Dispatches

May 25, 2024

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CANNES DISPATCH 14 …
Words by JANE CROWTHER
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

Kevin Costner believes in the magic of movies so much he’s willing to bet the farm on it. Literally. The actor-filmmaker sank millions of his own cash into funding his planned four-part Western epic, Horizon (part one of which premiered in Cannes this week) when he could find no studio interest and admits he gambled his own homesteads on making it.

‘I’ve had good luck in my life and I’ve acquired some land and some homes that are important to me and they’re valuable,’ he admitted, ‘but I don’t need four homes. And so I will risk those homes to make my movies. I wish I didn’t do it because I want to leave those homes to my children. But my children will have to live their own life and if I’ve not made a mistake, they will have these four homes. If I’ve made a mistake, I’ll say “you have to live your own life – I’ve lived mine and I’m really happy!”’

Costner was certainly happy after the reception his film received at the premiere, shedding tears of emotion as he saw his dream project finally reach an audience. ‘It was a remarkable moment for me,’ he said of the premiere and standing ovation. ‘I started to walk my life backwards, thinking how in the world did I get here?’

kevin costner, horizon: an american saga

kevin costner, luke wilson, horizon: an american saga

The road to Horizon has been long – Costner first dreamt up the saga in 1988 and the lead character of Hayes Ellison, who he plays in the movie and the name he gave his son he was so obsessed with the project. His now fifteen-year son makes his film debut in the movie in a full-circle moment for the filmmaker. ‘I had trouble making this movie, but the name Hayes was part of my journey. I couldn’t make it but I couldn’t fall out of love with it. So 15 years ago I named my son Hayes cos I couldn’t let go of it. And then all of a sudden I put him in the movie and he’d never acted before. I don’t automatically give parts to my children because I know how coveted this is and there’s young people who do anything to have a part on a movie. But I’m also a father and it was a part that wasn’t that long and I wanted him to be close to me. And I thought he was just beautiful in the movie. The movie at that moment is everything I want film to be about.’

Costner has long been associated with Westerns – and betting on them – having previously made Dances With Wolves in 1990, a film that Hollywood considered so unfashionable and a folly it was nicknamed ‘Kevin’s Gate’ after previous oater flop Heaven’s Gate. Back then Costner poured his own money into the film and was rewarded with epic box office and seven Oscars. He also championed Open Range in 2003. This time around he worked more nimbly to conserve cash (Dances lensed for 106 days, Horizon for just 52) and he recognises that history is repeating itself with his latest work.

kevin costner, sienna miller, horizon: an american saga

‘I don’t know why it was so hard to get people to believe in the movie that I wanted to make. It’s a pattern for me: it’s happened with Dances With Wolves, Field Of Dream, Bull Durham, Open Range. It seems to be a pattern that some of the things that I like are harder to make. My problem is I don’t fall out of love with what I think is something good. Part of why I wanted to make 2, 3 and 4 was to make it for myself cos I know what it’s like to sit out there in the audience and the curtain open and something magic’s going to happen, a story’s going to transport us. The movies have always been a place for us to go and have a chance at magic. So I have made the second one and I’m trying to make the third one.I will have to figure out with my friends, with the things I own – how do I make three to bring us back [to Cannes], I would like to come back with the third movie.’

‘I wrote the best Western that I would write with Jon Baird. A Western that included women as being the biggest characters in the movie, it made sense to me. Movies have to have something in common with you or you lose track of what you’re watching in the dark. You go ‘who the fuck is this?’ It’s when we recognise ourselves that we create moments that we’ll never ever forgot.’

The women leading the charge to the frontier include First Nation wives, Chinese laundresses, wagon train ladies, wily seductresses and widowed mother, Frances Kittredge, played by Sienna Miller. For Miller, the idea of appearing in a Western was a long-held ambition, especially one helmed by Costner.

sienna miller, horizon: an american saga

‘I grew up watching Westerns. I think my idea of cinema was a Western when I was a little girl, and then Dances With Wolves was a huge, huge part of my life. I had two rabbits called Two Socks and Cisco,’ she said, the names of the wolf and the horse in Dances With Wolves. ‘I got this call that Kevin wanted to talk to me, and then I got sent four scripts and I thought it must be a series. There are four of them, but they’re so big, so it didn’t really make sense. And then we had this great conversation. I’d really go to the ends of the earth for him, I think he’s phenomenal.’

