Ryan Gosling performs onstage during the live ABC telecast of the 96th Oscars® at the Dolby® Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 10, 2024. Photo by Trae Patton.

Highlights Onstage and Backstage at the Oscars®

By Janet Susan R. Nepales

“Barbie” may have been shut out of the Oscars, but Barbie’s Ken, Ryan Gosling, saved the show.

Dressed in glittery pink pants and suit ensemble, Gosling sang “I’m Just Ken” and performed with 62 other Kens onstage, including some of his cast mates – Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Scott Evans. Surprise guests at the performance were the producer and co-writer of the song, Mark Ronson, who played a pink guitar, Guns ‘N’ Roses guitar legend Slash, and Wolfgang Van Halen of Mammoth WVH, who played rhythm guitar.

Another memorable appearance was a naked John Cena, who presented the Best Costume Design ironically. The “Suicide Squad” actor was wearing a nude-colored “modesty garment,” a piece of clothing used in film, TV, and theater productions to cover an actor’s private parts when he is supposed to appear naked.

Making the evening more interesting was the presence of Messi, the seven-year-old border collie who appeared as the guide dog Snoop in the Oscar-nominated film, “Anatomy of a Fall.” At first, there were reports that Messi would be unable to attend the awards show after he had done most of the pre-Oscar events. But lo and behold, Messi came, wearing a black bowtie, and was seated, attending with his owner, Laura Martin. When not filming, Messi enjoys life in Paris, where he and his owner live.

Filipinos were also there to represent!

Fil-Am Vanessa Hudgens, who co-hosted again the Oscars red carpet pre-show with “Dancing with the Stars” host Julianne Hough, arrived in a black body-con turtleneck Vera Wang Couture gown that displayed her baby bump. In December, the former “High School Musical” star married baseball player Cole Tucker in an intimate ceremony in Mexico. Hudgens and Tucker are expecting their first child.

Fil-Am actress Hailee Steinfeld, 27, was a fashion goddess at the Oscars red carpet with her pastel blue ethereal Ellie Saab Couture gown, featuring a scarf and butterfly sleeves.

Steinfeld, whose film “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” was nominated for Best Animated Feature, arrived at the Oscars without her boyfriend, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen.

Tia Carrere and Lou Diamond Phillips were also at the Oscars. Carrere, who will be appearing in the live feature of the animation “Lilo & Stitch,” hit the red carpet in a body-hugging, cleavage-showing nude gown with silver accents. Phillips, who arrived with his wife, Yvonne, also hit the red carpet and reunited with Carrere in the theater.

Nominated for his work as a cinematographer for the Bradley Cooper-helmed film “Maestro,” Director of Photography Matthew “Matty” Libatique arrived at the Oscars wearing Filipino fashion designer Oliver Tolentino’s black brocade tuxedo. Tolentino has dressed Libatique in all of his three Oscar nominations for Best Cinematography (“Black Swan,” “A Star is Born,” “Maestro”).

Most of the Golden Globe winners – Christopher Nolan (Best Director), “Oppenheimer” (Best Film), Cillian Murphy (Best Actor), Emma Stone (Best Actress), Robert Downey Jr. (Best Supporting Actor), Da’Vine Joy Randolph (Best Supporting Actress), Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell (Best Original Song), Ludwig Gorranson (Best Original Score), The Boy and The Heron (Best Animated Feature), Justine Triet and Arthur Harari for “Anatomy of a Fall” (Best Screenplay) – all won again for the Oscars!

Emma Stone, who won Best Actress for her portrayal of Bella Baxter in “Poor Things,” complained onstage about her broken zipper in her silk jacquard custom mint-colored Louis Vuitton gown and blamed it on the “I’m Just Ken” dancing.

“Oh, boy. My dress has broken. I think it happened during “I’m Just Ken.” I’m pretty sure,” she pointed out. We were reminded that Stone is now a mother when she thanked her daughter and said, “And most importantly, my daughter, who is going to be three in three days, has turned our lives technicolor. I love you bigger than the whole sky, my girl. So, thank you so much.”

Backstage, Stone admitted that she was shocked by her win since she expected Lily Gladstone of “Killers of the Flower Moon” to win. Onstage, she announced, “I am sharing this award with you, Lily!”

Stone confessed to the media, “Oh, God. I think I blacked out. Yes, I was very shocked. I still feel like I’m spinning a little bit. So, yes, it’s a huge honor, and I’m very surprised.”

As for her dress, which malfunctioned, she assured us that everything was fixed. “Yes, they sewed me back in. Right when I came back, they sewed me back in, which was wonderful. I generally think I busted it during, ‘I’m Just Ken.’ I was so amazed by Ryan (Gosling) and what he was doing, and that number just blew my mind. And I was right there, and I just was going for it, and, you know, things happen.”

By portraying Bella Baxter in “Poor Things,” Stone revealed that she had learned a lot. “She is a character that is so, so important to me. I think the chance to play a person starting from scratch, but in a total metaphorical, can’t-really-happen-in-real-life way, who’s gaining language and skills at a rapid pace every day and getting to chart that course and realize that she was just full of joy and curiosity and true love, of not just the good, but the challenges in life and was fascinated by all of it, that was an amazing lesson to take with me and to try to get to live in the shoes of every day. So, I miss playing her ever since we wrapped filming a long time ago. It was like two and a half years ago. I miss Bella. And I’m grateful that we got to celebrate the film tonight and over these past few months. And, yeah, I just love her.”

Cillian Murphy, who portrayed J. Robert Oppenheimer, the “Father of the Atomic Bomb” in Christopher Nolan’s award-winning film “Oppenheimer,” attended the Oscars with his wife, Yvonne McGuinness, and his two sons, Malachy, 17, and Aran, 16.

