In recent years, the Academy Awards has been the scene of some of pop culture’s biggest viral controversies (including the Will Smith – Chris Rock slap). One of those moments was the Best Picture mix-up with La La Land and Moonlight at the 89th Academy Awards. What made the snafu even more awkward was the fact that the cast and crew of the romantic musical were still standing on stage as the coming-of-age drama’s ensemble accepted the night’s top honor. Of course, Emma Stone watched the whole ordeal first-hand. Now, years after the infamous slip-up, Stone reflected on the moment, which apparently left her mom “panicking.”
The Poor Things star relived the viral moment during her appearance on The Graham Norton Show, where she was promoting the fantasy dark comedy with co-star Mark Ruffalo. In the clip shared to YouTube, Emma Stone took it all in stride as she predicted that Norton would ask her about the incident while also being mortified by a photo capturing the major screw-up. Of course, the Oscar winner recalled the situation on stage being chaotic, as producers realized the wrong movie had been called. However, that wasn’t Stone’s biggest worry, as her mother was apparently having an even worse experience at home:
[Moonlight] is an incredible film, I just think it’s the chaos of [the Oscars]. I think the part that was also just personally kind of sad for me was, my mom was not at the ceremony, and she was watching it on TV. I was there with my brother. And she said that when everybody reacted in the audience, she thought something horrible had happened in the theater. So, she started panicking, watching it on TV. And it had just been like one minute before that this thing had happened. So, I felt so terrible that she was scared.
Mother Stone’s fears were called for at the time. Before viewers and the attendees found out about the slip-up, there was a mix of anxiety and curiosity over why producers randomly ran onto the Oscar stage. Celebrity safety and security have been major concerns amid public events, including awards ceremonies, over the years due to fellow attendees and/or random strangers.
As the Easy A star pointed out, the La La Land and Moonlight crews, TV viewers, and Oscar attendees soon got an answer. In her usual humorous fashion, Emma Stone blamed herself for odd occurrences happening during major career moments. She joked:
And then obviously, you know, we found out what happened which was classic me. Classic. Every time something exciting happens, I either break a bone or my name is in a frickin’ envelope for no reason and it says the movie underneath. And they’re like, I guess it means that one. Like, it’s crazy.
It seems that, at the very least, she can currently find some humor in the awkward televised moment. One would think that the casts and crews of both La La Land and Moonlight still have complex feelings about the matter. While she can joke about it, the night was a mixed bag for Emma Stone, who — before the confusion — had just won Best Actress for her role in Damian Chazelle’s musical. Still, I guess we can so that no one will ever forget the two movies — not just because of how great they are but because of what happened on Hollywood’s biggest night.
Emma Stone is currently earning more acclaim, and some think she’s guaranteed for another Best Actress win due to Poor Things. At present, she’s already received a Golden Globe nomination as well as one from the Critics Choice Awards. We’ll just have to wait and see if she gets nominated for that Oscar and, if she does, let’s hope nothing major happens that causes her mother to panic again.
In the meantime, you can revisit awards season darling La La Land using a Netflix subscription, while Best Picture winner Moonlight can be accessed by Hulu subscribers. And keep an eye on the 2024 movie schedule for future releases.