For Costner, the decision to put women front and centre in a Western – and to bring all his female leads to Cannes – isn’t a cynical one. ‘It’s almost impossible to imagine a West without women, isn’t it? The West doesn’t carry on without women,’ he said. ‘I am not looking for kudos because women are in it. For me, they’re not in it, they actually dominate the movie, to be honest. Every one of those women dominate when they’re on the screen.’

He hopes that he can get funding to finish his magnificent obsession and make the third and fourth instalments (the second is already in the can). ’I used to get no money to do this, then I got a lot of money to do this, now I have to pay my own money to do this,’ he notes. ‘I love the dreaming part of movies and the writing of them. The red carpet is an incredible thing, but if you’re only in the movies for the red carpet, for the glamour of it, for the fame… I like to think I got to this place because I like the work. The dreaming part.’

Kevin Costner wears Brioni. Watch by Chopard
Sienna Miller wears Chloé and Schiaparelli
Horizon: An American Saga premiered at the 77th Cannes Film Festival and Release date 28 June. To see our review out of Cannes click here

DEMI MOORE

May 25, 2024

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CANNES DISPATCH 13 …
Words by JANE CROWTHER
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

The last time Demi Moore graced the Cannes famous red steps she was a guest at the opening night film of 1997’s festival, The Fifth Element. This year she’s back for her first premiere in her own right, a blistering turn in Coralie Fargeat’s feminist body-horror The Substance. And with her tiny 1.5lb Chihuahua (and Insta star), Pilaf.

She admitted to ‘nervous butterflies excitement’ before walking the carpet dressed in showstopping Schiaparelli haute couture as Greg Williams shot her in her hotel on Cannes’ famous Croisette. The film requires Moore to be vulnerable both physically and emotionally as it charts a movie star who is sacked for being too old and seeking redemption in the form of a shady procedure called The Substance that promises a ‘younger, more beautiful, more perfect you’. That version of herself is ‘born’ from her own body (a truly horrific sequence) as Margaret Qualley, and the two alter-egos duel for supremacy in a misogynist world that values youth and beauty over all else. The role requires a lack of vanity from Moore via full frontal nudity and unflattering lighting, as her character grapples with mortality and external validation. ‘It’s about the male perspective of the idealised women that we have bought into,’ she says.

demi moore, dennis quaid, the substance, coralie fargeat, cannes

demi moore, the substance, coralie fargeat, cannes

‘I saw it as a challenge in the best way,’ Moore reflects on taking the project. ‘I look for material that pushes me out of my comfort zone – if something scares me a little bit then I know there’s an opportunity… that on the other side I would come out it a better person.’ The nudity needed was something that wasn’t shied away from in initial discussions. ‘It was spelled out, the level of vulnerability and rawness that was required to tell this story. It was a very vulnerable experience and it required going into it with a lot of sensitivity and finding that common ground of mutual trust.’

In Qualley, Moore says, she found a ‘great partner who I felt very safe with’. ‘We obviously were quite close in certain moments, naked! It allowed us a lot of levity in those moments at how absurd those situations were.’

The film received a standing ovation at its premiere and rave reviews from the press who praised the profundity and prescience of its subject matter – alongside gleeful squirts of blood, icky injections and some thrillingly gross body horror to challenge Cronenberg. ‘There has been a wake-up to a demographic that is deserving of being served,’ Moore says of the film’s Feminist slant. ‘You’re starting to see a lot more stories that are reflecting that audience and it’s nice!’ That’s not to say the movie is male-bashing. ‘We’re not anti-men – we’re just anti-jerks.’

The performance heralds a return to cinema for Moore after an absence and based on audience response in Cannes, marks the start of more to come. As co-star Dennis Quaid commented during the Cannes press conference of experiencing the premiere; ‘I was so glad to be here to see the beginning of an incredible third act for Demi.’

