{"id":505692,"date":"2026-01-10T08:08:22","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T08:08:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/505692\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T08:08:22","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T08:08:22","slug":"afi-awards-brings-out-more-stars-than-ever-oscar-campaigning-heats-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/505692\/","title":{"rendered":"AFI Awards Brings Out More Stars Than Ever; Oscar Campaigning Heats Up"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tA column chronicling conversations and events on the awards circuit. <\/strong><\/p>\n

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\n\tOne of the most anticipated and fun awards shows of any season is the annual luncheon the American Film Institute throws at the Beverly Hills Four Seasons to show off its prestigious selections for the year\u2019s best 10 movies<\/a> and television programs<\/a>. Friday\u2019s event was no different and, coming just days before Oscar nomination balloting begins, it was well-timed to give boosts to those films chosen in an intimate room with lots of Academy voters watching the exceptionally well-chosen clips and kind words from the podium about each one of them, delivered this year for the first time by Ava Duvernay, who told me she thought this was a great year for movies.<\/p>\n

\n\tThis is an event where none of the producers, actors or filmmakers invited have to get up and make a speech. There are no long acceptances, only good vibes since everyone in this exclusive room is a winner, certainly a relief since every other show \u2014 starting with last weekend\u2019s Critics Choice Awards<\/a> and moving on with Sunday\u2019s Golden Globes<\/a> \u2014 start to divide the winners from those who, uh, don\u2019t win.<\/p>\n

\n\tRELATED: AFI Awards Luncheon Photos: Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ariana Grande\u00a0& More Celebrate Year\u2019s Best Movies & TV Shows<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tSteven Spielberg works the room at the AFI Luncheon<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPete Hammond\/Deadline<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThis is one of my favorite awards events. The others make you sweat a bit because you don\u2019t know who won,\u201d Hamnet producer Steven Spielberg told me as he was greeting old friends packed into the small ballroom. I told him that on Monday I had moderated an Academy screening at the DGA for Hamnet with nine artists on the panel. It was a big hit with the sold-out crowd, which pleased him. I said I was looking forward to seeing his latest film, Disclosure Day, due this summer. \u201cThat\u2019s why I was late today because I was viewing special effects for it. It took a while,\u201d he laughed.<\/p>\n

\n\tSpielberg got a special shout-out during AFI President and CEO Bob Gazzale\u2019s welcoming remarks after the great sizzle reel showcasing all this year\u2019s honored films and TV shows. \u201cWe have two AFI Life Achievement Award recipients in the house today. The first starred in a movie this year about receiving a life achievement award, George Clooney. The second may be the very first to receive a second AFI Life Achievement Award, Steven Spielberg,\u201d he said referring to the fact that Spielberg was so young when he got his first AFI career award 30 years ago in 1995 (!).<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tFrom left: Mia Goth, Guillermo del Toro, Scott Stuber and Jacob Elordi <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRodin Eckenroth\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\n\tGazzale began with some poignant remarks: \u201cOur hearts are mixed. \u2026 We began this year with a fire, and then we said goodbye to a legend, Robert Redford, and Diane Keaton, and Rob and Michele [Reiner]. And with so much loss, why are we celebrating today? Because we need you. We need your stories to help us make sense of emotions that we cannot escape. Nor should we escape them. We\u2019re human. We need each other. So this gathering is our annual embrace to say thank you and to say we love you.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tFrom left: Ethan Hawke, George Clooney and Gwyneth Paltrow<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJC Olivera\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\n\tAFI founder George Stevens Jr. received a standing ovation when he was mentioned by Gazzale, as did Carol Burnett, who delivered a short benediction at show\u2019s end. But it was the movies and shows that did the heavy lifting with terrific clips from each including on the film side Avatar: Fire and Ash, Bugonia, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Jay Kelly, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, Sinners, Train Dreams and Wicked: For Good, plus a special award to Jafar Panahi\u2019s It Was Just an Accident. The Iranian director was in the room right at the table next to mine. TV programs honored were Adolescence, Andor, Death by Lightning, The Diplomat, The Lowdown, The Pitt, Pluribus, Severance, The Studio and Task. <\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\t\u2018Frankenstein\u2019 star Jacob Elordi<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPete Hammond\/Deadline<\/p>\n

\n\tGazzale told me as I walked in that this was one of the starriest turnouts they\u2019ve ever had. Among those at various tables dedicated to each honored achievement were Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Guillermo del Toro, Jacob Elordi, Jessie Buckley, Chlo\u00e9 Zhao, Adam Sandler, Laura Dern, Leonardo DiCaprio<\/a>, Benicio Del Toro, Michael B. Jordan, Ryan Coogler, Joel Edgerton, Ariana Grande, Jeff Goldblum, Stephen Graham, Diego Luna, Ethan Hawke, Rhea Seehorn, Adam Scott, Seth Rogen, Vince Gilligan, Gwyneth Paltrow and Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet, to name just a few. I complimented Chalamet on his astounding performance in Marty Supreme, and mentioned I loved getting about 200 of those orange promotional ping pong balls from A24. My cat Weezie just discovered them.<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tAriana Grande at the AFI Luncheon<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPete Hammond\/Deadline<\/p>\n

