The Oscars Academy promised more diversity in the winners. For its 89th edition, the prestigious Hollywood ceremony opened to diversity on Sunday, February 26, rewarding several actors and directors who were black or Muslim. Many messages of fraternity and calls for tolerance were made at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles.
Statements against Donald Trump
The evening was marked by numerous statements against U.S President Donald Trump, in particular, his anti-immigration policy. "We are very welcoming to foreigners in Hollywood," explained the master of ceremony, Jimmy Kimmel, host of an evening talk show.
In the first few minutes, the Italian-born artist Alessandro Bertolazzi, who received the award for best make-up and the best hairstyle for the film "Suicide Squad," expressed his anger about the anti-immigration decree saying "This is for all immigrants."
Iranian director Asghar Farhadi rewarded
Another highlight of the ceremony, "Le Client," a French co-production by the Iranian Asghar Farhadi, received the Oscar for the best foreign-language film, even though the director of this feature boycotted the ceremony to protest against President Trump's migratory decree, which targeted seven Muslim-majority countries including Iran. The Oscar awards were handed out in-between jokes and attacks about the U.S President Donald Trump.
Award-winning black actors and directors
#Oscars 2017: Here's the complete list of winnershttps://t.co/MIFoxKXrxm pic.twitter.com/L3uQqN5gW9
— ABP News (@abpnewstv) February 27, 2017
After the controversy of the 2016 edition marked by a lack of diversity in nominations, six actors and black actresses were nominated this year for the Oscars, a record.
The African-American Viola Davis, in red dress and tears, won the Sunday evening award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in "Fences" by Denzel Washington.
As for the movie "Moonlight," filmed for only 1.5 million dollars with a black cast - it received three statuettes: the Oscar for the best film, the best adaptation, and the best supporting actor for the actor Mahershala Ali, who became the first Muslim actor to receive this prestigious statuette.