Demi Moore wears Schiaparelli. Necklace and earrings by Chopard
The Substance premiered at the 77th Cannes Film Festival and will be released by MUBI later this year. To see our review out of Cannes click here

Dispatches

SEBASTIAN STAN

May 21, 2024

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CANNES DISPATCH 12 …
Words by JANE CROWTHER
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

Sebastian Stan has played real life protagonists on film before – most notably Jeff Gillooly, in the critically acclaimed, I, Tonya and Tommy Lee in awards-winning Pam and Tommy. But his turn as former president, Donald Trump, in Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice, is attracting heat – not least from the 45th POTUS himself. ‘As always it’s about understanding,’ Stan told Hollywood Authentic when we shot him before the premiere at the Palais. ‘The challenge was perhaps working against preconceived ideas or what’s currently out there. Had to go back in time. To the beginning. And go step by step without judgment.’

Premiering in Cannes this week, The Apprentice charts the rise of Trump in 70s and 80s New York as he evolves from a debt collector with real estate ambitions to a Manhattan baller who learns how to ‘win’ from unscrupulous lawyer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong). An origin story, if you will.

Stan, with his sandy wig and pursed lips, portrays Trump as a nuanced sponge to Cohen’s shady mentorship, a kid trying to get out from under the shadow of his father who takes advice we now recognise as his MO, and runs with it. As he grows in capital and stature, the boy becomes a man, the persona fixed.

It’s certainly a big swing for Stan, taking on the depiction of such a divisive, current figure. But the gamble paid off in Cannes – the film received an 8 minute standing ovation at its premiere and prompted discussion on the Croisette. Though Trump himself is threatening to sue to production and disputing the depiction of events.

‘The hope we have is that people watch the film cos I always feel that there is always something to learn,’ Stan says of the movie that sees Trump betray family and friends, get liposuction and BJs, and bend the truth to his needs. ‘For me as an actor standing next to this brave artist [Abbasi] that I respect and will follow wherever he goes – and all these people that had enough balls to do this project – we have to take on things that are risky and perhaps uncomfortable to talk about. I think it’s important that we do, because it’s in our face every day and we need to have a perspective. And I think there’s a lot to learn from the film.’

Sebastian Stan wears Balenciago. Watch by Cartier
The Apprentice premiered at the 77th Cannes Film Festival and will be released later this year. To see our review out of Cannes click here

Dispatches

WILLEM DAFOE

May 20, 2024

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CANNES DISPATCH 11 …
Words by JANE CROWTHER
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

As Yorgos Lanthimos’ Kinds Of Kindness bowed at Cannes Film Festival, the film – a triptych of contemporary tales starring Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe and Jesse Plemons – got a standing ovation and a flurry of engaged reviews lauding a challenging film with no easy answers. ‘Listen, I’m a total cheerleader for festivals,’ smiles Dafoe when Hollywood Authentic sits down with him in a Carlton Hotel suite on the Croisette. ‘This is not a popcorn movie. So when it comes to a festival, it starts a discussion, and that’s a good way to make contact with a critical world.’

Though he’s made so-called popcorn movies during his long and illustrious career, Dafoe is well known for collaborating on invigorating films that prompt discussions on meaning that often start at festivals before moving the lobbies of cinemas globally, and Kinds Of Kindness marks another piece of provocative work as the actor plays three roles. In the first story, he’s a businessman with an idiosyncratic wardrobe who minutely controls every aspect of the life of his subordinate (Plemons). In the second he essays the father of Emma Stone’s lost-at-sea wife who returns to her cop husband (Plemons) and arouses suspicion that she may not be who she seems. And in the third, Dafoe is a cult leader who is sexually permissive and cries tears into a vast vat of sacred water, sending his acolytes (Stone and Plemons) out into the world to find the group’s new messiah.

willem dafoe, cannes dispatch, cover story, kinds of kindness

Having previously worked with Stone and Lanthimos on last year’s acclaimed Poor Things, Dafoe was intrigued by the script as soon as the director offered it to him during post production on their period awards winner. He didn’t hesitate in jumping in again. ‘Poor Things was such a good experience. Yorgos is a filmmaker that I’ve always followed, and have always enjoyed. And he’s so good with actors. He gives you really fun stuff to do. He’s very playful. He’s very intellectually curious. It’s a very conscionable and very creative set. So, to work with him again was fantastic. Also, this structure was interesting, the fact that we’re playing three different characters. It became very clear that [Lanthimos] didn’t want this to be a showy thing of actors transforming. Because they’re three distinct films, but they’re all obviously thematically related. And they’re all different, given each different world, and our function in that world. For example, in the first one, I have a pretty substantial role; in the second one, quite a smallish role; and in the third one, a medium role. How I fall into those worlds is different each time. But it’s the same group of people, dealing with the same kind of mentality and themes.’ It also meant re-teaming with Bella Baxter herself, in Emma Stone. ‘Emma, I adore!’ he enthuses. ‘She’s really fun to work with.’

