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CNN Live Event/Special
CNN Presents "CNN & Variety Red Carpet Live." Aired 5-6:30p ET
Aired March 15, 2026 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[17:00:00]
ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And, you know, let's actually take a look at the latest odds from the prediction market on Kalshi. Let's see if what we are hearing from people in the industry is lining up with this. It says that Jessie Buckley -- oh, we're doing Best Actress, not supporting.
RAMIN SETOODEH, NEW YORK BUREAU CHIEF, VARIETY: Yes, we're doing Best Actress.
WAGMEISTER: OK, Best Actress. So, according to the prediction markets, Jessie Buckley has a 96 percent chance, 96 percent odds of taking it away, and Rose Byrne has 3 percent. Now, I'm going to ask if you agree with this, but I know that you do. This really seems to be the only lock of the night.
SETOODEH: I'm going to say, if you are watching on T.V. and you are still filling out your Oscar pool, this is the one sure bet of the night. Select Jessie Buckley. We love Rose Byrne, we love the other actresses, Emma Stone is so good in "Bugonia," but this is Jessie Buckley. She has won every single award. I almost said every single state because we're on CNN. But she has won every single award, she is the front runner, she's beloved.
I'm talking to Oscar voters. They're all very enthusiastically voting for her for "Hamnet." She plays a grieving mom who's married to William Shakespeare. And this is a classic actress performance that requires a lot of emotion and tears, and you saw it. What did you think?
WAGMEISTER: I, first of all, thought it was an incredible performance from Jessie Buckley. We actually interviewed Jessie Buckley at Actors on Actors just in the midst of award season. And this is just one of those actors that has the momentum from day one, and it never dies down.
And as you said, that is nothing to say of the other incredible performances, but the voters have really resonated with Jessie Buckley who, again, has been incredible. And you are right, if you are making a bet, if you have an Oscar pool at home, if you're playing a drinking game, choose Jessie Buckley. That is really the only certain race that we have for tonight.
SETOODEH: Yes, we're going to have a lot of surprises, but Best Actress is not one of them. WAGMEISTER: And I do want to point out that for some people who watch,
say, the Golden Globes, well, the Golden Globes, they split the categories into comedy and drama. So that's why we saw Rose Byrne win there and that's when she made that hysterical acceptance speech about Bobby Cannavale, and he wasn't there because he was getting a bearded dragon. If you didn't watch and don't know what I'm talking about, ignore that. If you did, you know what I'm talking about.
SETOODEH: But Rose Byrne will be on stage tonight --
WAGMEISTER: Yes.
SETOODEH: -- as part of a montage and tribute to "Bridesmaids."
WAGMEISTER: Yes.
SETOODEH: And so, we're going to see Rose Byrne on stage with Kristen Wiig and some of the other actors.
WAGMEISTER: And here, we have Chase Infinity, star of one battle after another. Congratulations on all the success of the film, and you look beautiful tonight. This is your first Oscars. What does it feel like? You just stepped on the carpet. What does it feel like to be here?
CHASE INFINITI, AMERICAN ACTRESS: I'm very excited. I feel very charged and energetic. And I saw Michael Bauman or DP when we were coming in. So, it was kind of like a nice -- like oh, my gosh, my family is here. So, I'm very excited to be here tonight.
SETOODEH: So, I read something. I read the Infiniti in your name is actually after Buzz Lightyear.
INFINITI: Right.
SETOODEH: And to infinity and beyond. How important were the "Toy Story" movies to you growing up and Buzz Lightyear specifically?
INFINITI: I feel like they were my whole childhood. Like, I even had the -- especially, I feel like I was -- I had the Woody and the Jessie doll, and I would play with those the most. I never actually got a Buzz Lightyear doll, though. So, I can still say --
SETOODEH: You never did.
INFINIT: -- I'm still missing --
WAGMEISTER: I feel like they should send you one now that we've said this on live T.V.
SETOODEH: Also growing up, I wanted to ask, when did you first see "Titanic?" You obviously didn't see it in a movie theater because you weren't born when "Titanic" came out.
INFINITI: I saw it last year when I was filming "The Testaments."
SETOODEH: You didn't see it during "One Battle?" INFINITI: No, I didn't.
SETOODEH: So, you didn't know about the boat and Jack and Rose and all that?
INFINITI: I mean, I knew, but, like, I hadn't seen the film.
SETOODEH: And the door. And the door.
INFINITI: Hey, I knew about that whole debate. You know, I knew about the whole debate.
WAGMEISTER: Like Jack, yes.
INFINITI: Exactly.
WAGMEISTER: Now, do you know what "Growing Pains" is?
INFINITI: "Growing Pains?" Yes.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. Have you watched it?
SETOODEH: That was Leo's first role on T.V.
WAGMEISTER: That is why I first developed my crush on Leo. But I really want to ask, you obviously play Leo's daughter in "One Battle After Another." What did you learn from him as an actor?
INFINITI: So much. I feel like one of the things that really sticks out in my mind though is just to get to see his kindness and his professionalism, but also like his sense of play at somebody that scale pretty much. That was the coolest thing ever, and that's something that I'll never -- that will never leave me.
SETOODEH: Chase, before you go, we're playing a game. It's our bowl of questions. Will you pick a question? Then we're going to ask you to answer it.
INFINITI: OK. I'm scared.
WAGMEISTER: Don't be scared.
INFINITI: Who is your favorite celebrity drinking buddy? Teyana Taylor.
(LAUGHTER)
SETOODEH: There you go. There you go. What do you guys drink?
INFINITI: Listen, OK? Teyana loves a good passion fruit margarita. So, if she has one, I'm going to have the same thing.
WAGMEISTER: OK.
SETOODEH: And who is a better drinker?
INFINITI: Better drinker? I feel like we're both not super great.
WAGMEISTER: Well, I feel like you are going to be drinking and celebrating tonight. And before we let you go, since Teyana is nominated for Best Supporting Actress, do you have any parting words for her before you walk into the show tonight?
INFINITI: Oh, my gosh. I think, like, for her, I would just say, Mama, I'm so proud of you.
[17:05:00]
You have worked so incredibly hard for everything in this film, and you will continue to do the most incredible work. So, I'm just so, so proud of her.
SETOODEH: Have a great night of the Oscars. Thank you very much, Chase. Thank you. We'll take the paper back. Thank very much.
INFINITI: OK. Thank you.
SETOODEH: Thank you.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you so much, Chase. All right --
SETOODEH: That was so much fun.
WAGMEISTER: -- we are going to head -- so much fun. We are going to head back to the CNN Style spin room to chat with our friends, Cari, Alex, and Rachel. So, so far, you guys, what are you seeing on the carpet that has really stood out to you?
CARI CHAMPION, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, you know what, Elizabeth, we have been trying to decide right now. But, so far, the experts, I'll refer -- I'll defer to them. I think, thus far, it has been Rose Byrne that you love the most.
RACHEL TASHJIAN, CNN SENIOR STYLE REPORTER, FASHION CRITIC FOR THE WASHINGTON POST: Rose Byrne is a favorite for us.
ALEX BADIA, STYLE DIRECTOR, WWD: For sure. That Dior dress is a stunner.
TASHJIAN: Yes.
CHAMPION: OK. But she just interviewed -- they just interviewed Chase Infiniti. And I know that there's some risk here. But I thought she looked amazing. Can you guys talk to me about what you see? First of all, who's she wearing, Rachel?
TASHJIAN: I believe she's wearing Louis Vuitton. She has been working really closely with the brand this season, has worn a lot of their designs.
BADIA: Yes.
TASHJIAN: What I think is so interesting about this is, obviously, she looks fabulous.
BADIA: Fabulous.
TASHJIAN: She looks so good. But she is going to find that that ruffle in the front is a little divisive for people.
BADIA: Yes.
CHAMPION: But why is it divisive? I feel like she looks like a goddess, like a Nefertiti queen of some sort.
BADIA: Well, it's not a traditional dress.
WAGMEISTER: Guys, not to interrupt, she looks so stunning on the carpet and that lavender hue on her. It's ethereal. And her makeup is beautiful. I mean, she looks like a princess.
TASHJIAN: She looks amazing.
BADIA: Can we talk a little bit about the pastel color that we've seen so far? Yellow, the lavender. We need to keep an eye on that. Those are a lot of ruffles in Paris. So, she's definitely a trend, right? And it's gorgeous.
TASHJIAN: And I like that she appears to have a pocket because women need to more pockets.
BADIA: Oh, pockets.
CHAMPION: We need more pockets for our phone and our lipstick and our money just in case we want to go home early.
BADIA: Yes. But what about the hair, the makeup? She looks gorgeous.
TASHJIAN: She looks absolutely gorgeous.
CHAMPION: I haven't seen her make any mistakes. I know you said this might be risky and polarizing, but it's a dress. How did you describe it? It's a dress that you wear when you're not nominated.
TASHJIAN: She wasn't nominated, unfortunately, this year for the Best Supporting Actress category. But she -- the film, of course, is nominated, "One Battle After Another." And I think this is a dress you wear when it's, like, I can have a little bit of fun with what I'm wearing, but I still want to look really fabulous.
CHAMPION: OK. Alex --
BADIA: Let's look at -- let's break it down a little bit. So beautiful. But then we were just talking about how divisive the ruffle in one side only. But, to me, that I'm Spanish, has this flamenco feel to it.
TASHJIAN: Love it.
BADIA: But look how beautifully constructed. Rachel, you were talking about the construction, how it's not pulling even though it looks kind of heavy, but it's a gorgeous dress.
CHAMPION: Well, I don't know. I think that I'm glad I'm sitting here with you all because I would wear this also. That'd be the first thing.
TASHJIAN: You would kill in this.
CHAMPION: OK, thank you.
BADIA: You can kill in this.
CHAMPION: OK, as they say.
(LAUGHTER)
WAGMEISTER: I want to ask you guys, I want to ask you, who are you most excited to see tonight? Who are you waiting to arrive on the red carpet?
BADIA: Jessie Buckley.
TASHJIAN: Jessie Buckley.
BADIA: Jessie Buckley for us. Very interesting. Her choices have been very nice.
SETOODEH: What about --
CHAMPION: Elizabeth --
SETOODEH: What about Timothee Chalamet? Do you think Timothee Chalamet is going to take a risk, or do you think it's going to go traditional?
TASHJIAN: I think he's going to go traditional.
BADIA: Oh, traditional. No more ping pong balls for him.
CHAMPION: No --
(LAUGHTER)
Elizabeth, if you see Michael B. Jordan, tell him I'm most excited to see him. OK?
(LAUGHTER)
I don't know about anybody else. I will.
WAGMEISTER: I will put in that word for you. I got you. All right, we are going to come back to you guys in a bit, but we're going to get back to the carpet. See you guys soon. We are going to tell Michael B. Jordan that we are going to -- we're just -- we're just going to put in a few good words, right?
