writing a script is always such a lonely process, we never write to represent our countries,” but he dedicated the Oscar to South Korea.
“I thank my wife for always being an inspiration to me,” he said. “I thank all the actors who are here with me today for brining this film to life. Thank you.”
For adapted screenplay, the prize went to Taika Waititi for the World War II satire “Jojo Rabbit.”
“I’d like thank my mother,” he said. “… Thank you for being my mother, and for, I mean, many other reasons — for giving me the book that I adapted, and this film wouldn’t have existed without you doing that.”
“Toy Story 4” won the Oscar for best animated feature.
The Oscar for best documentary feature went to “American Factory,” the story of a Chinese production company operating in a former General Motors plant in Ohio. The Netflix film, produced by Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert and Jeff Reichert, was the first made under Barack and Michelle Obama’s production house, Higher Ground Productions. The Obamas were not in attendance at the ceremony.
For the second year in a row, the Oscar ceremony was held without a host. Instead, the show opened with singer/actress Janelle Monae walking onto a “Mister Rogers” apartment set, putting on a sweater and breaking into a modified rendition of “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” She then broke into an upbeat movie-themed musical performance that brought the crowd to his feet.
Comedians — and former Oscar hosts — Steve Martin and Chris Rock then took the stage to warm up the crowd. Martin ended the bit by saying, “Well, we’ve had a great time not hosting tonight.”