Those themes then; all the stories explore control and cruelty, the weird and illogical kindnesses that humans do for each other in marriage, business, friendship, faith. And each story, while not related, informs the next as a viewer. But like all of Lanthimos’ work, the meaning is defined by each audience member – a Rorschach test in cinematic form. ‘It’s a little bit of a Russian doll,’ Dafoe nods of the project. ‘But you work so hard to just try to be engaged with what’s in front of you. You know, that’s one of the tricks of an actor: that’s your world, so you want the other parts to fade away, because you don’t want to point to those things, or be too tied to that. You want a fresh start each time.’

While playing Stone’s Dad required Dafoe to tap into his affection for his co-star (‘I just cued off my love for Emma’), playing a cult leader did have him looking into real-life examples. ‘I’m fascinated by the nature of cults. I looked at a documentary that I think Jesse recommended to me called Holy Hell, also I liked Wild Wild Country. Not so much because I need that to figure out how to play a cult leader. That’s not it. The themes are there. You know, the kind of devotion, the need to give your freedom up to someone else, or dedicate yourself to something outside of yourself. All those themes, the power dynamics, the things about sexuality – they’re all in that. You’re swimming in that pool. You’re not necessarily taking something, and seeing something, and saying, ‘I’m going to do that’. It’s just to get you in that head.’

Lanthimos is also known for his rehearsal process before filming, another aspect that Dafoe was drawn to. ‘Yorgos is very good at making a company. Rehearsal is not so much to deal with the text, or even talk about character, except to play games and get comfortable with each other. And that’s very helpful. So once you finish that rehearsal period, you feel very comfortable with each other, and everyone is kind of on the same footing. And it’s a good way for you to understand Yorgos, what his impulses are, what he likes, and what he tends to go towards. You get in his head a little bit. And it’s always good any time you can get that in a movie, because then people stop worrying about that old thing of, ‘leave your ego at the door’.’

willem dafoe, margaret qualley, cannes dispatch, cover story, kinds of kindness

Dafoe will be digging into ego, legacy, fame and the impact of praise on the soul with his next project, a film he’s also in Cannes to launch. Late Fame, adapted from Arthur Schnitzler’s 19th century Vienna-set novella, switches the time period to 70s New York with Dafoe playing a poet long forgotten by society. Until, that is, his poems are rediscovered and feted. Sandra Hüller will play a Broadway actress and fan of his work who challenges his ideas of genius. Directed by Kent Jones, the film starts shooting in New York this Autumn. The project was sparked by creative serendipity for Dafoe.

‘The Schnitzler novel that it’s adapted from, a friend brought to me, independent of this production, and said, ‘I think there’s a movie here’. I was carrying it around when I happened to meet the director, and we started talking. To make a long story short, we came together on it but from separate places. We were both reading this, and were interested in this, at the same time. And then it’s Samy Burch who wrote this beautiful adaptation that sets it in New York at a time that I was in New York, and it was a very special time, the late ‘70s. It’s very rich material. It expresses a very particular time, and it has lots of interesting ruminations about fame and personal history and memory and ambition, and about what it is to aspire to be an artist.’