SETOODEH: We are. And actually, we have a guest here from Variety, Matt Donnelly. Come on in. MATT DONNELLY, CHIEF CORRESPONDENT, VARIETY: Hello.
WAGMEISTER: Matt Donnelly, our good friend, a brilliant --
SETOODEH: A chief correspondent at Variety and a friend of both of ours.
WAGMEISTER: And a brilliant journalist.
SETOODEH: Yes.
WAGMEISTER: And --
DONNELLY: Family reunion. It's so thrilling to be here.
WAGMEISTER: So, we want to talk to you about really what everybody is talking about, which is Timothee Chalamet. Of course, he made his comments about the ballet and the opera. Does this have any chance of hurting his chances? Because, as we all know, but some viewers at home may not know, the voting window had closed just as this was going viral.
DONNELLY: I think he might have actually, not unlike "Marty Supreme," gotten one last hit in before it is really consequential -- especially the acting branch. They're very protective of artists of all kinds. So, think any goodwill might have turned for him happened just after that window closed. But Best Actor has, without a doubt, become the most contentious must-watch category tonight.
SETOODEH: Matt, thank you very much for joining us. We'll see you inside.
DONNELLY: Thank you.
SETOODEH: OK, great.
WAGMEISTER: Thanks so much, Matt. Hello! We are live on CNN.
SETOODEH: We are live on CNN.
WAGMEISTER: So nice to see you.
KUMAIL NANJIANI, OSCARS PRESENTER: Thrilled to be on CNN.
WAGMEISTER: Yay. OK. So, who have you seen so far tonight that even you, who has been in this industry for as long as you have been, that you're just geeking out over?
NANJIANI: Oh, my God. I just got here. I can't even focus on any faces. I love Joel Edgerton. He's right there.
[17:10:00]
I'm thrilled that my comedy hero, Conan O'Brien, is presenting. I saw him yesterday at rehearsal. I've not seen him today.
WAGMEISTER: What did he tell you about what he's going to do on stage?
NANJIANI: I know a little bit about it.
WAGMEISTER: Tell us.
SETOODEH: What can you tell us? Tell us something.
NANJIANI: He's going to be employing humor.
SETOODEH: Is he going to get political?
NANJIANI: I don't -- I didn't see anything political. I did not see anything political. What I saw was very, very funny. Old school. You know when you used to have a show in the 90s? That brand of comedy but about this year's movies. It's going to be great.
WAGMEISTER: OK. Now, we want you to pick a question from our random bowl of questions.
SETOODEH: What can it be?
NANJIANI: Any gotchas?
SETOODEH: There's a lot of gotchas.
NANJIANI: Are there really?
WAGMEISTER: We need to get on the same page with this.
SETOODEH: What's the most ridiculous rumor you've heard about yourself?
NANJIANI: Well, I heard I was dating Michelle Obama.
SETOODEH: When was this?
NANJIANI: This was, like, in the last year. And I've never met her.
SETOODEH: You don't have her number?
NANJIANI: No, I don't have her number.
WAGMEISTER: So, you're debarking that rumor right here.
NANJIANI: I'm debarking it. I mean, I think it is pretty good rumor to have.
SETOODEH: Now, she can have you on her podcast and you guys can talk this through about how this rumor got started.
NANJIANI: I was supposed to do it last year, and I couldn't. But I think I'm doing it very soon.
SETOODEH: So, there you go. You heard it on CNN. This was not actually true.
NANJIANI: It's not true.
WAGMEISTER: All right. Thank you so much.
NANJIANI: Thank you. Nic talking to you, guys.
WAGMEISTER: Thanks for stopping by. See, you really never know what you are going to get on to -- on the live carpet. Now, I believe we have Joel Edgerton --
SETOODEH: We have Joel Edgerton joining us.
WAGMEISTER: -- somewhere behind us. Maybe.
SETOODEH: He's coming.
WAGMEISTER: Maybe not.
SETOODEH: But he is not ready to join.
WAGMEISTER: But he is the star of "Train Dreams," which is nominated for Best Picture tonight. We just spoke to his co-star, Felicity Jones, who was raving about him just a few moments ago.
SETOODEH: And this movie actually did really well. I think Joel Edgerton probably missed Best Actor by a hair. It was a very competitive year. But the Academy really loved "Train Dreams." It was a movie that Netflix acquired out of Sundance last year. And it really had a lot of momentum for Netflix. And it was a movie that a lot of people saw and really felt a heartfelt connection to.
WAGMEISTER: And look, you know, I do believe, and I agree with you, that he missed on this not for any reason other than an embarrassment of riches with the talent. We've been talking about this Best Actor race a lot. And look at all people who were in contention and were not nominated. George Clooney, Adam Sandler.
SETOODEH: Jesse Plemons in "Bugonia."
WAGMEISTER: Jesse Plemons.
SETOODEH: He's incredible in the film.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. I mean, there were so many actors in Hollywood that were submitted, that were in contention, were nominated at other award shows. But when it comes to the Oscars, it's tight race, five per category. Some people miss out.
SETOODEH: And I really like that the Oscars have not done category inflation. Some other award shows have. And so, there's six or seven or eight nominees in each category. And I think that sticking to five is good. And I actually think the Oscars should go back to five for Best Picture. They have 10 for Best Picture. Seems like it's a little inflation. They did that just over 15 years ago when "The Dark Knight" was nominated, and they wanted to make it more populous. But I think people like the competition. I think picking the five favorite is the way to go. WAGMEISTER: It really does. It raises the stakes. I agree with you. I'm always, like, you know, 10 feels like a little much.
SETOODEH: It's like you're coddling the stars, and we just need the five best. But speaking of one of the bests, we have Joel Edgerton joining us.
WAGMEISTER: Hello. Hi. I'm Elizabeth. So nice to see you. Hello.
SETOODEH: You're live on CNN.
WAGMEISTER: Yes, we're live. We are live. Yes.
SETOODEH: Tell us about "Train Dreams" and the train ride that you've been on to get here at the Oscars.
CLINT BENTLEY, DIRECTOR, SCREENWRITER: We made this movie in 2024. We premiered it last year at Sundance, which was a beautiful kind of coming out party for the film. We partnered up with Netflix. And then it has just been a long road of introducing the film to people as a smaller independent film and kind of growing and seeing people connect with it and really to just what it was about and show us the depth of the film.
SETOODEH: And Joel Edgerton is the star, of course, of "Train Dreams" for those of us watching. Joel, can you talk about the layers and the depth of the role and why you were drawn to it, and also the directing style. It's very similar to like the Terrence Malick film.
JOEL EDGERTON, ACTOR, FILMMAKER: I just love this material from when I first read the novella. And to have the opportunity to be in a film based on this material, it was just too easy to say yes to and too alluring. There's such a beauty to the material and patience to it. And it's, you know, experiences of life that are so beautiful and also so tragic, all within the same hour and a half. You know, I had one of the most wonderful experiences and learned a lot about myself from doing it. So, it will forever be one of my most treasured experiences, partly because of this band (ph).
WAGMEISTER: And what does it mean to both of you to have the film recognized in the Best Picture category tonight?
BENTLEY: It's insane. I mean, you feel the historic nature of just being a little part of this beautiful industry that we have. And so, for the film to be recognized like that speaks to how it connected with people and how many people found themselves in it, which is really meaningful.
[17:15:00]
SETOODEH: Joel, who are you rooting for tonight?
EDGERTON: Us.
(LAUGHTER)
SETOODEH: You're rooting for yourself. We have -- before you go, we have a question for you in our magic CNN & Variety questions bowl.
WAGMEISTER: You can each pick one. All right.
SETOODEH: Joel, what's your question?
EDGERTON: Oh, geez. Do you believe in aliens? I'd like to believe that they are out there somewhere.
SETOODEH: Have you met an alien?
EDGERTON: I actually -- I like this theory that they're already among us or that we're already sort of part -- part of the DNA is already -- you know what I mean?
BENTLEY: Yes, sure.
EDGERTON: And I think maybe they built some of our structures.
SETOODEH: Very "Bugonia" of you. Thank you guys very much, both so much.
WAGMEISTER: All right. We got to also break.
SETOODEH: We'll get your question later.
WAGMEISTER: Next time, we'll get your question.
SETOODEH: We'll get your question later. Thank you, guys.
WAGMEISTER: All right, the countdown for the Oscars is on and all eyes are on the red carpet as the night's biggest names are arriving. We'll be bringing you the night's most astonishing fashion moments as we anticipate the winners of the top awards. We'll be back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:20:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WAGMEISTER: Welcome back to CNN & Variety Red Carpet Live. The anticipation is building as the biggest names in Hollywood begin to arrive. And we are with one of those biggest names, Miss Heidi Klum. Hi, Heidi.
SETOODEH: Hi, Heidi.
WAGMEISTER: You look beautiful.
SETOODEH: You made it work.
HEIDI KLUM, MODEL, TELEVISION HOST: Thank you. It's from Chrome Hearts.
SETOODEH: You look incredible. So, we were talking in the commercial about your favorite cameo in a movie or T.V. show. What would you say that would be?
KLUM: Well, I did love when I did "Sex and the City. I walked over Sarah Jessica Parker --
SETOODEH: On the runway.
KLUM: -- on the runway. That was kind of like a lot of fun. But I have to say I love "Spin City." I did with Michael J. Fox. I got to do six episodes. And I had this bed scene with him. And I was mortified the night before because I loved Michael J. Fox, obviously, and I still love him. And I couldn't sleep the night before because I knew I had this bed scene with him the next day. It was like I yodeled with him in bed. It was funny. But we fully had like clothes on underneath. You know, like kind of skin-colored clothes.
SETOODEH: It was on ABC. So, it wasn't -- that wasn't HBO. That was ABC.
WAGMEISTER: I was going to say that wasn't "Sex and the City." You also had a cameo in "The Devil Wears Prada."
KLUM: Yes.
WAGMEISTER: Tell us, what do you remember about filming that?
KLUM: Well, that was very early on in my career. How many years ago was it now? What did they say? What was the reword (ph)? Like 20 years ago?
SETOODEH: Yes, it was just around 20 years ago.
KLUM: I mean, it was kind of a fashion show scene. You know, if you sneezed, you missed me basically. But I was in it.
WAGMEISTER: You were in it.
SETOODEH: We have a bowl of questions here and a fan inside the bowl. But would you take a question and see? Heidi Klum is tossing her question.
KLUM: OK. It's too small. I don't have my glasses.
SETOODEH: The question is, do you have a secret or burner social media account?
KLUM: I don't.
SETOODEH: Do you like social media?
KLUM: I do. I'm on it every day.
SETOODEH: Why don't you take another question?
KLUM: OK.
SETOODEH: This question is -- I'll read it. What's your biggest guilty pleasure, Heidi?
KLUM: I eat a lot of chips.
SETOODEH: What kind of chips?
KLUM: I like Funny-Frisch chips from Germany. So, I love chips. I eat a lot of chips all the time. I should have brought some in the car.