What he said in his acceptance speech was touching. “So, you know, we made a film about the man who created the atomic bomb. And for better or worse, we all live in Oppenheimer’s world. So, I would really like to dedicate this to the peacemakers everywhere.”

Murphy, the first Irish-born winner of the Best Actor award, told us backstage of his win, “I’m in a little bit of a daze. I’m very overwhelmed. I’m very humbled. I’m very grateful. I’m very proud to be Irish standing here today.”

He added, “I think in Ireland, we’re great at supporting artists, and we need to continue supporting artists and the next generation of actors and directors. I think that is vitally important.”

Asked if he will be content being defined by “Oppenheimer,” the actor said, “Very content. You’ve got to move forward, but this has been a huge moment for me. The movie is so special to me. Chris Nolan and I have such a special relationship that I feel privileged to continue to work with him, and I’m very proud of it. This film is provocative, asks questions, and is challenging, but many people want to see it. So, I’m really proud of that.”

Murphy, who has also collaborated with Nolan on such films as “The Dark Knight” trilogy (2005-2012), “Inception” (2010), and “Dunkirk” (2017), admitted that reaching this point in his career with Nolan is very special. “It is very, very special. We have been working together for 20 years. I think he is the perfect director. He is an extraordinary writer and producer, and extraordinarily visually and as the director of actors, he presents this film as no one else does in the world. And I can’t just believe my luck.”

“I did a screen test for him as a kid, and I thought that would be it. It would be just enough to be in a room with Chris for a couple of hours, and here we are. So, I’m just so humbled and thankful.”

We were very touched when Christopher Nolan, who won Best Director for “Oppenheimer,” said in his acceptance speech, “And to the Academy. Just to be able to say that movies are just a little bit over 100 years old. Imagine being there after 100 years of painting or theatre; we don’t know where this incredible journey is going. But to know that you think I had a meaningful part of it means the world to me. Thank you very much.”

Asked backstage what he thinks is the message of his film to the young people, Nolan replied, “I don’t like to speak too specific about messages of films I make because I feel that if cinema is didactic, it tends not to work dramatically so well. But it was very striking after finishing the film and seeing audiences respond to it. When I first embarked on the project, I told one of my teenage sons what I was working on, and he actually said to me young people aren’t that concerned about nuclear weapons. It’s not really in the forefront of their fears. And it seemed to me that this film could, to some extent, help its success, with many people seeing it.”

“And as far as any kind of broader message, I would like to point out that the film ends on what I consider a dramatically necessary moment of despair, but in reality, I don’t think despair is the answer to the nuclear question. If you look at the work on non-proliferation being done by individuals and organizations since 1945, there’s been a reduction in the number of nuclear weapons on the planet since 1967 by almost 90 percent.”

“In the last few years, it’s gone the wrong way, and it’s very important that rather than despair, in reality, people are looking at advocacy; they’re looking at organizations who are working to pressure politicians and leaders to reduce the number of nuclear weapons on our planet and make the world safer.”

As for his most memorable moment in making the film, he shared, “I think for me, it was the first hair and makeup tests. There was something about seeing Cillian put that hat on, Robert Downey Jr. with his head shaved back, and Emily Blunt in old-age makeup. We did all that on the first test. We shot it on the first black-and-white IMAX film ever made, and we projected it on an IMAX screen over at the City Walk at Universal. That was a very special moment—to realize what the actors would do, and that the thing would work, and to see the technical side of things that cinematographer Hoyte (van Hoyteman) was bringing to the table with photography. It was remarkable, and that will always stay with me.”

Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who won Best Supporting Actress for her role as the Barton Academy cafeteria manager Mary Lamb in “The Holdovers,” said in her acceptance speech, “For so long, I’ve always wanted to be different, and now I realize I just need to be myself. And I thank you for seeing me.”

Backstage with the press, Randolph emphasized that acting should not be about awards. “I think you’d be selling yourself short if you make it about the awards. It’s too hard of a career. The beautiful and hard thing about being an actor is that it requires you to have resilience, self-confidence, and belief in yourself when no one else does when you constantly get ‘nos’ and say, ‘Nope, I’m going to keep going.’ So, actually, in many ways, while it can challenge your mental health, it also can strengthen it because you have to fortify yourself in a way that some people never have to do. So, for that, I’m grateful.”

“I would also say keep yourself grounded, surrounded by people who care and love you, and stay close to what’s real. And, again, I’m just very adamant that it would not be in your heart if you weren’t meant to do it. And I know it can be challenging to wait that wait, but when it happens, it’s a full circle moment, and you know it was worth it.”

Billie Eilish, 22, and her brother Finneas O’Connell, 26, won Best Original Song for their composition of the “Barbie” song, “What Was I Made For?” They also made history by being the youngest and second youngest to win a second Oscar.

Eilish, who thanked her teachers in music and even one teacher who didn’t like her “but you were good at what you did,” was asked backstage by the press what she would say right now to a young person dreaming of a life in music.

She answered, “I would say, ‘Don’t do it for other people. Don’t do it for numbers. Or fame. I want everyone to be doing something they feel passionate about and proud of, making them feel like the best version of themselves. I remember being 12, believe it or not, and seeing this musical and sobbing my eyes out because I was like, damn, I’m a failure, and I’m not going to have a career. I was watching ‘Matilda’ on Broadway, which was amazing. I bawled in the back nosebleeds and said, ‘I’m never going to amount to anything because I’m not in ‘Matilda.’ I would say give yourself some time and do what you love. And I know that’s easier said than done because some of us don’t even know what we love. But you will figure it out. You will find it.”