For the first time since 1961, a champagne-coloured carpet – instead of the traditional red runner – has been rolled out for this year’s 95th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in downtown Los Angeles.
As the stars of all the biggest block-buster movies, documentaries and and song scores paraded their designer gowns on Monday from 8am, it was Jamie Lee Curtis, 64, from Everything Everywhere All at Once who gave the best advice ahead of the big dance.
After six months of ceremonies – beginning with the Venice Film Festival last September – it’s all coming to an end when the official ceremony starts at 11am (AEDT).
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‘Just relax’
With husband Christopher Guest wearing an encrusted Dolce & Gabbana column dress with long sleeves, she told E!’s Laverne Cox the key piece of advice she’d give to her younger self ahead of her big break in 1978’s Halloween.
“Relax, I would tell everybody just relax,” Jamie Lee shared.
“I think we all walk around so clinched, so filled with tension. The world is so crazy, so difficult and my goal in life now as an old lady is just to say relax, you are enough. This is a perfect moment right now, call off the search. Just relax.”
The champagne carpet – which was already getting muddied behind the scenes – is not the only big change this year, with organisers requesting all staff, press and publicists wear dark blue or black and the addition of an Academy Award “crisis team.”
“I think the decision to go with a champagne carpet rather than a red carpet shows how confident we are that no blood will be shed,” joked Oscar host Jimmy Kimmel at the unrolling ceremony last week, in reference to the infamous Slapgate incident on stage.
The other obvious difference will be exactly who presents the best actress Oscar.
Traditionally, the best actor winner from the previous year, this being Will Smith (King Richard), would be the one handing that out.
However, after he slapped host and comedian Chris Rock on stage after he made a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s alopecia, he was immediately banned from all events hosted by the academy for a decade.
The Academy has yet to announce who will present that award this year.
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Also for the first time, the Academy has created a crisis team to respond to any mishaps at Monday’s ceremony.
“It is our hope that we will be prepared for anything,” Academy chief executive Bill Kramer told Time magazine in a recent interview.
“Because of last year, we’ve opened our minds to the many things that can happen at the Oscars.”
Security is tight at the Dolby, with law enforcement closing off several blocks around the theatre and the red carpet.
Show producers Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner said they hope to keep the spotlight this time on the year’s nominated movies and the people who brought them to life.
“I don’t think anybody is particularly looking to harp too much on what’s happened in the past,” Weiss said.
In a departure from recent years when the Academy nominated many little-seen films, the field of best picture contenders features many of the biggest box-office hits of 2022.
They include Avatar: The Way of Water, Top Gun: Maverick, Elvis and Everything Everywhere All at Once.
“We’re there to entertain and to highlight the great movies this year, many of which people have seen, which is great for us,” Kirshner said.
Pop superstar Rihanna will sing her nominated song Lift Me Up from Wakanda Forever and Variety reported Lady Gaga was making a last-minute appearance to sing her Top Gun: Maverick anthem Hold My Hand.
Stephanie Hsu, David Byrne and the band Son Lux will perform This is a Life from Everything Everywhere.
Natuu Natuu singers Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava also will appear with their song from Indian action film RRR.
Here’s a few stars making early arrivals.