SETOODEH: That would be fun to watch at the Oscars because you know there's no food at the Oscars. So that would have come in handy.
KLUM: Oh, I know, yes.
WAGMEISTER: I just want to ask you, there has been a lot of people talking about the top model documentary, and you obviously know a thing or two about reality shows about modeling and fashion. Did you watch?
KLUM: Well, I do "Germany's Next Topmodel" in Germany, and it's run a little different there than it is in America. So, a lot of the things that I saw that they had them do, we don't do in Germany. It has been now 21 years. I do the show, and I love doing the show. You know, it's my life. You know, I started as a model. So, I love being surrounded and being a model that, you know, aspiring and wanted to do this job. And it's a lot of fun. I enjoy it very much.
Right now, I'm shooting "Project Runway," the new season of "Project Runway" for the next five weeks. So, tomorrow, I'm flying back to New York to shoot that. Yes, but I love doing Topmodel.
SETOODEH: And before we let you go, what is a movie that you're rooting for tonight?
KLUM: I'm rooting for "Song Sung Blue" with Kate Hudson.
SETOODEH: With Kate Hudson.
KLUM: With Kate Hudson. I love her. I've also seen her on Aspen. She really sings. So, this is not like altered afterwards. Like her voice is like so special. And who knew that she could sing that fabulously. So, I'm rooting for her, and I love her.
SETOODEH: Heidi, thank you so much. Have a great time tonight.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you so much, Heidi. Have a great night. All right, we are going to head back to New York to Cari, Rachel, and Alex in the CNN Style spin room because we have to talk about Heidi's magnificent dress. And for those of you at home, yes, she is just as statuesque and stunning and kind in person.
CHAMPION: Elizabeth, thank you for that. We were just back here commenting on the dress.
WAGMEISTER: You know what? Wait, Cari!
CHAMPION: Yes. WAGMEISTER: Yes, you did, but we love it. So, we're live on CNN. And we're also with our friends in New York talking about fashion.
SETOODEH: So, are we coming back? We're going come back to Lewis.
WAGMEISTER: We are going to come back to you, guys --
SETOODEH: Yes.
WAGMEISTER: -- because we are here with Lewis Pullman. And I love your fashion.
LEWIS PULLMAN, OSCARS PRESENTER: Thank you.
WAGMEISTER: By the way. OK, so, tonight, you are presenting with your dad. We saw some photos from rehearsal.
PULLMAN: You did. Yes, the little sneak peek.
WAGMEISTER: OK.
PULLMAN: And what is the first? I'm not sure if somebody was saying it might be the first for Oscars all time, like a father son duo. We got to look into that. I'm not -- I'm not ready to carve that in stone. But if that's true, that's pretty special. But outside of that, it's really special for us. I mean, I'm so excited. it's just a nerve- racking thing. But to have your dad next to you helps a lot.
SETOODEH: What are your thoughts on the term nepo baby? I know there was a lot of backlash now.
[17:25:00]
People are embracing it. Do you embrace the nepo baby title?
PULLMAN: How could you not? I mean, I think it's undeniable, the existence of nepotism. I think, yes, I've had -- yes, it's definitely something that I talk about a lot, obviously. I think it's interesting. You know, he has helped me in so many ways. I think in the most, like, crystallized ways, just being an amazingly supportive dad. And him and my mom have been like, you know, outside of nepotism. I think a lot of actors get discouraged by their parents because it is kind of a pipe dream. But, you know, I had just a very open breeze with support and that does more than anything in so many ways.
SETOODEH: The favorite movie of your dad's?
PULLMAN: I love "Zero Effect." It's a movie he did with Ben Stiller. It is a -- he plays a wacky detective. He's out of control in that. And then some of the plays he has been doing recently, "All My Sons," it was amazing, him and Sally Field. He just keeps getting better and better.
WAGMEISTER: And you're about to be in a movie with your dad, "Spaceballs 2." I know a lot of people are excited about this. What can you tell us about the movie? PULLMAN: Some of the most fun I've had on a film set, some of the hardest I've laughed. It is a brilliant team of creatives who have really like really injected the truth and what makes the first one so special, but then also kind of like tinkering and tweaking. And our director, Josh Greenbaum, there's nobody who could have done it better. And Mel Brooks was part of the DNA throughout the entire process. And so, it's very exciting. I think it's going to be as fun to watch as it was to make. And it was one of the best experiences of my life, making it.
WAGMEISTER: As a 90s kid, I'm excited about the return of Rick Moranis.
SETOODEH: Tell me about it. We got him out of his woodshed, back out in the sun, and he's better than ever.
SETOODEH: We can't wait to see that, and we can't wait to see you tonight inside the Oscars. Have a great night.
PULLMAN: Thank you. Appreciate it.
WAGMEISTER: Have so much fun. Thank you so much, Lewis. All right, the cameras are flashing, and the red carpet is hot. Literally, it's very, very hot. We are still watching for some of the biggest celebrities to arrive. Emma Stone and Teyana Taylor and so many more. Don't go anywhere.
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[17:30:00]
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WAGMEISTER: Welcome back to CNN & Variety Red Carpet Live. We are having so much fun, Ramin. It is so busy. It is so crowded. All of the stars are here. I know that we want to talk about the Best Picture race. It is a stacked race. It really is going to come down to one battle after another versus sinners, right? Or do you think there could be some toss-ups, some upsets?
SETOODEH: No, it's really just those two. And I keep changing my mind. Like three days ago, I had one prediction. Yesterday, I had another prediction. And today, I have a different prediction. I think this could go either way, really.
WAGMEISTER: OK. Well, speaking about predictions, let's take a look at the Kalshi predictions to see what people are thinking might win for Best Picture because we know what we think, but let's see. So, "One Battle After Another," 78 percent chance, "Sinners" with 21 percent odds, and "Hamnet" with 3 percent.
SETOODEH: That's 3-4 percent for "Hamnet." I don't think that's really going to happen, but --
WAGMEISTER: Right. But look --
SETOODEH: -- small chance.
WAGMEISTER: So, obviously, the odds here are that "One Battle After Another" has a huge jump over "Sinners." I don't necessarily think that that is true. I do think that "One Battle After Another" is going to win if I had to predict. But I don't know if there's that much of a disparity. What do you think?
SETOODEH: I think it has a slight edge. This has been very long Oscar season. So, voters have had a long time to watch these movies. And they may have loved "One Battle After Another" initially. But I think in the weeks that they waited and thought and rethought, they really want Best Picture to be a movie that has a long legacy and can speak to that year. And "Sinners" made so much money. It was such an inventive idea. Ryan Coogler is the future of Hollywood. I think this is a very neck-and-neck race. I don't think it's as far apart as the Kalshi had said.
WAGMEISTER: And, you know, "Sinners" has a ton of momentum coming after the Actor Awards, formerly known as the SAG Awards. But let's talk more about this with Variety's chief film critic, our friend, Owen Gleiberman. Owen, it is so good to see you, and we want to talk more about the Best Picture race. Owen, are you there, Owen?
SETOODEH: Owen, what's your prediction?
OWEN GLEIBERMAN, CHIEF FILM CRITIC, VARIETY (voice-over): I am. It's great to see you, guys.
WAGMEISTER: Do we have Owen? OK. Hey, Owen.
SETOODEH: The voice of Owen. Yes. So, Owen, what's your prediction?
GLEIBERMAN: It's great to see you, guys, if you can see me or hear me. I am going to go with what Lewis said. I would say it is kind of a pass up. But I think "One Battle After Another," I think it's got the slight thanks here. It's just a movie that so much expressed, so much of what people were feeling about the politics of this year, the politics of our time.
And that's one of the things that movies can do. But the Oscars have always celebrated and saluted, which is the way movies can just capture our time almost like no other medium. And I think that this powerful movie has simmered well. "One Battle After Another" really that this year. So, I'm going to give it the slight edge.
WAGMEISTER: All right. And, obviously, "Sinners" is making Oscars history tonight, Owen, with 16 nominations. What about the film? What about the film? You know, I think we lost Owen, Ramin.
SETOODEH: Owen had to go.
WAGMEISTER: All right.
SETOODEH: Thank you, Owen.
WAGMEISTER: I want to talk about, we just saw images from the red carpet of Conan O'Brien, the host, the man of the night arriving. I loved Conan O'Brien last year. I thought he did such a fantastic job.
[17:35:00]
Obviously, Jimmy Kimmel had hosted for so many years. Conan has a very different style of comedy than Jimmy Kimmel. What are you excited to see and what do you hope to see from Conan tonight?
SETOODEH: I think the question is, is Conan going to be political? He wasn't political at all last year. Jimmy Kimmel, on the other hand, was so political that President Trump would tweet at him at the end of the night. And so, during Trump's first term, we would see that happen. Kimmel really embraced that. Conan doesn't want that. And I think probably the Academy, if I had to guess, doesn't want that either because they want everyone in the country to watch the Oscars, depending on -- no matter what your political affiliation.
And so, I think we're going to see a show where there's a lot of darkness in this world, there's a lot happening in this world, but this is going to be a show where Conan comes to unify everyone. And we pay tribute to the movies and this is a purely showbiz night. This isn't going to be a night where he talks about what's happening around the world. That would be my guess. But I'm looking forward to seeing how he's able to thread that needle because it's a difficult line to walk.
WAGMEISTER: Absolutely. And not this year, but before last year's Oscar, which was Conan's first year hosting, I interviewed the CEO of the Academy, Bill Kramer, and he told me that he was hoping the Oscars didn't get political. So, you're right, the Academy is really hoping for a show that can unify everyone.
But I've seen a lot of comments and a lot of discourse from our viewers at home who say there's a lot going on in the world. It could be tone deaf to not approach all of these events happening in the world, whether that's in D.C. or whether that's abroad. We've seen a lot of celebrities tonight wearing "ICE out" pins, different pins symbolizing causes that are important to them. So, even if Conan doesn't get political, we often see political moments come from presenters and more so even come from the winners.
SETOODEH: Absolutely. And, you know, often, the Oscars have a history and a tradition of addressing politics and winners going on stage and speaking their mind and talking about what's happening in the world. And sometimes, you can even speak your mind by not attending the Oscars.
And so, one of the questions is, I don't think we've seen Sean Penn on the carpet. And Sean Penn usually does not attend the Oscars. He attended the two years that he won for "Milk" and "Mystic River." But we're wondering whether or not Sean Penn will be here tonight. And he has been very negative about the Oscars and the concept of Hollywood. And he has even said that he was going to burn his Oscars or melt them. And so, we'll see if Sean Penn shows up or who accepts for him if he wins.
WAGMEISTER: And Sean Penn is nominated for Best Supporting Actor. He seems to be a favorite. But another stacked category remains. We got to go to a quick break. So, we are in the final countdown, you guys, to the 98th Academy Awards. The excitement is building as we are here on the red carpet. But we are still, still waiting for some of the night's top nominees to arrive. You don't want to miss it, so don't go anywhere.
