“What Was I Made For?” singer Billie Eilish, “Poor Things” star Ramy Youssef and more celebrities wore red pins in support of Artists for Ceasefire at the Oscars red carpet on Sunday.
In October, a group of 55 prominent artists signed a letter from urging U.S. President Joe Biden to demand a ceasefire in Gaza and Israel. The signees included Youssef, Mark Ruffalo Joaquin Phoenix, Cate Blanchett, Jon Stewart, Kristen Stewart, Susan Sarandon, Mahershala Ali, Riz Ahmed, Quinta Brunson and more.
Also sporting the Artists for Ceasefire pins on Sunday’s Oscars red carpet were “Nimona” actor Eugene Lee Yang, director Misan Harriman, behind best live action short nominee “The After,” and writer-director Kaouther Ben Hania, of best documentary feature nominee “Four Daughters.”
Recently at the 2024 Grammys red carpet, Boygenius members Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker wore the same red pins.
This is not the first time that activism has intersected with awards season this year. On Feb. 25, a pro-Palestine protest disrupted the Independent Spirit Awards, which took place at a tent near Santa Monica Beach. A protestor with a speaker and pre-recorded message not only affected the in-person event but could be heard on the live broadcast as well. Depending on where attendees were located in the tent, the messages of “Free, free Palestine,” “Long live Palestine” and “Ceasefire now” were audible or sounded like a loud noise. Security moved a shuttle in front of the protest in an effort to muffle the disruption.
Spirits host Aidy Bryant acknowledged the protest, saying, “Look, we are at the beach, and people are practicing their freedom of speech.”
Babak Jalali, who directed “Fremont” and won the John Cassavetes award recognizing a film made for less than $1 million, also commented on the protest. “There are people outside,” he said. “I don’t know what they’re saying, but whatever they’re saying is probably a lot more important than what I’m about to say. I’m so inspired by what they are saying outside that I can’t think about what to say.”
Prior to the ceremony commencing, protestors were with fans during arrivals, shouting “Ceasefire now! Free Palestine.”
The 96th Academy Awards took place at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre on March 10. Jimmy Kimmel hosted the prestigious ceremony, where Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” was the most nominated film with 13 recognitions. Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Poor Things” received 11 nominations and Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” received ten. ABC aired the live ceremony at a new time this year, 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