Kinds Of Kindness premiered at the 77th Cannes Film Festival and will be released later this year. Late Fame starts shooting in autumn this year, release TCB

Dispatches

AWARDS JOURNEY – PHOTOGRAPHING EMMA STONE

March 15, 2024

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Photographs and words by GREG WILLIAMS

Over awards season I’ve been lucky enough to be commissioned by Louis Vuitton to shoot Emma Stone before every major awards event – and then I’ve gone on to photograph her at The Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice, BAFTAs and SAGs while covering the events. That journey culminated in her winning the Oscar for Best Actress at the Academy Awards and I wanted to take a moment to revisit the pictures I’ve taken during that time…

emma stone, oscars 2024, poor things, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch

emma stone, david beckham, carey mulligan, marcus mumford and bradley cooper, ee bafta film awards, greg williams, hollywood authentic

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When you’re commissioned to shoot for a fashion brand the first job is to take pictures where the clothes look their best. But I suppose what I’m additionally looking for is seeing the person behind the personality. So we have this lovely collection of pictures now, fashion photos and then seeing the human too. The Oscars were particularly special. I tend to photograph a number of actors before award shows and the last shoot of the day was Emma, right next to where the actual ceremony takes place. So after our shoot I got to walk to the red carpet as well as being side-of-stage when she came off with her Oscar, which was presented by an incredibly esteemed group of previous Best Actress Oscar winners. Then afterwards, before she went out to the parties, I went and took more photos in the hotel corridor and in the car. It’s nice to now look back on that body of work as a portfolio of pictures.

michelle yeoh, charlize theron, emma stone, jennifer lawrence, sally field, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Jessica Lange, Michelle Yeoh, Charlize Theron, Emma Stone, Jennifer Lawrence and Sally Field

The first pictures were taken before the Golden Globes at the beginning of January. They’re quite a nice example of the difference between commissioned pictures and the pictures that I take slightly more for myself. The first picture was used by Louis Vuitton – I can make the product look good, but I’m also getting that glint behind the eye, that authenticity is still coming through the pictures. But then there’s another example of a photo that you can look at and completely understand why Louis Vuitton might not choose it to showcase their beautiful clothes. You can barely see the dress, it’s at an odd angle; but it’s a lovely, alive, fun, playful picture of Emma. It’s right up there with my favourites from award season. I love how first person it is and how the audience looking at that picture feels like they’re beaming with the same sunshine. We were in the penthouse of The Sunset Tower Hotel and there was a fire escape ladder going up to the roof. It was a lovely prop for me to encourage Emma onto. Also the net curtains, both backlit and front lit, work really nicely.

emma stone, golden globe awards, 2024, greg williams, hollywood authentic

The next pictures were before the Critics’ Choice Awards. She was shielding her eyes because it was so bright. That wasn’t the picture that I had in mind – you try not to put your subjects in glaring light, but sometimes I quite like it because there’s something in those contrasts, the shapes and shadows. The pictures that the brand used were backlit.

emma stone, critics choice awards, 2024, greg williams, hollywood authentic

These shots before the BAFTAs are tons of fun, she was literally dancing in her room. In those situations, I very much encourage play, I try for it. My favourite quote, and one that we use in Hollywood Authentic Magazine, is Willy Wonka saying ‘A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men’. I try to bring a little nonsense to as many of my shoots as I possibly can.

emma stone, idris elba, ee bafta film awards, greg williams, hollywood authentic

emma stone, ee bafta film awards, greg williams, hollywood authentic

The shots taken for the SAGs show a natural beam, and you just sense Emma’s personality – that she’s a very down to earth, generous person. You just see that in those pictures.

emma stone, sag awards, 2024, greg williams, hollywood authentic

It all stepped up for the Oscars. This was shot for Louis Vuitton again and this is where the two jobs really collide. This shot is a fashion photo, but it’s not the expected one. We were going through these hotel back corridors to head to the red carpet and I happened on this closet where they keep all the towels and dressing gowns, and I loved all these hangers. It felt like a nod to ateliers and fashion.

Awards season is a marathon and it felt like Emma was coming to the end of the journey – regardless of whether she won – after many months running at this thing, it’s done. So there was definitely playfulness going in the lifts. What I was also doing was finding the shapes in the dress in a playful way that feels authentic to Emma. There was also a beautiful shot where Emma turned around, and she hit a piece of light just before she got to the red carpet.

Then I left her to walk the carpet, and I ran inside to shoot the awards. That’s when I’ve got a completely different hat on – a change from capturing portraits to being an event photographer. These photos are taken incredibly quickly – often I get a shot in just one frame. Someone will walk past me and I’ll literally just ‘click’ one frame and it’s just that look back or that reaction that I get. Even though it’s event reportage I’m still trying to deliver the Greg Williams viewpoint; spontaneous, authentic, giving the audience the sense that they’re there.