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[17:40:00]
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WAGMEISTER: Welcome back to CNN & Variety Red Carpet Live. We are live here on the red carpet at the 98th Annual Academy Awards. And Jessie Buckley, who seems to be a shoe-in to walk away with the Best Actress Award tonight, is arriving, looking beautiful.
SETOODEH: There she is right now walking at the top of the Oscars carpet. We're really going to try to interview her. I heard she's going to stop and talk to us. We have lots of questions for Jessie Buckley as the front runner for Best Actress for her performance in "Hamnet." And the biggest stars are here. We're here live on the Oscars carpet. And we're very excited to be with you here on CNN as we're awaiting the show to begin.
WAGMEISTER: And Ramin, Jessie Buckley has swept all the precursor awards leading up to the Oscars. That is very rare. That is very hard to do. She has gotten every award. Her trophy case is growing. I expect that it will grow tonight. And fun fact about Jessie Buckley, the last time I interviewed her, I was actually eight months pregnant, and she told me that she found out that she was pregnant the week after she wrapped "Hamnet." If you have seen "Hamnet," it's about motherhood, it's about loss. Imagine finding out a week after that you're pregnant, and here she is with her beautiful baby at home looking stunning on the red carpet.
SETOODEH: An incredibly emotionally demanding role. "Hamnet" has just made $100 million worldwide as of this weekend, based on Jessie Buckley's incredible performance. Chloe Zhao directed this movie. This was one of the projects that she really wanted to do after "Nomadland" where she won the Oscar for Best Director. And it has been one of the arthouse hits of the year.
WAGMEISTER: Now, I want to talk about the movie of the night, which we've been talking about a lot. But "Sinners" coming in with 16 nominations. Someone that we have not talked about so much yet on this show, Ramin, is Ryan Coogler, of course, the mastermind behind "Sinners." If he wins for Best Director, he will make Oscar's history, becoming the first Black director to ever win in 98 years. In nearly 100 years, there has never been a Black director who has won in this category.
SETOODEH: There hasn't, and that is a statistic that I think will be broken sooner rather than later. If not tonight, that needs to change definitely in the near future. I think "Sinners" has a lot of very close races. I think we're going to see it when a lot of awards tonight is nominated for 16 Oscars. That's a record. That's more than any other movie in the history of Academy Awards.
WAGMEISTER: It is. And Michael B. Jordan is really -- we're waiting for him to arrive. We can't wait to talk to Michael B. Jordan. He better get here in time and not have to rush to his seat because we have a lot of questions for him. He plays twins in the movie. So, he plays two roles. You know, the Academy, that could go well with them because it was a demanding role, playing two different ones.
[17:44:56]
While we wait for Michael B. Jordan, and we know that Cari wants us to put in a good word for her with Michael B. Jordan, which we will do, Cari, we're going to toss back to you because we want to hear more about tonight's fashion.
CHAMPION: All right. Elizabeth and me, we've been having a good time in studio here deciding what we love and what we love the most. Can we go first with Jessie Buckley, Rachel? I want you to tell me what you see. I was like, is this too demure? And you say no.
TASHJIAN: It's an absolutely gorgeous dress. It's by Chanel. So, of course, she has this very strong, I think, confident red around her shoulders at the top, and then something very soft at the bottom, a very fluid, kind of ethereal pale pink skirt.
BADIA: Absolutely. Great scaling, catch that thief.
(LAUGHTER)
I love this kind of 50s look that we've been seeing. Ethereal, romantic. Look at the pink. We've seen soft pinks, soft pastels. Very nice. But I love the touch of red on the red --
CHAMPION: I was going to say, Alex, the red is what's happening. Can we move on to Renate? How beautiful she --
BADIA: Oh, my God. We're freaking out.
TASHJIAN: She's in Louis Vuitton. And this red is everything.
BADIA: Everything.
TASHJIAN: It's absolutely beautiful. And it's --
BADIA: Yes, please.
TASHJIAN: It's super modern, this dress that Renate is wearing. It's got this incredible slip on the side. We're wondering if what she's wearing underneath is like a bodysuit because it looks so comfortable.
BADIA: Don't you think this is capturing the now?
TASHJIAN: It looks so modern.
BADIA: It has so love story, so minimal, so 90s, inspired in what it looks like a Calvin Klein dress from that era, but it's Louis Vuitton. And again, this color, that lip, she's killing it.
CHAMPION: OK. I'm watching love story. Are you saying she's giving us Carolyn Bessette Kennedy?
BADIA: She's giving us Carolyn Bessette Kennedy.
TASHJIAN: With a little ponytail.
BADIA: Oh my, the ponytail, the red lip. The little -- also the little cuff, I love it.
TASHJIAN: And the exacting nature of the reds matching on each of the pieces is just --
BADIA: For sure.
CHAMPION: And she looks amazing. OK, are there any other looks that we need to talk about?
BADIA: Yes.
CHAMPION: But before we can get back to those looks, we're going to send it back to you, Elizabeth, because, apparently, you are on the red carpet with someone who is special.
BADIA: We love her.
WAGMEISTER: All right. We are here with Jessie Buckley who, of course, is nominated tonight for Best Actress. You have won every single award leading up to tonight. How are the nerves? How are you feeling?
JESSIE BUCKLEY, BEST ACTRESS NOMINEE: I feel so full of joy. It's kind of -- I'm trying to take it in. You know, take a minute, take it in. I feel so proud of this film. I feel so proud to be an artist. I love this community. And I just have full intention to have a great time and celebrate everybody tonight.
SETOODEH: Jessie, do you have a speech prepared for tonight?
BUCKLEY: I have thought of something. But I don't know. If it stays in my bag, fine. If it comes out, then that's fine, too.
SETOODEH: You look incredible. Can you tell us who you're wearing?
BUCKLEY: I'm wearing Chanel. The incredible team at Chanel made this based off a Grace Kelly image of when she came to the Oscars, and I love it. I feel like just free and like feminine and full of joy.
SETOODEH: And before we let you go, I was wondering, do you have a favorite line from "Shakespeare" or a favorite thirsty line from William Shakespeare that you really enjoyed working on while you were making "Hamnet?"
BUCKLEY: While I was making -- one of Shakespeare's or one of the lines from the film?
SETOODEH: A favorite Shakespeare line.
BUCKLEY: Well, my favorite sonnet that I love, which a friend of mine messaged me, and actually Chanel in my handbag put it on a piece of tissue for me to put in my bag, is when to the sessions of sweet silent thought I summon up remembrance of things past, I sigh the lack of hope I sought, and with old woes new wail my dear time's waste. Anyway, I'll have --
SETOODEH: CNN viewers love that. They love that. Can you just quickly take a question out of -- can you take a question out of our bowl, just take it quick, answer question really quickly.
BUCKLEY: Who should be the next James Bond? Oh, I think Callum Turner would be pretty great.
SETOODEH: You didn't say Paul.
BUCKLEY: I didn't. No. I answered the question.
WAGMEISTER: Don't worry. We won't tell him.
SETOODEH: There you go. Thank you very much.
WAGMEISTER: He was watching live.
BUCKLEY: Paul is already my James Bond.
SETOODEH: Thank you. Have a great time tonight and good luck.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you so much, Jessie. Congratulations. Have a great night. Hello. All right, we are live on CNN. Yes, we're live.
SETOODEH: We're live on CNN.
WAGMEISTER: Congratulations. Nominated for Best Actor tonight.
SETOODEH: Wagner Moura, a lot of people are predicting that you could win tonight.
WAGNER MOURA, BEST ACTOR NOMINEE: Well, I don't know, man. You know, I'm so happy to be here. It has been such a crazy journey. Like the attention that this Brazilian film has been receiving is so amazing. You know, we've been doing this. The attention that the film has been receiving has been kept steady since Cannes. So, it's almost 10 months. And this is already great, all denominations. I think we got to where we're supposed to be already, and that's good enough.
WAGMEISTER: Now, if you win, you will make history, becoming the first Brazilian actor to win in this category. What would that mean not just to you but to the people in Brazil?
[17:50:00]
MOURA: I really hope it -- I mean, if that happens, what -- I would hope that we would mean something to young actors from Latin America, not only from Brazil, like they can feel that they belong to this, they deserve to be on those stages in the world. I hope that that's what happens.
SETOODEH: Before you go, will you take a question from our bowl, CNN Variety bowl questions?
MOURA: Yes. Worst fashion trend of all time? Well, back in the 80s, those like -- how do you say, the shoulders?
SETOODEH: Shoulder pads.
MOURA: Shoulder pads. I didn't like those. But maybe some people like it.
WAGMEISTER: I'm a fan of shoulder pads, but it's OK.
MOURA: This one?
WAGMEISTER: You know, a small shoulder pad. You could pull it on.
SETOODEH: No shoulder pad action happening on you tonight. Your shoulders are filling out that suit.
MOURA: Do I look like a football player?
SETOODEH: Thank you very much. Nice talking to you. Good luck tonight.
WAGMEISTER: Congratulations. Thank you so much. All right, so there, Wagner Moura, nominated, as we said, for Best Actor. We've been talking about this a lot. We are predicting him to be the dark horse, the one who could walk away with the trophy. Everybody is talking about Timothee Chalamet and Michael B. Jordan in this category. But I think with the international vote, I think with the love for this film from the Academy, we could see him walking away an Oscar winner tonight.
SETOODEH: And what could happen is that all the famous actors in the category could cancel each other out. And so, the international voters, which make up roughly 20 to 25 percent of the Academy, they could have their say and they really love "The Secret Agent." It was a movie that premiered in Cannes. It's from Brazil. It's an incredible performance. If you watching at home haven't seen it yet, this is one of the big international features of the year. It is also nominated for Best International Feature. So, we're going to see how well of a night Brazil has.
WAGMEISTER: And, you know, it is a big year for international films, also "Sentimental Value," which has nine nominations tonight. That was another film that was beloved by the Academy. And you make a great point, Ramin, which is as the Academy has diversified its voting body over the past five, 10 years, we've seen a huge influx of international voters. And we have seen that impact the winners.
If you look at the Academy Awards from the past five years, we've seen a lot of international voters, a lot of accents that get up there during their acceptance speeches. We were talking the other day, of course, about when Olivia Colman beat Glenn Close. Every pundit in town was saying Glenn Close is going to win, and it was Olivia Colman. I think tonight that that could be the moment with Wagner, that they could say it's Michael B. Jordan, it's Timothee. Everybody is waiting to see what's going to happen, and it could be him.
SETOODEH: And keep in mind, there's about 10,000 Oscar voters. So, we talk about the Academy, we talk about the Oscars, but you only really need about 2,500 to 3,000 votes to win. So, this isn't -- this isn't a national election. This is a very small community that's voting. So, we'll see what happens.
