Chapter 296: The Oscars (Part 1)
Chapter 296: The Oscars (Part 1)
Eric was still comparing the similarities and differences among the three European actresses’ various screen personas while glancing around in search of Isabelle Adjani.
If things had not been altered by Eric’s butterfly effect, then according to the timeline, this actress — who had already won France’s highest film honor, the César Award, multiple times — should have met and fallen passionately in love with Daniel Day-Lewis last year. But now, it was hard to say.
After scanning the room once, Eric still had not found Isabelle Adjani when Virginia poked him in the waist from beside him.
“Eric, it’s Best Supporting Actress.”
Eric quickly shifted his attention back to the stage. At that moment, presenter Kevin Kline had already finished his opening remarks and was beginning to introduce the nominees for Best Supporting Actress.
“The nominees for this year’s Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress are: Brenda Fricker for My Left Foot; Anjelica Huston for Enemies, A Love Story; Lena Olin for Enemies, A Love Story; Julia Roberts for Steel Magnolias; and Dianne Wiest for Parenthood.”
As Kevin Kline introduced them, the five nominees appeared one by one on the large screen behind him.
Although Eric was mildly surprised that Enemies, A Love Story had received two Best Supporting Actress nominations, most of his attention remained fixed on Brenda Fricker, who had been nominated for My Left Foot.
Because My Left Foot was the first truly successful Oscar campaign operated by Miramax. Not only had it earned nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay, but Eric clearly remembered that Daniel Day-Lewis had won his first Academy Award for Best Actor through that film.
As for the results of the other awards, Eric could not remember them too clearly.
Therefore, among the nominees, Brenda Fricker from My Left Foot was undoubtedly the greatest threat to Julia.
When the Oscar nominations had first been announced, Eric had still been trapped in that storm of controversy and unable to spare attention for awards campaigning. Meanwhile, The Walt Disney Company, which was handling distribution for the film, obviously had no intention of campaigning on behalf of Steel Magnolias at the time either.
So now it all depended on whether Robert Shaye — who possessed ten more years of film distribution experience than the Weinstein brothers of Miramax — could outperform the Weinsteins in awards campaigning.
Eric watched Julia’s image on the big screen. The young woman was nervously staring at the stage, though her body leaned slightly sideways.
Curious, Eric located Julia’s actual seat and looked over.
Only then did he realize Julia was leaning closely against Elizabeth. Through the gap between the seats, Eric could even see the two women’s arms linked together. The strange feeling he had sensed earlier at the end of the red carpet surfaced once more.
But before Eric could think further about it, Kevin Kline had already opened the envelope and glanced inside.
“The winner of this year’s Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress is… Julia Roberts.”
Music and applause erupted simultaneously.
In the front rows, Julia covered her mouth in shock and leaned back into her seat. A few moments later, encouraged by the people around her, she finally stood up. After embracing the cast and crew of Steel Magnolias one by one, she walked toward the stage.
Although the young woman never once turned to look at him during the entire process, Eric did not feel angry at all. Instead, he quietly let out a sigh of relief.
At the very least, this result proved that Robert Shaye’s abilities in awards campaigning were not much inferior to those of the Weinstein brothers.
Onstage, Julia carefully cradled her Oscar statuette and delivered her acceptance speech before walking off with the presenters.
What followed was another stretch of relatively unimportant technical awards.
A few minutes later, Julia emerged from the backstage exit on the left side of the stage. When she returned to the film crew’s section, she finally glanced toward Eric. There was a trace of gratitude in her eyes.
But before Eric could respond, a pale arm suddenly grabbed Julia and pulled her away. Elizabeth then turned around and fiercely glared at Eric.
“Eric, did you do something excessive again? Why do Miss Julia and Miss Elizabeth both look like they’re very unhappy with you?” Virginia softly asked after noticing the two women’s reactions.
Eric shot Virginia an annoyed look. “Why use the word ‘again’? Do I often do excessive things?”
Virginia rolled her eyes seductively. “What do you think?”
Eric clasped his hands together and cracked his knuckles loudly. “Sounds like you have quite a few grievances against me. How about coming over to my place tonight so we can properly discuss exactly what those ‘excessive things’ are?”
Hearing that, Virginia’s cheeks flushed slightly, but she did not argue.