After Emma had won her award, she left the stage with these incredible past winners: Jennifer Lawrence, Charlize Theron, Sally Field, Jessica Lange and Michelle Yeoh. She’s won an Oscar and she’s surrounded by absolute titans of her field. And it’s just a really special moment. You’re also not in any control of anything at that stage, you really are the observer. I can ask people to look in the camera, but actually the nicest pictures are when they’re all cuddling, crying, emotional and hanging on to each other – not worrying about, or thinking about the photo for a second.

After the awards Emma changed into another Louis Vuitton look. And then I got these really joyful shots of her with her team, holding the Oscar and really having some fun posing with it. There’s a lovely shot of her sitting on the floor of the corridor and a beautiful one of her walking through, which is a perfect balance of what I want to achieve and what Louis Vuitton wanted.

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So what you’re seeing here is a number of hats being worn over the season; the fashion photographer, the personality photographer, the portraitist and the reportage photographer. I switch very rapidly between those, sometimes in split seconds. I’ll be hiding behind the camera, getting something quite beautiful, and then I’ll peek over the camera and pull a silly face, and suddenly I’ll get a shot of laughter or a shot of joy. That’s part of the game of being a photographer, being able to wear these different hats. There’s this lovely sentiment; when you take a portrait it’s not a picture of the person, it’s capturing the relationship between the photographer and the subject. That’s what I’m doing a lot of the time, because I have established relationships and I come away with a set of pictures that feel distinctively mine.

Photographs and words by Greg Williams

Dispatches

OSCARS 2024

March 15, 2024

Words by JANE CROWTHER
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

Awards season closed with an Academy Awards that was a who’s who roster of past recipients and powerhouse Hollywood talent. Twenty previous winners announced the four acting categories – each group leaving the stage as a gang with their latest inductee, a newly-formed club hanging out stage-side after each award. The community at the heart of acting was celebrated in this way, and also in a moment when the backstage team were brought centre-stage to celebrate the solidarity shown across the industry during the strikes earlier this year.

Da’Vine Joy Randolph was welcomed into the Best Supporting Actress community with Lupita Nyong’o, Jamie Leigh Curtis, Regina King, Mary Steenburgen and Rita Moreno championing each nominee in her category. Robert Downey Jr joined the best supporting actor club alongside Ke Huy Quan, Sam Rockwell, Tim Robbins, Christoph Waltz and Mahershala Ali; while his Oppenheimer castmate Cillian Murphy became a Best Actor winner with Forest Whitaker, Matthew McConaughey, Brendan Fraser, Nicolas Cage and Sir Ben Kingsley. Watching the show stage-side, the actors resembled Oscar statuettes as they stood together. The best actress category saw Emma Stone climb the podium to join Sally Field, Jessica Lange, Jennifer Lawrence, Michelle Yeoh and Charlize Theron.

regina king, da'vine joy randolph, lupita nyong'o, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Jamie Lee Curtis, Mary Steenburgen, Regina King, Da’vine Joy Randolph, Lupita Nyong’o and Rita Moreno

robert downey jr, oscars-2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Robert Downey Jr.

steven spielberg, cillian murphy, oppenheimer, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Steven Spielberg and Cillian Murphy

It was Stone’s second Best Actress award but the evening was notable for its firsts. Winning was a first for Robert Downey Jr (after three nominations), for Christopher Nolan as director, he and his producer wife Emma Thomas for Best Film, and for a British film to win Best International Film with Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone Of Interest. Matthew McConaughey waiting in the wings after Nolan’s win gave him a heartfelt congratulatory hug.