WAGMEISTER: All right, Ramin, let's go back to Cari and Rachel and Alex. We want to hear what you guys are thinking about the fashion on the red carpet.
CHAMPION: Thank you, guys, so much. We appreciate it. Great interviews, by the way. Meanwhile, we're here losing our minds over Wunmi Mosaku. Look at what she's wearing. You said we couldn't figure out who exactly styled her. But Alex, what are we looking at?
BADIA: I mean, the only thing I see is those emerald, gorgeous emerald earrings and the whole green dress. She's a color lover. She has been wearing bright red, bright blue. This green is perfect. And look how she stands. She's just gorgeous.
CHAMPION: TShe's regal in pregnancy. Is she not, Rachel?
TASHJIAN: Yes. Rihanna changed the game for every woman who will ever be pregnant. And I love that she's wearing this form-fitting dress in this incredible glittering. I mean, it almost looks like scales. She looks otherworldly to me.
BADIA: So true.
TASHJIAN: And the way that her eye makeup and her jewelry pick up the colors on her dress. It's just an incredibly gorgeous and cohesive.
CHAMPION: I'm happy to see her wear her natural hair. It's such a Mother Earth statement. And I know they want to do different looks --
BADIA: Yes.
CHAMPION: -- but the natural is Mother Earth. Now, we also made a point to talk about Barbie Ferreira. Did you love her look?
TASHJIAN: I did love her look. I mean, what was really special about Barbie's dress is this is from the Gap.
BADIA: Can you imagine? Gap is really -- Zac Posen designed this.
CHAMPION: So, is it really -- can I go to the Gap and get it?
BADIA: I think you should call them first.
CHAMPION: OK.
(LAUGHTER) BADIA: Can we talk about bright colors and vibrant colors? That's a huge trend of the night. Look at this. Corset blue is beautiful. And look at the back detail. That's a shirt turning to a bow. You see the shirt cuff is beautiful.
CHAMPION: You know, we talked about what colors we thought we'd see. What are you surprised by? They're bright, right?
TASHJIAN: I'm surprised to see all of these bright colors. And I have to say I'm really happy to see them because we've seen so much black at this award season. We've seen so much black on the runways in Milan and Paris and New York and London. It's wonderful to see this optimism. I think that, you know, a lot of stars are feeling about Hollywood, about entertainment, and wanting to feel really good right now.
BADIA: And eyeshadow. May I say something about eyeshadow? Pay attention to eyeshadow. It's a time.
CHAMPION: All right, speaking of eyeshadows, you know who looks good? Elizabeth, I haven't even complimented you and Ramin about how great you all look. Have you all had any favorites?
[17:55:00]
Just really quickly, as we send it back to you, who looks the best to you, Elizabeth? She's busy. Working hard.
BADIA: Busy.
CHAMPION: She's working hard.
SETOODEH: We're trying -- we're trying to wrangle the big stars for you guys on T.V.
CHAMPION: I see.
SETOODEH: And we have one coming up.
(LAUGHTER)
WAGMEISTER: We do. But I don't want to say it because what if she doesn't come? Because this is live T.V. after all. But no, we have Odessa A'zion on who's just taking some pictures.
SETOODEH: She's taking some selfies on the carpet.
WAGMEISTER: She looks beautiful. Then she's going to come. Of course, one of the stars of "Marty Supreme," which I think was one of your favorite movies of the year.
SETOODEH: I love "Marty Supreme." I think that was a movie that a lot of people really had high hopes for. And so, we're going to see how well it does tonight at the Oscars.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. SETOODEH: OK, Odessa is on her way. Odessa.
WAGMEISTER: Hello.
SETOODEH: Hello. You're live with CNN. Hello.
WAGMEISTER: First, talk to us about this insanely incredible outfit.
ODESSA A'ZION, ACTRESS: This is (INAUDIBLE) Valentino. It's (INAUDIBLE) Valentino. Not Valentino, (INAUDIBLE) Valentino. Two very different things.
WAGMEISTER: Yes.
SETOODEH: How many dresses did you try on before you decided on this?
A'ZION: I tried one that they custom-made, wasn't for me. I'm not going to wear something that I'm not into. You know what I mean? And they pulled this one out, and I was, like, yes. Look, there's Miyako! My girl! She looks good.
SETOODEH: What are you rooting for tonight?
A'ZION: Miyako.
WAGMEISTER: Yes.
A'ZION: Of course.
WAGMEISTER: All right. Now, we have a random bowl of questions.
A'ZION: OK. OK.
WAGMEISTER: Can you pick one? Read it.
A'ZION: Oh, I'm actually really scared.
WAGMEISTER: No, no, no. Don't be scared.
A'ZION: OK. I mean, hello, how are you?
SETOODEH: We're delayed on CNN. It's good. It's good. It's good. But no profanity on CNN.
A'ZION: Oh my god. Worst audition of all time. I actually have a great answer.
WAGMEISTER: OK. We want to hear it.
A'ZION: I auditioned for "The Little Mermaid." Really embarrassing. I sang "Part of Your World." I was so nervous that I forgot the lyrics to "Part of Your World" while I was singing it. And then because I was doing it in, like, Ariel's voice, like a princess voice, and then they were like, just do it normal. I couldn't do it normal. I'd memorize it in that voice. I left like that was the most embarrassing thing on planet earth and didn't get, didn't hear about it, didn't get a callback.
WAGMEISTER: No callback.
SETOODEH: This was for live action "Little Mermaid" that Rob Marshall directed?
A'ZION: Yes, yes.
SETOODEH: Let's ask you one more question. That was so much fun.
A'ZION: No.
SETOODEH: There's a little cheating going on here, but we'll allow it.
WAGMEISTER: It's OK. We'll allow it.
A'ZION: Do you Google yourself? You know, I have. It's a little not my thing anymore. It's too scary. I don't want to see that, you know?
SETOODEH: It gets you down. You talked about social media. You talked about social media getting you down and how you really don't like to read what people are saying.
A'ZION: Yes, I've been -- I've been -- I'm actually very delayed because I'm trying to share stuff from like the BAFTAs and the SAG awards and everything. I'm always really late because I'm just not on my phone like that's all -- maybe next week, everyone will just get those photos come in, and then all disappear again.
WAGMEISTER: It's hard to keep up. And protecting your mental health is so important in this day and age.
A'ZION: It's hard, though.
WAGMEISTER: It's hard. But let's talk about "Marty Supreme."
A'ZION: Let's do it.
WAGMEISTER: One of the most nominated films tonight. What does it feel like to kind of be at the end of this road with this film that you've been on a journey for so long to culminate in the Oscars? How does it feel?
A'ZION: I think that I feel like everyone that has been on this journey together is excited to be able to sleep again --
SETOODEH: And move on. And we'll let you do that.
A'ZION: But also, like, I think that everyone has really enjoyed seeing everyone have their really big, like, life-memorable moments for themselves and cheer each other on. That has been really, really cool.
SETOODEH: Odessa, thank you very much. We are getting a wrap signal.
A'ZION: Bye-bye. SETOODEH: We had fun with you. We asked you questions. Have a great night tonight.
A'ZION: Thank you, guys.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you so much. Have a great night.
SETOODEH: Thank you very much.
WAGMEISTER: All right. So, I am not going to lie. Ramin, we are on live T.V. I can't hear anything. Control room? I'm not hearing you, guys. So. I'm going to let --
SETOODEH: It's very loud. There's a lot of cheering. And the reason that they're cheering is that we're standing next to the actors from "KPop Demon Hunters," and that's where all the screaming and cheering is coming from. And they're coming. CNN viewers, they're coming to talk to us.
WAGMEISTER: Let us talk about the "KPop Demon Hunters" phenomenon. It's coming to the Oscar stage tonight. And by the way, I'm counting on you, my friend. If we have to rap and go to commercial, you have to tell me because I'm not hearing anything from our control room.
SETOODEH: I'll tell you. I will help.
WAGMEISTER: But "KPop Demon Hunters," they're going to be -- the performance tonight is, of course, the huge song, "Golden," one of the biggest songs. And that's one of two performances tonight. "Sinners" is going to be the other performance, a huge tribute. We talked to our friend, Shaboozey, earlier, who's going to be on stage. Misty Copeland, of course, one of the world's most iconic ballerinas, is going to be on stage.
SETOODEH: A nod to ballet and the importance of ballet at the Oscars.
WAGMEISTER: Yes, exactly. This is very important.
SETOODEH: Yes.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. So, Misty Copeland will be on stage for the "Sinners Tribute."
[18:00:01]
Buddy Guy, who of course was in the film at the end in those post- scene credits. And that is going to be one of the big moments of the night. I can't wait until we can talk to the team in a few minutes, from "KPop Demon Hunters," because they just greenlit a sequel, and I want to hear what we're getting in that movie.
RAMIN SETOODEH, VARIETY CO-EDITOR IN CHIEF: And this might be maybe the most watched movie that's nominated because the number of times "KPop Demon Hunters" has streamed on Netflix, everyone around the world is obsessed with this film. Children from everywhere have watched it and they will hopefully be tuning into the Oscars. I think the Oscar producers are looking forward to those ratings.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. And you know, it's actually Netflix's most watched movie of all time.
SETOODEH: Yes, it is.
WAGMEISTER: I mean, that is how much this film has resonated globally.
SETOODEH: Hello. Hi.
WAGMEISTER: Hello. Hi.
SETOODEH: And here they are.
WAGMEISTER: We're just talking about the incredible success of "KPop Demon Hunters." Hi.
SETOODEH: How many times have you seen "KPop Demon Hunters"?
REI AMI, SINGER IN "KPOP DEMON HUNTERS": Like 11 times now?
EJAE, BEST ORIGINAL SONG NOMINEE, "GOLDEN": Same, 11 times.
AUDREY NUNA, SINGER IN "KPOP DEMON HUNTERS": I've seen it four times.
WAGMEISTER: OK, so what can you tell us about tonight's performance? What can we expect?
EJAE: Culture, Korea, gold. That's it.
WAGMEISTER: Gold?
EJAE: Yes.
WAGMEISTER: Looking fabulous.
NUNA: Joy. Celebration. I think just like multigenerational and, yes, just very deep rooted.
AMI: And love.
EJAE: And love.
NUNA: Like we're doing a poetry slam right now.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. Now I see --
SETOODEH: It's like haikus. Answers in short syllables.
WAGMEISTER: Now, a sequel was just greenlit. Do you know anything? What can you tell us?
EJAE: Oh, you mean a sequel? We don't know much at all. It all -- it starts with a story so it's all Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans. I trust they're going to make something incredible. So we're waiting.
WAGMEISTER: You're waiting. Just like that.
SETOODEH: What are you rooting for tonight? What movie are you really excited about?
EJAE: They're all amazing. I love "Sinners," "One Battle After the Other," right? Yes. "Frankenstein." I love all of them. Sorry. They've all --
NUNA: Yes. So many amazing films. "Sinners," of course. I think it's a historic film, not just in the work of art that it is, but what it's done for agency, for people of color. So I also really love "Sentimental Value." That movie made me cry on the plane.
