A lot can be said about this year’s upcoming Academy Awards, which is set to take place on February 24, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. Already, the host has been removed and no replacement has been found, leaving a troop of celebrities to host various segments instead. As for performances, it’s guaranteed that Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper will be performing Shallow from their hit movie A Star Is Born, but other than that not a lot has been revealed. In all honesty, the lead up to this year’s Oscars has been disappointing – or at least was until the Oscars 2019 nominees luncheon was held on February 4.
“The 86th Annual Academy Awards” (CC BY-ND 2.0) by Disney | ABC Television Group
Party In The Back Row
Like every year, this luncheon has already spawned a few rumors, with Vanity Fair reporting that Bradley Cooper apparently bowed to Spike Lee. However, it was the 2019 Oscar nominee group photo that has got everybody talking.
Even the back row in this photo is star-studded, featuring a suspiciously tan Bradley Cooper and a saintly Lady Gaga, although the two weren’t standing together. This is odd considering they worked together on Cooper’s A Star Is Born, which has pretty good odds to win Best Picture at the Oscars. Well, that’s if Green Book or The Favourite don’t take the win, as the films are currently set at 4/1 and 9/1, respectively. Speaking of winning, among the crème-de-la-crème was Malek, who told Entertainment Weekly that he was “unable to walk a foot without being congratulated” for his stellar performance in Bohemian Rhapsody.
Is There A Group Of People Who Always Get Nominated?
Elsewhere in the photo, Richard E. Grant can be spotted donning Desigual attire, though we don’t know if this photo was taken before or after the 6′ 2″ star got a little shady. According to the Associated Press, Grant sees himself as one of the actors who never gets nominated or awarded for anything. Why? Simply because his name isn’t Helen Mirren or Judi Dench, and he doesn’t belong to a small, select group of other perpetual nominees. This is despite the fact he’s been nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
Ladies Luncheon
Among the questionable socks, eye-catching hats and well-groomed facial hair, there were quite a few women in the nominee photo. In fact, Academy president John Bailey has even made a point of telling everyone that the 2019 Oscars has the most female nominees in history. Nadine Labaki, Rachel Weisz, Maria del Puy Alvarado, Rayka Zehtabchi and Alice Felton are just some of the ladies who lunched, and we’re extremely happy to see all of them. All in all, everyone seemed pretty happy at the Oscars 2019 nominee luncheon, and we hope those good spirits will carry on into the real thing. The Oscars 2019 will be taking place on Sunday 24 February and will air on ABC.