Family was also a theme of the night, especially as the date was Mothers’ Day in the UK. Bradley Cooper brought his Mom as his plus-one while Martin Scorsese attended with his daughter, Francesca. Best original screenplay winner Justine Triet in a sparkling Louis Vuitton suit noted her and her co-writer partner Arthur Harari juggled diapers and lockdown during their writing of Anatomy Of A Fall, Stone talked of her toddler daughter turning her life ‘technicolour’ and Nolan thanked his wife and producing partner Thomas – ‘producer of all our films and all of our children’.

christopher nolan, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Christopher Nolan and Matthew McConaughey

jonathan glazer, oscars 2024 — Jonathan Glazer

martin scorsese, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Martin and Francesca Scorsese

justine triet, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Justine Triet and Arthur Harari

Meanwhile, Sean Lennon, exec producer of best animated short, War Is Over, asked the audience to wish his mother, Yoko, a happy birthday and Mother’s Day. It was also a family affair for Billie Eilish, in houndstooth Chanel, and her songwriter brother Finneas O’Connell, whose performance of Barbie’s What Was I Made For? electrified the room and won the siblings their second Oscar for best original song.

cynthia erivo, finneas, billie eilish, ariana grande, oscars 2024 — Cynthia Erivo, FINNEAS, Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande

Their competition, Mark Ronson’s ‘I’m Just Ken’, may not have taken gold but Ryan Gosling’s full-throttle rendition of the song while wearing a custom pink Gucci suit involved the entire auditorium and featured many of the movie’s Kens, including Ncuti Gatwa and Kingsley Ben-Adir. It was a measure of the top-drawer nature of the show that Slash showed up to perform the guitar solo. It was one of many moments that demonstrated the star wattage wielded by the event – with iconic filmmakers and performers appearing together to remind movie fans of past classics or tease of future collaborations. Furiosa’s Chris Hemsworth and Anya Taylor Joy (in silver Dior); The Fall Guy’s Emily Blunt, shimmering in cream Schiaparelli, and Ryan Gosling; Beetlejuice 2 stars Michael Keaton and Catherine O’Hara; Twins co-stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito (both jested with Keaton over Batman) and Wicked’s Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in character–appropriate gowns – Grande in pink Giambattista Valli and Erivo in structural green leather from Louis Vuitton. Zendaya, currently starring in the world’s number one movie, added further star power in Armani Prevé.

mark ronson, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Mark Ronson

Ncuti Gatwa, Kingsley Ben Adir, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Ncuti Gatwa and Kingsley Ben-Adir

anya taylor-joy, chris hemsworth, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth

slash, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Slash

emily blunt, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Emily Blunt and John Krasinski

danny devito, arnold schwarzenegger — Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger

zendaya, oscars 2024, dune part ii, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Zendaya

Nolan’s win felt all the more resonant for being handed out by multi-award nominated Steven Spielberg, who gamely played along with jokes by Kate McKinnon. But when it came to addressing world events, the show did not shy away. Jonathan Glazer made an impassioned speech about the Gaza/Israeli conflict, Cillian Murphy (in Versace) dedicated his award to ‘all the peacekeepers in the world’, Mstyslav Chernov, feature documentary winner for 20 Days In Mariupol, reduced the audience to silence with his speech about Ukraine. Host Jimmy Kimmel addressed US politics when he read out a social media review of the show by Donald Trump. “Isn’t it past your jail time?” he responded.

The night’s big win belonged to Oppenheimer presented by Al Pacino, with Emma Thomas confessing to having ‘dreamt of this moment for so long’ as she accepted Best Picture and praised the team surrounding her, including Florence Pugh in silver bejewelled Del Core. The cast and filmmakers hugged backstage, dazzled by the amount of gongs in hands.

florence pugh, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Florence Pugh

jimmy kimmel, john cena, oscars 2024 — Jimmy Kimmel and John Cena

An impressive, slick show that re-established the Academy’s dominance in awards season, presided over by four-time presenter and ultimate pro Kimmel, the 96th Oscars closed out as a true celebration of cinema and its stars – putting the difficulties of the past year firmly in the rear view window.

ryan gosling, barbie, what was i made for?, oscars 2024, hollywood authentic, greg williams, oscars dispatch — Ryan Gosling

AWARDS

Best Film: Oppenheimer

Best Director: Christopher Nolan

Best Actress: Emma Stone

Best Actor: Cillian Murphy

Best Supporting Actress: Da’Vine Joy Randolph

Best Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr

Best International Feature Film: The Zone Of Interest

Best Animated short: War Is Over

Best Animated Film: The Boy And The Heron

Best Original Screenplay: Anatomy Of A Fall

Best adapted Screenplay: American Fiction

Best Makeup and hair styling: Poor Things

Best Production Design: Poor Things

Best Costumes: Poor Things

Best visual effects: Godzilla Minus 1

Best Film editing: Oppenheimer

Best documentary short: The Last Repair Shop

Best documentary film: 20 Days In Mariupol

Best cinematography: Oppenheimer

Best Live Action short: The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar

Best Sound: Zone Of Interest

Best original score: Oppenheimer

Best song: What Was I Made For?