\n\tJust before producer David Heyman went over to chat with Ted Sarandos, whose Netflix made his film, Jay Kelly, I asked him about the search for the new James Bond. He and Amy Pascal are producing the next movie, and I had seen somewhere \u2014 maybe GMA? \u2014 that Callum Turner was zeroing in on the role but didn\u2019t get that specific with him. \u201cIs it true you have a Bond or just a rumor?\u201d I asked. \u201cTotal rumor, don\u2019t believe anything. There is no truth to it,\u201d he said adamantly.<\/p>\n

\n\tRELATED: Golden Globes Parties + Events Photos: Louis Vuitton & W Magazine, Golden Eve And The Red Carpet Rollout<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tI got a chance to catch up with Frank Marshall and AFI Board of Trustees Chair Kathleen Kennedy, who said they had just watched Spain\u2019s official Oscar entry, Sir\u00e2t, and were blown away by it. It has been shortlisted<\/a> in five categories and could surprise Oscar nominations day. I saw it in Cannes and remember every tense moment of it. Marshall, a fine documentarian among other producing and directing talents, is in the midst of doing a docu on Barbra Streisand. He said it is going great, and he already has done a couple of interviews with her and has one more to go. Can\u2019t wait for that one.<\/p>\n

\n\tGoing to an AFI lunch is like going to a high school reunion. Everyone has been on the same trail a good part of the year, and this was a chance to get together with one another. The energy and sheer joy about movies in this room was palpable. It always is.<\/p>\n

\n\tCRUNCH TIME<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tIt isn\u2019t enough that the next three days are chock-full of awards events leading up to the Globes on Sunday, it also is just three days now before the 10,000-plus eligible members of the Motion Picture Academy start voting for their nominations that represent what this whole long season has really been all about. (Ballots go live Monday and are due back at 5 p.m. PT Friday, January 16.) Thus it is the last \u201cpush,\u201d and that doesn\u2019t just include today\u2019s AFI Awards<\/a> but also the BAFTA Tea on Saturday in the exact same room at the Four Seasons and where plenty of British and other Academy and BAFTA voters will get a lot of gladhanding from contenders who make this a must-stop. Around the corner at the Beverly Wilshire a couple of hours later, the AARP\u2019s Movies for Grownups Awards tapes its televised PBS show, handing out trophies to contenders who have made it past age 50. And there is so much more.<\/p>\n

\n\tRELATED: How To Watch The Golden Globes On TV And Online<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Oscar<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty Images<\/p>\n

\n\tFriday night Donna Langley hosts a \u201ctoast\u201d to the season at Mother Wolf in Hollywood, and Neon will have a reception for all its international hopefuls at Sunset Tower. Saturday, before the British Tea gets underway, Film Independent will be celebrating its Indie Spirit nominees at The London, competing against a musical event in Beverly Hills at a piano store to highlight Steven Schwartz. He has two new Wicked songs hoping to nab two of the five Best Song Oscar slots. He\u2019ll be performing there a bit too.<\/p>\n

\n\tThere are also events for everything from Hamnet to Zootopia 2 to Sinners to Frankenstein to Marty Supreme to, well, one contender after another. The guild nominees and the BAFTA longlista<\/a> have narrowed the field to a degree, but with so many people in town and so little time to get them in front of Oscar voters, this is crunch time, and campaign consultants are wasting no time doing just that.<\/p>\n

\n\tLEONARD MALTIN<\/a>: THE CRITICS\u2019 CRITIC<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tAt the Critics Choice Awards Night Before party last Saturday, I was honored and thrilled to present CCA\u2019s rarely awarded Critics Critic Award to the esteemed movie critic, film historian, author and true film fan \u2014 and my pal \u2014 Leonard Maltin. This was the first time the organization has done this in moer than two decades, the last recipient being the late great Joel Siegel, and it was about time we found someone in our midst who was so worthy. About 250 members came to the Fairmont Miramar in Santa Monica to toast Leonard, who said all the love was a bit overwhelming. I began working with him at Entertainment Tonight in the \u201980s, and we have been BFFs ever since (my wife and I are godparents to his daughter Jessie).<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLeonard Maltin and Pete Hammond<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy<\/p>\n

\n\tWith granddaughter Daisy making many new friends in the room, Leonard said he was honored. \u201cI\u2019m blessed by good timing. I came up at a very good time,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople think that with the democratization of the internet \u2014 the elimination of the so-called gatekeepers \u2014 anyone can publish a book now, anyone can make a movie, put them online, write reviews. But I was fortunate to be of the generation when you sort of had to prove yourself, and you did have to please the gatekeepers, and that was the validation. But all that gives me purpose. It gives me reason to continue doing what I\u2019m doing. If I can help make a good filmmaker\u2019s work known to more people, I get great satisfaction from that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A column chronicling conversations and events on the awards circuit. One of the most anticipated and fun awards…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":505693,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[226495,171,226496,13618,226497,15801,32771,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-505692","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-afi-awards","9":"tag-entertainment","10":"tag-leonard-maltin","11":"tag-leonardo-dicaprio","12":"tag-notes-on-the-season","13":"tag-oscars","14":"tag-timothee-chalamet","15":"tag-united-states","16":"tag-unitedstates","17":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115869785285695674","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=505692"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505692\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/505693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=505692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=505692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=505692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}