The elegant James Franco strode onto the stage, stood in front of the microphone, and flashed a charming smile. He was undoubtedly a handsome guy.
"The five actresses vying for Best Supporting Actress are all uniquely talented. Four of them are first-time Oscar nominees, each showcasing indelible talent."
James Franco turned slightly to look at the large screen behind him and said, "The nominees for Best Supporting Actress are: Bérénice Bejo for 'The Artist,' Jessica Chastain for 'The Help,' Octavia Spencer for 'The Help,' Melissa McCarthy for 'Bridesmaids,' and Margot Robbie for 'Diego Ross.'"
Murphy glanced at Margot Robbie. She was tightly gripping Gal Gadot's hand, looking very nervous.
For an actress born in the '90s, winning a Best Supporting Actress award at this age would be a significant career boost.
Initially, Murphy didn't think Margot Robbie had much of a chance. However, since the Academy had chosen James Franco to present the award instead of last year's Best Supporting Actor, there might be a reason for that. Could it be due to the relationship with the winner?
"The Oscar goes to..." James Franco opened the envelope and announced, "Octavia Spencer for 'The Help!'"
The theater was silent for a second before bursting into applause.
Margot Robbie exhaled. She wasn't particularly disappointed since she had mentally prepared herself beforehand. She clapped along with Gal Gadot.
Seeing the older Black woman walk towards the stage, Murphy could only sigh. The Oscars were still the Oscars, always politically correct and respectful of elders.
If he wasn't mistaken, Octavia Spencer was the oldest nominee in the Best Supporting Actress category. Considering the nickname for the Best Supporting awards, her win wasn't surprising.
The Best Supporting Actor and Actress awards are often referred to as the "Consolation Prizes for the Elderly."
Octavia Spencer was old enough and also a Black woman...
Losing the Best Supporting Actress award, which wasn't part of their plan, the "Diego Ross" team seemed to be cursed. They lost the Best Makeup and Best Art Direction awards next, both to Martin Scorsese's "Hugo."
Then it was time for the Best Original Screenplay award.
Angelina Jolie announced loudly from the stage, "The Oscar for Best Original Screenplay goes to... Michel Hazanavicius for 'The Artist!'"
The "Artist" team erupted in cheers. They had already won Best Score and Best Sound Editing, and now with the Best Original Screenplay award, their total number of statuettes reached three!
Murphy noticed Harvey Weinstein looking their way again. Murphy had also been nominated for Best Original Screenplay, and now losing to "The Artist" in this category, the big Jewish man's eyes showed a hint of smugness.
However, unlike those around him, Murphy remained calm. He directly met Harvey Weinstein's gaze, unafraid and unyielding. Even if he lost this year, there was always next time. He could outlast Harvey Weinstein if necessary.
Harvey Weinstein averted his gaze. There was no need to match stares with a loser. With "The Artist" leading "Diego Ross" three to one in statuettes, Murphy's team had only won one award and lost three nominations.
"It seems the Academy plans to make him a runner-up again," Bob Weinstein whispered. "So they threw 'Diego Ross' a Best Cinematography award as a consolation."
Harvey Weinstein nodded his big head, "That's highly likely."
The ceremony continued. On the internet discussion forums, people were complaining. They were dissatisfied with Murphy's team not winning more awards and bored with the ceremony reverting to its old ways.
"After the first fifteen minutes, it's been boring except for Billy Crystal's jokes."
"Political correctness again, and consoling the elderly. This is Hollywood's most important film award, not a senior citizens' appreciation society!"
"The Academy claims to change every year, but it's always the same old thing, constantly nostalgic. Who even remembers those old films!"
Seeing this, Daisy thought for a moment and wrote in the forum, "Another reason is the nominated films are too unfamiliar. 'Hugo,' 'The Descendants,' 'The Tree of Life,' 'The Artist'... how many have you seen?"
Many responded.
"I haven't seen any of them, so I have no interest in the awards."
"I watched 'The Descendants,' but I left halfway through. It was too dull."
"Right, I watched it too. The pacing was slower than 'Diego Ross.'"
Daisy analyzed for them, "If you haven't seen the movies, you won't appreciate how good they are. Naturally, you won't care if they win, and it becomes boring."
If it weren't for Murphy, she wouldn't be watching the Oscars either.
Inside the Dolby Theatre, awards were presented one after another. Films like "The Descendants," "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," and "Midnight in Paris" each had their wins. However, the Oscar's viewership continued to decline.
It's undeniable that aside from humor, the Oscars love nostalgia, aligning with the tastes of the Academy's core members. Each ceremony is filled with lengthy nostalgic segments.
For younger viewers, these nostalgic segments are tasteless and boring.
Nielsen Ratings Company was monitoring the viewership of this year's Oscars. When Sean Connery took the stage and the screen turned black and white, marking another nostalgic segment, a Nielsen representative reported the viewership numbers.
"North American viewership has dropped from 35 million to 31 million..."
A minute later, still in the nostalgic segment, he reported again, "Now it's 29 million!"
Every minute, he updated the viewership numbers, showing that nostalgia was indeed a ratings killer, "28 million, 27 million, 26.5 million. It's approaching the lowest viewership in the last decade!"
Fortunately, the nostalgic segment ended after five minutes, and the following Best Supporting Actor award brought the viewership back up.
The Academy clearly wasn't foolish. Knowing that audiences disliked such segments, they had planned to save the show with the Best Supporting Actor award. This also highlighted the Academy's stubborn and conservative nature, clinging to unpopular segments even though they knew better.
When the elderly Christopher Plummer won Best Supporting Actor for "Beginners," a film most hadn't heard of, the Oscars' viewership finally climbed back above 30 million.
This highlighted a severe issue the Oscars faced in the new century. With the increasing flow of information and entertainment options, the ceremony's ratings continued to fall, often hitting new lows since the '70s.
Saving the Oscars' ratings wasn't difficult. Choosing more broadly appealing films could easily solve the problem. For instance, since the '90s, the highest-rated Oscars were the 70th ceremony, lifted by "Titanic."
However, the Academy's choices often diverged from the general audience's tastes.
A single Best Supporting Actor award barely brought the ratings back up. Saving the Oscars' ratings wasn't a task for a film like "Beginners," seen by less than a million people.
In terms of viewership and box office, "Diego Ross," despite making under $60 million in North America, was still ahead of all Best Picture nominees.
After the commercial break, a Nielsen representative was surprised to find the ratings not only steady but rising, nearing 35 million.
"The next award is Best Editing," his assistant reminded. "Murphy Stanton is nominated!"
The representative realized, "No wonder the ratings are rising. Hollywood's best young director of the 21st century might win!"
In the Dolby Theatre, Murphy saw another familiar face on stage. Seth Rogen swaggered to the microphone.
"Famed director Ridley Scott once said that the collaboration between a film editor and a director is like a marriage."
The Stanton gang seemed to have learned some of Murphy's traits. Seth Rogen skipped the fluff and went straight to the prepared script, "Like a marriage, they huddle in a dark room without windows, sharing takeout, watching others' home movies."
He made a small joke, eliciting laughter from the audience.
This chubby guy had a unique talent for creating humor.
After the joke, Seth Rogen stepped aside, looking at the screen, "The nominees for Best Editing are..."
The screen began showing clips of the nominated films, "Michel Hazanavicius for 'The Artist.'"
Hearing this name, Murphy remembered that like him, Hazanavicius was both director and editor.
The voice continued, "Thelma Schoonmaker for 'Hugo,' Murphy Stanton for 'Diego Ross'..."
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