Words by Jane Crowther
Photographs by Greg Williams

Dispatches

CAILEE SPAENY

September 10, 2023

hollywood authentic, venice dispatch, venice film festival, greg williams

cailee spaeny, priscilla, venice film festival, venice dispatch, hollywood authentic, greg williams, bulgari, miu miu

VENICE DISPATCH 3 …
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

Cailee Spaeny, who last night won the Volpi Cup for best actress at the 80th Venice film festival, shot on the way to the premiere of Sofia Coppola’s eighth feature Priscilla. Spaeny plays Priscilla with Jacob Elordi as Elvis. The film is based on executive producer Priscilla Presley’s 1985 memoir Elvis and Me.

Cailee Spaeny and the Priscilla cast have been granted an interim agreement from SAG-AFTRA encouraging the cast to promote the film.

Priscilla is released on the 27 October.

Cailee Spaeny wears jewelry by Bulgari, dress by Miu Miu, with make-up by Loren Canby, hair by Kiley Fitzgerald and styling by Nicky Yates

Dispatches

MADS MIKKELSEN

September 3, 2023

mads mikkelsen, the promised land, venice film festival, venice dispatch, hollywood authentic, greg williams

VENICE DISPATCH 2 …
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

Mads Mikkelsen before the premier of his new movie The Promised Land at the Venice Film Festival on Friday.

Playing in competition in Venice, Nikolaj Arcel’s film portrays Mikkelsen as Capitain Ludvig Kahlen who in 1755 sets out to build a colony in the uninhabitable heath of Jutland following the Kings call to cultivate the land.

Arcel and Mikkelsen have previously collaborated on the Oscar nominated A Royal Affair. The Promised Land will be released 5 October, 2023.

Mads Mikkelsen wears watch by Chopard, suit by Zegna.

Dispatches

ADAM DRIVER

September 1, 2023

adam driver, ferrari, venice film festival, venice dispatch, hollywood authentic, greg williams

VENICE DISPATCH 1 …
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

Adam Driver heading to the premiere of Ferrari.

Michael Mann’s film is showing in competition at the 80th Venice Film Festival with Adam starring as Enzo Ferrari alongside Penélope Cruz, Shailene Woodley, Sarah Gadon and Patrick Dempsey.

An American biographical sports thriller film written by Troy Kennedy Martin about Enzo Ferrari, the Italian founder of the car manufacturer Ferrari. Based on the 1991 biography Enzo Ferrari: The Man and the Machine by motorsport journalist Brock Yates.

Adam Driver wears custom Burberry, grooming by Amy Komorowski

Dispatches

JUDE LAW

May 26, 2023

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CANNES DISPATCH 10 …
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

Jude Law moments before the world premiere of Firebrand, for which he has received unanimous praise for his explosive performance as King Henry VIII.

Law stars alongside Alicia Vikander as his sixth wife, Catherine Parr, in the film directed by Karim Aïnouz, which screened in competition at the 76th Cannes Film Festival.

Jude Law wears custom Brioni, styled by William J Gilchrist and grooming by Alain Pichon

Dispatches

KEVIN COSTNER & SIENNA MILLER

May 25, 2024

Dispatches

DEMI MOORE

May 25, 2024

Dispatches

SEBASTIAN STAN

May 21, 2024

Dispatches

WILLEM DAFOE

May 20, 2024

Dispatches

AWARDS JOURNEY – PHOTOGRAPHING EMMA STONE

March 15, 2024

Dispatches

OSCARS 2024

March 15, 2024

Dispatches

CAILEE SPAENY

September 10, 2023

Dispatches

MADS MIKKELSEN

September 3, 2023

Dispatches

ADAM DRIVER

September 1, 2023

Dispatches

JUDE LAW

May 26, 2023

All photographs by Greg Williams

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