SETOODEH: Is there someone that you've met that's fanned out over you, that you've really been very excited about so far in this award circuit journey?
EJAE: Emma Stone.
SETOODEH: What did she say?
EJAE: She was like, oh, my god, my kids love you. I love your song. And she sings "Golden" all the time. So I was like, oh, my god. So she was, yes, she just like showed me a video of her kid dancing to "Golden" and she got moves. Wow.
NUNA: She's a talented kid.
WAGMEISTER: Are there just kids coming up to you everywhere? Like fangirling out over this film?
EJAE: Yes.
SETOODEH: Come in closer. Come in closer, you guys.
WAGMEISTER: Come closer. Come in. Get cozy with us.
NUNA: Yes. For sure. We love those interactions so much. I think that, like, this film has healed, shout out to Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans because this film has healed our inner child. And to see the way that it's resonated with the youth across, like not just, not just here but like, we went to, you know, Manchester and we had like the best time performing for like the kids out there and just shout out to them. They are awesome.
WAGMEISTER: I am noticing your nails and this is incredible. Can you show us this to the camera?
SETOODEH: Can you show us?
WAGMEISTER: I'm not sure if we could zoom in, but --
SETOODEH: How long did that take you to have done?
NUNA: Well, my nail tech is amazing, Mars. So it didn't take that long honestly. She kind of pre-created them, but she calls them the biggest balls on the carpet.
SETOODEH: Can you use your hands? Can you text with those nails?
NUNA: Absolutely not. But I barely -- I don't really have that much of a social life. So this is very adaptive to my lifestyle.
WAGMEISTER: So did these nails come off tomorrow morning?
EJAE: Or tonight?
WAGMEISTER: Or tonight?
NUNA: You know, I don't know. I don't know because they're kind of glued on.
WAGMEISTER: You just won't be able to do anything for a little while.
NUNA: Not to use the toilet or the facilities or anything for a few days.
WAGMEISTER: See the things we do for glamour, the things we do. The things we do. Do we want to -- OK.
SETOODEH: Yes, let's take a question from our question bowl. Why don't you take a secret question, the nails?
WAGMEISTER: Yes, can -- OK, we can do this with your nails, right?
NUNA: Who was the last famous person you texted? It's a funny question. I guess I think probably Anya Taylor-Joy. I met her at the Dior dinner, and she's like the most lovely human. We had a conversation about, like, intersectional feminism, and she's just like the GOAT. So shout out to her.
SETOODEH: You won't give us Anya's number, will you?
NUNA: Unfortunately I don't have the jurisdiction to do that.
WAGMEISTER: We get it.
SETOODEH: And your question.
EJAE: Worst fashion trend of all time. I don't know.
WAGMEISTER: Do you want another one?
EJAE: Oh, yes. Another one.
WAGMEISTER: Let's take another question. Here, let's throw this one on the ground. Let's throw it away.
SETOODEH: Joel Eggerton put it back. Wagner Moura put it back in the bowl. Go ahead.
EJAE: Oh, name your favorite three Taylor Swift songs. I love her 1989 album. [18:05:02]
EJAE: What is it? "Style," "Shake It Off," and "Bad Blood."
SETOODEH: There you go. We were wondering who would pull that question. I was glad it was you.
WAGMEISTER: Yes.
EJAE: Huge fan. Love her.
WAGMEISTER: We are Swifties as well.
EJAE: Oh, yes. I mean, she's a genius. So.
WAGMEISTER: Yes.
SETOODEH: Have you met Taylor?
EJAE: Oh, yes. She's lovely. Sorry, yes, she's so freaking nice.
SETOODEH: Where did you meet her?
EJAE: At an after party. Wow, she's so sweet. She's just so, like, real and, I don't know, I just, we just learned a lot of advice, and it was just great.
SETOODEH: Maybe she'll be on the soundtrack for "KPop Demon Hunters Two."
WAGMEISTER: The second film. Are we making that happen?
SETOODEH: Is there a duet in the future?
EJAE: Who knows? No pressure on her.
WAGMEISTER: Tell Taylor straight to camera that we want her in "KPop Demon Hunters Two."
EJAE: If you want, Taylor, you can come to "KPop Demon Hunters" and write some songs?
SETOODEH: Thank you, guys, very much. Have a great time at the Oscars. Can't wait to see you tonight.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you, guys, so much. Have a great night. I love the nails. Thank you.
SETOODEH: Thank you.
WAGMEISTER: All right. We are seeing Kristen Wiig arrive right now on the carpet. She is looking beautiful. Part of that "Bridesmaids" reunion that we are going to see tonight, Ramin. And --
SETOODEH: We have I think another, someone else coming up?
WAGMEISTER: We -- yes, we do. OK. We have one of the nominees from -- see, this is what happens. If you can see behind us?
SETOODEH: She's congratulating --
WAGMEISTER: We have everybody meeting here on the carpet.
SETOODEH: Hi, (INAUDIBLE). How are you?
WAGMEISTER: Hi. So nice to see you.
SETOODEH: Good to see you. You have a fan because it's so hot in this carpet.
WUNMI MOSAKU, BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS NOMINEE, "SINNERS": Yes. I let my glasses at the Golden Globes. I was like, oh, I'm in trouble.
WAGMEISTER: Congratulations on your nomination and what a year for you.
MOSAKU: Thank you.
WAGMEISTER: You are expecting your second child.
MOSAKU: Yes.
WAGMEISTER: You have your first Oscar nomination.
MOSAKU: Yes.
WAGMEISTER: Describe this moment. How are you taking it all in?
MOSAKU: It's just incredible, isn't it? You just got to -- you got to sit in it. You got to absorb it. You can't let it like a moment pass you by and really just, like, give thanks. I'm just so grateful. I can't, I can't, I kind of can't believe it and then I'm just like, oh, it's happening.
SETOODEH: What would it mean for you if "Sinners" wins Best Picture tonight?
MOSAKU: That would be so dreamy. I just, I love the film with all my heart. I love everyone who was a part of it. I love the audience who showed up for it. I love how the audience have made us feel and feel seen and in community. It would mean so much to so many people. You know, it would mean so much to so many people. And that just feels like, so special. But you know, it's not the awards, it's not the awards that matter.
SETOODEH: Oh, come on. It is, though. It is, it is. Wait, can I --
MOSAKU: But it isn't, it's the creating of it and doing it and like, and letting the art live and living in that truth, you know, because everyone, everyone who's nominated tonight poured everything they had into it, you know.
SETOODEH: You're absolutely right. I was just being cheeky. But I did want to ask about, speaking of awards, you are also nominated in Best Supporting Actress. You have said that you think Amy Madigan is going to win, but you could also win tonight. Are you prepared?
MOSAKU: Oh, yes. No, I'm prepared.
WAGMEISTER: You have a speech?
MOSAKU: Of course. I'm not going to make a fool of myself. You know, I get so starstruck and overwhelmed like I would, I think it would be unwise for the first time to arrive, to have nothing ready to say.
WAGMEISTER: What would it mean if Ryan --
MOSAKU: No offense, no shade to anyone who does that but.
SETOODEH: So we have --
WAGMEISTER: But not yourself.
SETOODEH: We have our question --
WAGMEISTER: But before we get to that, I do want to ask if Ryan Coogler were to win for Best Director, he would make history as the first black director to win in 98 years. What would that mean for him to walk away with that trophy?
MOSAKU: I mean, it's -- it would be incredible and it makes me sad, though, when I think about the years that have passed without the recognition, you know? But it would be incredible. He deserves so much. And he's such a visionary. I think he deserves it just for that surreal montage on its own.
WAGMEISTER: We know that you're being pulled. But one last thing. Can you pull a question from our question bowl? They're random. We don't know what they are.
MOSAKU: Who should be the next James Bond? I don't know.
SETOODEH: You have an answer. You have an answer. Give us your answer.
WAGMEISTER: Do you know? Do you know?
MOSAKU: No, I definitely don't know. Whoever wants it the most.
WAGMEISTER: Michael B. Jordan?
MOSAKU: Whoever wants it the most. I don't --
SETOODEH: Should it be a Brit?
MOSAKU: It should be someone who could do a good British accent. That's my, that's my answer.
SETOODEH: Thank you very much. You look beautiful.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you so much.
SETOODEH: Good luck tonight. And we can't wait to see what happens. WAGMEISTER: Congratulations. Have a fun night. Thank you. We'll take
this from you. Thank you so much.
One of the 16 nominations from "Sinners." And you know, I had never thought about this. Michael B. Jordan as James Bond. I'm into that. What do you think?
SETOODEH: He could be James Bond. But the Broccoli family had said at one point they wanted a British actor, but now there's some Australian actors in the mix. There's some Scottish actors in the mix, there's some Irish actors in the mix. So I think that requirement may have gone out the window, but we'll see, we'll see.
[18:10:05]
WAGMEISTER: We'll see. And you know, I am really looking forward to seeing what happens tonight with "Sinners" because there's so much momentum. And you're right, you asked her about the Supporting Actress category in which she is nominated. Amy Madigan is up against her, and there's a lot of momentum, a lot of momentum for Amy Madigan, for her role in "Weapons," which would be really interesting because it's a horror film. It's a genre film, which typically is not recognized by the Academy.
SETOODEH: No. And it's the only nomination really for acting that "Weapons" has. So "Sinners" has a lot of nominations. So there's a lot of across the board support and "Weapons," you know, people really like Amy Madigan. So I think we'll see what happens in the Supporting Actress race. That's one of the many, many wide open races at the Oscars this year.
WAGMEISTER: And let's actually take a look at the odds from the prediction market. Kalshi, do we have this up? Can we pull this up, guys? Let's see what the people are saying.
SETOODEH: For Best Supporting Actress.
WAGMEISTER: For Best Supporting Actress. OK.
SETOODEH: We're now looking at Best Actor.
WAGMEISTER: Wait, we're looking at Best Actor. OK, let's do Best Actor. Let's talk about it. So Michael B. Jordan, 58 percent odds. Timothee Chalamet, 33 percent odds. And Wagner Moura at 7 percent odds. Now I want to say these prediction markets are not taking into account that the voting closed as Timothee's viral comments exploded. So based on what I'm hearing, I don't know if I agree that it could be this far off. What are you hearing, Ramin?
SETOODEH: So the Oscar voters did not hear Timothee Chalamet diss opera and ballet on social media a million times which has happened in the last week or so. So they voted before that. But I actually think these prediction markets aren't taking it into account Wagner Moura's chances either. I think he has a much better than 7 percent chance of winning Best Actor, and I think that we are going to have some surprises tonight. And Best Actor could be one of those categories. WAGMEISTER: I agree, and I think that we could have just spoken to the
Best Actor winner tonight when we had Wagner here a little -- a little bit ago.