Although she lived very close to Eric’s Point Dume estate, Virginia had never actually visited it.
When Eric had first moved, she had either gone to spend the holidays with her parents or had been traveling around promoting The Others. After she finally became free and returned to Los Angeles, Eric had immediately run into that huge controversy storm.
Counting it all up, the two of them had not been intimate for several months.
As a mature woman as ripe as a peach, it would obviously be a lie to say Virginia did not miss it. However, because Eric had made his position clear from the beginning, and because her career in Hollywood had only just begun to improve thanks to The Others, Virginia had never considered leaving Eric.
No matter what, although the young man beside her could be infuriating at times, he was still very considerate most of the time.
After a series of technical awards such as Best Cinematography and Best Sound, the ceremony gradually entered the climax of its latter half.
Following the presentation of Best Cinematography by Tom Hanks and Melanie Griffith, the legendary star of Roman Holiday, Gregory Peck, stepped onto the stage.
Although Sigourney Weaver had received both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress nominations at last year’s Golden Globes for Gorillas in the Mist and Working Girl, Eric was certain such a thing would be very difficult at an awards ceremony of the Oscars’ caliber.
Besides, Julia was only twenty-three years old. In this still fairly conservative Oscar era, winning Best Supporting Actress while also earning a Best Actress nomination was already incredibly fortunate. As for winning both awards simultaneously, the odds were lower than an alien invasion.
While Eric’s thoughts drifted, Gregory Peck had already finished introducing the five nominees for Best Actress.
In many earlier reports, numerous media outlets had predicted that this year’s Best Actress winner would most likely be Jessica Tandy for her outstanding performance in Driving Miss Daisy.
The eighty-one-year-old actress had once been called “The First Lady of Broadway.” That title alone revealed a glimpse of the brilliance of her acting career.
And even without Jessica Tandy, even without Julia having just won Best Supporting Actress, Eric still knew Julia could not win this award.
Because among the nominees there was another formidable competitor: Isabelle Adjani.
In Camille Claudel, Isabelle Adjani’s performance had been nothing short of manic brilliance. Although Hollywood had always discriminated against foreign actors, if there had not been a legendary veteran like Jessica Tandy competing this year, the Academy would undoubtedly have handed the award to Isabelle Adjani.
Onstage, Gregory Peck slowly opened the envelope.
Amid the tense anticipation of the audience, he announced the name that had become almost inevitable the moment he — rather than last year’s Best Actor winner Dustin Hoffman — had walked onto the stage.
“The winner of this year’s Academy Award for Best Actress is: Jessica Tandy.”
Applause once again thundered throughout the hall.
The white-haired elderly woman slowly rose to her feet and, amid the congratulations of the Driving Miss Daisy cast and crew, made her way onto the stage.
Like everyone else, Eric looked toward the Driving Miss Daisy crew. His gaze settled on the film’s male lead, Morgan Freeman.
This Hollywood veteran had begun performing on stage at the age of eight, yet his path to stardom had been extraordinarily difficult. It was not until 1987, at the age of fifty, that Morgan Freeman finally began gaining recognition in Hollywood. He was truly one of Hollywood’s most legendary “late bloomers.”
After Jessica Tandy delivered her speech, she slowly left the stage with assistance from the presenters.
Host Billy Crystal immediately walked back onto the stage.
He silently watched until Jessica Tandy and the others completely disappeared backstage. Only then did Billy Crystal turn toward the microphone and clear his throat.
This time, instead of joking around, he spoke with unusual seriousness.
“Without question, Driving Miss Daisy is an extraordinary film, and it also created two extraordinary actors. Besides the recently departed Miss Jessica Tandy, there is also Mr. Morgan Freeman, who is seated among us tonight.
“Mr. Morgan Freeman is fifty-three years old this year. If we add Miss Jessica Tandy’s age, then this leading actor and actress pair, with an average age of sixty-seven, is undoubtedly the oldest lead pair in Oscar history among films nominated simultaneously for Best Actor and Best Actress.”
As soon as Billy Crystal finished speaking, respectful applause immediately filled the hall.
Meanwhile, although Morgan Freeman still maintained an upright and composed posture in the camera shot, the excitement in his expression was impossible to conceal.
After all, from the day he began his acting career to the day he finally received recognition, those decades had truly been unimaginably long.