SETOODEH: Or Ethan Hawke, who's also coming down the carpet.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. Ethan Hawke.
SETOODEH: Or Timothee Chalamet or Michael B. Jordan. I think, or Leo, who already has an Oscar, but he could win a second Oscar.
WAGMEISTER: Or Leo. Yes.
SETOODEH: People really thought he had a chance of winning a second Oscar when they first started watching "One Battle After Another" when it first started screening to critics early in the fall. And so I think this is a really wide open race. We're talking about how this is anything goes Oscars, but the Best Actor race is truly an anything goes race.
WAGMEISTER: And you think about Leo, who didn't win his first Oscar until "The Revenant," and it took so many years but sometimes the Academy, they get it right and other times they wait too long. When Leo won that award, it was considered a career Oscar of sorts.
SETOODEH: It was.
WAGMEISTER: Because so many people had felt like he had been overlooked for so many films.
SETOODEH: Elizabeth, we're going -- I know you can't hear but we're going to throw to the stylist room back in New York. CNN style room.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you, Ramin.
SETOODEH: Guys, what are you seeing on the carpet?
CHAMPION: Well, we're looking at Zoe Saldana right now and she is absolutely amazing. Our experts and by experts, I mean Alex and Rachel, say that it's regal, right?
BADIA: I mean, I personally, the only thing I can see is the Cartier necklace. It's Baba boom. This dress is made for it, to be honest.
TASHJIAN: Yes, it's a Saint Laurent dress, and it's a pretty simple sort of lingerie inspired slip dress. But when you have a necklace like this that is as beautiful from the front as it is from the back, I mean it's just dangles down her back in this really elegant way. I mean, this is the kind of dress that you wear when it's like, please, by all means, look at my necklace.
CHAMPION: She won last year and she had on a, what did you say, a vintage Saint Laurent situation?
TASHJIAN: It was a new Saint Laurent.
CHAMPION: It was new.
BADIA: Inspired in the '80s.
TASHJIAN: It's very vintage. Yes.
CHAMPION: So are we looking only -- is the showpiece just the necklace?
BADIA: Well, the truth is that we saw a lot of lace in the runway just now. It's really a trend, right? It's beautiful but after all the color that we've been seeing in these gorgeous ladies, this feels a little bit more demure and quiet.
TASHJIAN: Subdued.
BADIA: Subdued is the word. The necklace is where it's at for me. Cartier.
CHAMPION: And maybe she's like, you know what? I won last year.
TASHJIAN: Exactly.
BADIA: Yes, that's it.
CHAMPION: She's doing it. I'm very gracious.
BADIA: That's it.
TASHJIAN: It's not my night tonight.
CHAMPION: Yes, I'll give it to someone else.
BADIA: Yes, exactly. That's for sure.
CHAMPION: That's what she's doing.
BADIA: Yes.
CHAMPION: Any other looks that you've seen so far that we really loved?
TASHJIAN: Demi Moore is wearing a pretty attention grabbing.
BADIA: The rising.
CHAMPION: OK, so wait a second. I just want to go back to a moment. You said Chase Infiniti was taking a risk. Is this a risk?
TASHJIAN: This is definitely a risk to me.
BADIA: A huge risk.
TASHJIAN: Yes. I mean, this is a dress that is easily meme-able, I would say.
BADIA: It's very meme-able. TASHJIAN: You know, I mean, it looks like a living creature. It's very
--
BADIA: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
CHAMPION: Very amphibian.
BADIA: Very amphibian. Yes.
TASHJIAN: And it is also kind of an unexpected. It's a Gucci dress, you said, Alex.
BADIA: It is a Gucci by Demna. Yes. Gucci. He's very much of like one of those out there dresses. He has a little bit of that era of McQueen that we spoke the other day about. But I think that the feathers on top, they are overwhelming to me. The rest is beautiful, but it's definitely something that social media is going to go wild.
CHAMPION: This award season, though, has she been looking at her best?
BADIA: I think so. I think she's -- I mean last year she looked gorgeous. This year as well. But this is definitely on the top of the scale of risk.
[18:15:05]
CHAMPION: OK, so my thing is this. When I see this dress, I think only Demi can wear, right? It had to be custom. Negative, negative, size negative, because like, who can wear that? Where are we wearing it again?
TASHJIAN: Models.
CHAMPION: Models only.
BADIA: Models. Yes. Demi. And it's definitely one of those moments that you're going to be remembered for, you know.
TASHJIAN: And you also have -- it's fun to think about the sort of narrative that actresses go through with their fashion. I mean, obviously, she reached a new peak in her career last year.
CHAMPION: I would say.
TASHJIAN: You know, nominated for Best Actress for the "Substance." And I think people began to see her really in a different light.
BADIA: I agree. I agree.
TASHJIAN: And she's now sort of saying, hey, I'm not just a popcorn actress, you know, that was something she --
BADIA: Oh, my god. She said that. Remember? That was great. TASHJIAN: I am an artist, and I think this is the kind of dress that
you wear when you want to be taken seriously as a fashion figure. You know, it is risk taking. It is bold and unexpected, but I think the risk pays off.
CHAMPION: All right, well, I --
BADIA: I agree.
CHAMPION: I love it. I love everything that she --
BADIA: She can do no wrong.
CHAMPION: She can do no wrong.
BADIA: She can do no wrong.
CHAMPION: Let's send it back to the red carpet. For my understanding, they have another celebrity standing by. Is Elle with you?
WAGMEISTER: OK. And we're just chatting.
CHAMPION: Oh, she was the red carpet.
SETOODEH: Elle is on her way.
CHAMPION: She's on her way.
SETOODEH: But she is not stopping right now. But we're going to get her. We're hoping that Elle Fanning, if you're Elle Fanning's publicist and you're watching CNN, stop by our pre-show for a conversation with Elle Fanning.
WAGMEISTER: Well, Elle Fanning is one of the stars of "Sentimental Value," which was one of my favorite Oscar films in contention this year. You know, it just, it's one of those films that it's about family. It's about connection. We interviewed Stellan Skarsgard about a few months ago and "Actors on Actors" when he was with his son, Alexander Skarsgard," and they were, you know, kind of razzing each other about who would do better during award season. And it looks like Stellan prevailed because he's a nominee tonight.
SETOODEH: He is. You can hear the cheering from the fans here at the Oscars. They're very excited as they're seeing the first look of all the dresses and Elle just appeared. And so that's where this cheering --
WAGMEISTER: Oh, my gosh.
SETOODEH: That's where the cheering came from.
WAGMEISTER: And here we are --
SETOODEH: Time to flag Elle down.
WAGMEISTER: And we're seeing Stellan Skarsgard arrive just now looking very dapper in his tuxedo. Do you know that it is his first Oscar nomination ever in his entire career, Ramin? Stellan Skarsgard getting his first Oscar nomination for "Sentimental Value" in the Best Supporting Actor race tonight.
And there's a few other career milestones, Delroy Lindo from "Sinners," first Oscar nomination at the age of 73 years old. Just really incredible moments for so many of these actors who have worked so hard, have been on our screens for so many years, and now we're seeing them become first-time Oscar nominees tonight.
SETOODEH: And people wait a lifetime to come to the Oscars. This is something that actors have waited for their entire career. So the recognition of finally being recognized by your peers and people say it's just an honor to be nominated but it is. It really is.
WAGMEISTER: It is. And look, we have Michael B. Jordan, who's a first- time nominee tonight. There are so many first time nominees and we are talking to them when it really is one of the biggest moments, one of the biggest nights of their life. Now, as we said, we have Elle Fanning here.
SETOODEH: We can see the back of Elle Fanning's dress in our wide shot there. What you can't see on TV is that there's actually photographers shooting the train of her dress and the end of her dress. It goes on for several feet. So they're shooting every detail of this beautiful dress that Elle Fanning is wearing at the Oscars.
WAGMEISTER: And we are actually looking around just as you guys are, because we are seeing who is arriving, because here's a little tip. Here's a secret. At the Oscars, the big stars, they don't arrive until the end. They come at the last minute and then they go into their seats. And that's what we're waiting for. We're waiting for Leo. We're waiting for Emma Stone. We're waiting for Michael B. Jordan.
Let's also talk about the presenters tonight, Ramin. I mean, the presenters are some of the biggest A-listers in the world. Everyone from Anne Hathaway to Demi Moore. I mean, we are going to see the biggest names in Hollywood coming live, hopefully to the red carpet very, very soon and on that stage tonight.
SETOODEH: And there's a mad dash. It's like being a little bit at an amusement park and there's a mad dash of celebrities all getting in line at the very end right before the show starts. Leo, Timothee, Michael B. Jordan, Ethan Hawke, all walking down the carpet at the same time, trying to get to their seat because there's a hard start. This is obviously a live show. And so when the actors come in, they all try to get down the carpet as quickly as possible to get in their seats, and those actors sometimes arrive late because they don't want to do press.
Timothee Chalamet, I've heard, is not answering any questions tonight. And so he's going to look to come, take photos and get in his seat but we are watching others arrive who are doing press.
WAGMEISTER: Now, Ramin, let's talk about what it's like on the inside of the Oscars because you and me, we have both been there so many times covering the awards. Tell our viewers what it's like to be in there, in the moment when you're at the Oscars. Everyone is watching at home. What is it like to be there?
[18:20:02]
SETOODEH: So first of all, it's a very long show.
WAGMEISTER: It is.
SETOODEH: You at home can take a break, you can get a snack, you can go, you know, for a little bit of an e-mail checking break. But at the Oscars, it's one continuous show with commercial breaks, but there's no food as we said earlier. You can go to the bar and get a drink. So some of the actors do spend some time at the bar taking a break between their categories. But --
WAGMEISTER: Who's the biggest celebrity you've ever bumped into at the bar?
SETOODEH: You know, everyone is at the bar. I've seen Leo at the bar. I've seen Ethan Hawke at the bar. I've seen Emma Stone at the bar and so if you go downstairs, there's an underground area where all the celebrities hang out during the commercial break at the bar. But unlike the Golden Globes, this is really a seated night. A lot of people are sitting throughout the Oscars. They're not leaving or walking or talking around.
WAGMEISTER: We're live.
SETOODEH: We're live on CNN.
TOM BERNARD, FILM PRODUCER AND DISTRIBUTOR: Really? Hey. You look great.
SETOODEH: Thank you very much.
BERNARD: Those famous people come by yet?
SETOODEH: Thank you very much. We're live on TV right now.
BERNARD: I understand, that's why I'm checking out. I mean who's the most famous person that's come by so far?
SETOODEH: Well, you tell us, you are on the carpet.
BERNARD: I'm on the carpet. Well, I -- there hasn't been many, you know. Tom --
SETOODEH: What?
BERNARD: Tom Bernard and Michael Barker, maybe?
WAGMEISTER: Well, as one of the biggest executives in Hollywood, will you tell us, what has been your favorite film this year that's in contention this award season?
BERNARD: Famous -- "Nuremberg" was definitely my favorite film of all.
SETOODEH: Who do you think is going to win Best Actor?
BERNARD: I think Ethan Hawke is going to win Best Actor.
SETOODEH: Well, that's because it's your movie.
BERNARD: No, I have $500 on it.
SETOODEH: Did you bid on the bidding market?
BERNARD: I didn't bid. I just, you know, I know a guy, you know, and it's eight to one odds.
WAGMEISTER: OK. Thank you so much for stopping by. We're going to get -- just have fun.
SETOODEH: Thank you very much, Tom. Thank you very much.
WAGMEISTER: All right. So here we see Ava --
SETOODEH: Anything goes at the Oscars.
WAGMEISTER: Anything goes. We have Ava DuVernay who is arriving looking beautiful in this navy dress. One of the biggest directors and one of the most successful female directors. The first female director to ever direct a $100 million film, by the way. All right.
SETOODEH: With "The Wrinkle in Time."
WAGMEISTER: With "The Wrinkle in Time." Yes. OK. So, Ramin, let's go back to talk about inside the Oscars. There have been so many moments. What was your favorite moment inside? I know you were in there when the infamous Will Smith -- Will Smith slap happened.
SETOODEH: It was. That was a very difficult Oscars to be at, and obviously there was a lot going on. But for many of us watching that Oscars we did not know that that was real. We thought that was a skit. So right when it happened and Will Smith went on stage and slapped Chris Rock, it seemed like it was part of a skit or a bit or we weren't really sure what was happening.
And then as the minutes passed, it became very clear that this was not something that was orchestrated or rehearsed. This was -- this was just real time reality TV at the Oscars.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. And Will Smith was banned from the Academy for 10 years because of that incident. So still -- oh, here we go. We see Emma Stone arriving, looking beautiful. She is nominated in the category of Best Actress tonight for "Bugonia."
SETOODEH: For "Bugonia."
WAGMEISTER: Which is also nominated for Best Picture. Looking like an ethereal princess in this sparkly white gown.
SETOODEH: We're seeing a lot of sparkling looks tonight on the Oscars red carpet.
WAGMEISTER: We are. We are seeing a lot of -- a lot of sparkles. Now Emma Stone here is a fun fact. She is the youngest person to ever be nominated for seven Oscars beating Meryl Streep. Can you imagine?
SETOODEH: So there's an asterisk to that stat. That's an interesting stat.
WAGMEISTER: OK, what's the asterisk? OK.
SETOODEH: She is a producer. So some of those nominations are for producing, not just for acting.
WAGMEISTER: OK.
SETOODEH: So I believe it's five for acting and two for producing. But it's still very, very impressive.
WAGMEISTER: It's impressive.
SETOODEH: I just wanted to make sure the viewers at home knew.
WAGMEISTER: OK.
SETOODEH: That not all seven were for acting. Some of them are also for producing.
WAGMEISTER: OK. Yes.
SETOODEH: So she's a producer, for example, on "Bugonia."
WAGMEISTER: On "Bugonia." OK, now we were just talking about her beautiful sparkly dress. We are not the experts. We want to go back to the CNN style spin room.
Cari, take it away.
CHAMPION: All right, Elizabeth, thank you. You all almost jumped out of your seats.
BADIA: Yes, we freaked out.
CHAMPION: So I'm going to take -- I'm going to let you all take it away. I don't want to get in the way of this elegance right now.
BADIA: OK, so, Emma Stone, we were just talking about it, Rachel, how she's been channeling '90s, '90s, '90s, all LV and this is a slip dress, but look at the empire sleeve. It's so gorgeous. I love the shoulder. Tell me, Rachel. What do you think?
TASHJIAN: Yes. So this is a Louis Vuitton dress. And of course, she almost always wears Louis Vuitton. I have to say, this is one of the best Vuitton dresses that I've seen her wear. You know, their clothes can be a little bit challenging, a little bit space age. This is perfectly space age.
BADIA: Her, check.
TASHJIAN: The sheen on that beads is absolutely gorgeous, with the front being so demure and then the back being a big deep plunge. I think this is a sublime dress.
BADIA: So the party is on the back, Rachel
TASHJIAN: Exactly.
BADIA: We love it.
CHAMPION: Why not have a little party in the back? I was told that on her mood board, her stylist had Kate Moss.
BADIA: I mean --
CHAMPION: So to the point going back to the '90s and looking so amazing, like she's still keeping that trend going.
BADIA: I mean, what Rachel says is so true. LV plays with volumes and futurism. This is very stripped down, very '90s, very of the now again that we've seen. Yes?
CHAMPION: OK. So I am a fan. I love everything. She can do no wrong to me at all.
[18:25:02]
But before we -- we have a couple of stars waiting to talk to us and I'm going to send it back to Elizabeth and Ramin. I think you got ava.
Hey, Ava.
BADIA: Ava, we love you.
WAGMEISTER: Yes. Cari Champion says hello.
SETOODEH: Hi, Ava. Hi, Eric.
WAGMEISTER: She's in New York talking about all the fashion.
AVA DUVERNAY, FILMMAKER AND SCREENWRITER: All the fashion. I'm getting all the scoop watching your monitor here.
WAGMEISTER: OK, so who have you or have you seen anyone tonight?
DUVERNAY: I haven't seen any.
WAGMEISTER: You just got here.
DUVERNAY: I just got here. But look at look at Melissa McCarthy looking so gorgeous. I saw Chloe Zhao, my fellow woman director. It's fantastic.
SETOODEH: Who are you rooting for tonight, Ava? DUVERNAY: Gosh, it's hard to say because I have so many friends, dear
friends who are nominated. Ryan Coogler, of course, Guillermo del Toro. It's been a great year for film. Let me say that.
SETOODEH: If you had to predict, though, do you have a prediction for Best Picture?
DUVERNAY: I'm an Academy governor. I represent the director's branch.
SETOODEH: So you can't --
DUVERNAY: Be kicked off the board?
SETOODEH: It's against the rules. Sorry about that.
WAGMEISTER: So you mentioned Chloe, who we just saw. She is nominated tonight for Best Director. And of course, we are making some progress but sometimes it seems like one step forward, one step back for female filmmakers. Has the Academy done enough to recognize women in film?
DUVERNAY: No. There's lots more to be done, and it goes wider than the Academy. The industry needs to make more films by women, and so that's the hope, that more women get behind the camera and their films reach audiences.
SETOODEH: What's stopping Hollywood from doing that? This is a conversation you and I have had for many years.
DUVERNAY: What's stopping the world from recognizing the talents and aptitude of women and giving equal opportunity? I think right now certainly the political climate is such that we are taking steps backward and it's incumbent upon all of us to hold the line and push it forward.
WAGMEISTER: Now, I want to ask you, Ryan Coogler, if he wins tonight would make history as the first black director to ever win in nearly 100 years. It's a bittersweet moment. It's amazing that he has that recognition, but we should not be saying that statistic right now at 98 years. What would it mean if he were to win?
DUVERNAY: If he wins I will become a puddle of tears and joy. And really, yes, it is bittersweet. You think of all of the black directors before him, have done great work, and never made it to the stage. But this film and this man, he's such an exquisite person and a phenomenal director. I would leap out of my skin. So look for it, check for it. It may happen, who knows? But it's a wonderful night.
WAGMEISTER: And what do you think it was about "Sinners" that resonated so deeply not just with the Academy, but with audiences? One of the biggest box office hits and an original idea, which is rare these days in Hollywood.
SETOODEH: The most profitable movies of the year, too. We have to keep reminding people that.
DUVERNAY: Absolutely. Absolutely. Well, let's talk about the craft. He's an exquisite filmmaker. And so you had someone who was able to take a story that's genre based, but imbue it with a sense of history and wonder and memory. It's just a beautifully crafted work. It's a work of art and I'm happy it's being recognized as such.
WAGMEISTER: All right, before we let you go, we're going to have you pick a ball from our random bowl of questions.
DUVERNAY: OK.
WAGMEISTER: We don't know what it is.
SETOODEH: We know it's a lot of time. We do appreciate it. But will you take a question from our bowl of questions?
DUVERNEY: Would you join the cast of "White Lotus"? I have not seen it. I know it involves a luxury hotel. So yes. OK?
SETOODEH: Not that much luxury, but, OK.
(LAUGHTER)
SETOODEH: It's luxury with a price.
DUVERNAY: OK. Yes.
SETOODEH: Thank you, Ava. Thank you very much.
WAGMEISTER: All right. Thank you. Have a great night.
SETOODEH: Nice to see you, though. Thank you very much.
WAGMEISTER: Ava DuVernay, one of the most brilliant minds in Hollywood. And it was so --
SETOODEH: Hi, Rita. Hi, how are you?
WAGMEISTER: Hi, Rita. Hello.
SETOODEH: We're live.
WAGMEISTER: Hi, hi.
SETOODEH: Rita Wilson on CNN.
Hi, it's Rita Wilson on CNN. What am I saying?
WAGMEISTER: OK.
SETOODEH: We were just telling our viewers we're live with you.
WAGMEISTER: So -- OK. What is your favorite memory in Oscar -- in your Oscars history, from you attending the Oscars? Does anything stick out in your mind?
RITA WILSON, ACTRESS: I would have to say there's nothing more exciting than the times that Tom was nominated and he won. I think there's really nothing more exciting than hearing that name announced. And just that feeling of like, you know, and I understand how nerve wracking it can be because I was -- one year I was sitting next to Nick Cage when he was nominated for "Leaving Las Vegas" and the whole night he was -- his knee was going up and down, up and down, up and down, just shaking.
And before they called his name, I thought he was going to like hover up because he was shaking so much and he got his name announced, and I could just feel him relax.
SETOODEH: Thank you so much. Have a wonderful time inside. Thank you for joining us.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you so much. Have a great night.
SETOODEH: So Teyana Taylor just arrived on the red carpet and look at her dress. She has been a fashion icon all season long, nominated for Best Supporting Actress for "One Battle After Another." She was a front runner. She could win tonight, but she looks incredible.
WAGMEISTER: She really does look incredible and she always brings it with the fashion every time that we see her whether it's on a red carpet, whether it's at a fashion show. She takes fashion risks. She always pulls it off. And as you said, she is nominated tonight. She kicked off awards season by winning the Golden Globe. Look at her. I love her.
[18:30:01]
SETOODEH: Look at those feathers. The feathers being moved down the carpet so she can give another look. Incredible. What an icon. And now we're being joined -- now --
WAGMEISTER: All right. What a blast it has been on CNN and Variety's Red Carpet Live. The awards are set to kick off in just minutes and the night is far from over.
We'll be back here with Van Lathan for CNN and Variety's Red Carpet Afterparty with all the night's winners and the funniest moments. And of course, all of the snubs. You can stream it on the CNN app and YouTube right after the awards ceremony wraps.
Thanks for joining us.
SETOODEH: See you, guys.
