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Agence France-Presse

PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accounting firm responsible for tabulating Oscar ballots, apologised for an “error” in the announcement of the best picture award, admitting Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were handed the wrong envelope.
The embarrassing mix-up saw the Oscar incorrectly given to musical La La Land before the actual winner, coming-of-age drama Moonlight, was finally handed the prize.
“We sincerely apologise to Moonlight, La La Land, Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, and Oscar viewers for the error that was made during the award announcement for Best Picture,” the company said in a statement.
“The presenters had mistakenly been given the wrong category envelope and, when discovered, was immediately corrected,” it added.
“We are currently investigating how this could have happened, and deeply regret that this occurred.”
Watch: “Moonlight’ wins best picture at botched Academy Awards


The mistake made for a chaotic end to the film industry’s biggest night, on which La La Land went home with six awards including best director, actress, score and song, to three for Moonlight.
Until the final minute, the film industry’s biggest night had run smoothly, and was marked by plenty of political statements, mainly jabs at US President Donald Trump, and light-hearted jokes from host Jimmy Kimmel.
But the epic stumble on the final award was the nightmare Hollywood ending no one wanted to see.
Tinseltown legends Beatty and Dunaway, stars of 1967 crime classic Bonnie and Clyde, were meant to give the best picture Oscar to Barry Jenkins’s film, but she mistakenly called it for Damien Chazelle’s musical.

We sincerely apologise to Moonlight, La La Land, Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, and Oscar viewers for the error that was made during the award announcement for Best Picture
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Scenes of confusion and embarrassment followed after the La La Land crew - already on stage and delivering speeches - suddenly realised the mistake and announced themselves that Moonlight had actually won, prompting Beatty to mumble apologies.
The Oscar-winning veteran actor and director, 79, said he’d been given the wrong envelope - the one containing the card announcing La La Land star Emma Stone’s best actress win.
Stone said backstage she had been hanging on to her winning envelope the whole time, although slowed-down footage of the commotion appeared to corroborate Beatty’s explanation.
Several reports suggested that two sets of envelopes are typically on site during the ceremony - one on either side of the stage.

“This was confusing, obviously, so... we thought he was being coy and cute and milking it but, in reality, he was perplexed by why her name was on it,” host Jimmy Kimmel told ABC after the show.
“I noticed the commotion and thought something was strange. And then I was speechless by the result,” Jenkins, who won earlier for best adapted screenplay, said backstage.
“I’ve watched the Academy Awards before and have and have never seen that happen before.”
Starring Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali - who bagged the first of the movie’s three Oscars - Moonlight tells the life story of a young African-American struggling to find his place as he grows up poor in Miami. Ali was the first Muslim film star to pick up a golden statuette.
The film has won plaudits as a vital portrait of contemporary African-American life and is praised in equal measure as a moving meditation on identity, family, friendship and love.

It beat seven other films besides La La Land - including alien thriller Arrival and family dramas Manchester by the Sea and Fences - for best picture honours.
Elsewhere, Manchester by the Sea star Casey Affleck was named best actor, winning his first Oscar despite 2010 sexual harassment allegations that resurfaced during awards season. Affleck denied the allegations which were settled out of court.
Earlier in the show, US President Donald Trump had been the butt of numerous jokes, capping an awards season marked by fiery protests by celebrities at his policies.

After hearing from #WarrenBeatty, I just called Hillary Clinton to congratulate her on winning the presidency. Wrong envelope. #oscars
— Ratings Machine DJT (@TheDonaldReacts) February 27, 2017


Warren Beatty & Faye Dunaway outside #Oscars right now waiting for person responsible for #AcademyAwards envelopes. #MoonlightMovie pic.twitter.com/D7EaP1K8y9
— Don Bradshaw (@DonBradshawNTV) February 27, 2017

Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel fired off political zingers and even tweeted at the Republican president, getting no immediate response.
Several celebrities wore blue ribbons on Sunday in support of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) advocacy group that worked to get Trump’s bid to ban travellers from seven majority Muslim nations blocked in US courts. But for the most part, speeches at the ceremony were mild or made general pleas for tolerance rather than directly attacking Trump.
Iranian director Asghar Farhadi was an exception. His drama The Salesman was named best foreign language film but Farhadi, boycotted Sunday’s ceremony because of the Trump’s travel ban.
In a speech delivered on his behalf by Iranian-American space expert Anousheh Ansari, Farhadi said his absence was due to “an inhumane law that bans entry into the US... Dividing the world into the ‘us’ and ‘our enemies’ categories creates fear, a deceitful justification for aggression and war.”
Additional reporting by Reuters


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Fame and celebrity

Oscars auditors PwC apologise for Moonlight/La La Land best picture mix-up

Presenter Warren Beatty with the wrong envelope. Photo: Reuters

TOPSHOT - "La La Land" producer Jordan Horowitz (L) shows the card reading Best Film 'Moonlight" next to US actor Warren Beatty after the latter mistakingly read "La La Land" initially at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Awards Show - Hollywood, California, U.S. - 26/02/17 - Warren Beatty looks on during presentation for Best Picture. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

epa05818198 A handout photo made available by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science (AMPAS) on 26 February 2017 shows Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty presenting on stage during the 89th annual Academy Awards ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California, USA, 26 February 2017. The Oscars were presented for outstanding individual or collective efforts in 24 categories in filmmaking. EPA/PHIL MCCARTEN / AMPAS THE IMAGE MAY NOT BE ALTERED AND IS FREE FOR EDITORIAL USE ONY IN REPORTING ABOUT THE EVENT. ONE TIME USE ONLY. MANDATORY CREDIT. HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES HANDOUT EDITORIAL HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Debacle at Oscars: Moonlight wins best picture after La La Land is mistakenly announced

In stunning error at Academy Awards, best-picture presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway read from incorrect envelope

Host Jimmy Kimmel delivers a speech on stage at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

epa05817485 Ruth Negga arrives for the 89th annual Academy Awards ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California, USA, 26 February 2017. The Oscars are presented for outstanding individual or collective efforts in 24 categories in filmmaking. EPA/ANDREW GOMBERT

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Awards Show - Damien Chazelle accepts the award for winning Best Director presented by Halle Barry. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

TOPSHOT - US actor Warren Beatty (C) shows the card reading Best Film 'Moonlight" after mistakingly reading "La La Land" initially at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Awards Show - Hollywood, California, U.S. - 26/02/17 - Michelle Williams, Best Original Screenplay winner Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea and Casey Affleck pose for a photo by Lucas Hedges. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Awards Show - Hollywood, California, U.S. - 26/02/17 - Best Documentary Short Subject The White Helmets Orlando von Einsiedel and Joanna Natasegara. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

US actress Viola Davis delivers a spech on stage after she won the award for Best Supporting Actress in "Fences" at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Red Carpet Arrivals - Hollywood, California, U.S. - 26/02/17 - Emma Stone. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

FILE- In this Monday, Oct. 10, 2016 file photo, Iranian director Asghar Farhadi poses for his film "the Salesman" during the premier in Paris, Monday, Oct. 10, 2016. London's mayor says the British capital will hold a free outdoor screening of an Academy Award-nominated Iranian film whose director scrapped plans to attend the Oscars because of President Donald Trump's travel ban. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File)

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Awards Show - Hollywood, California, U.S. - 26/02/17 - Actors Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Awards Show - Best Actress winner Emma Stone walks on stage to accept her award for La La Land. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

HOLLYWOOD, CA - FEBRUARY 26: Singer/actor Justin Timberlake attends the 89th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. Christopher Polk/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Awards Show - Hollywood, California, U.S. - 26/02/17 - Casey Affleck (R) hugs his brother Ben after winning the Best Actor Oscar. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

Nominee for Best Actor in "La La Land" Ryan Gosling (L) and nominee for Best Actress in "La La Land" Emma Stone introduce US singer John Legend (unseen) at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

HOLLYWOOD, CA - FEBRUARY 26: Actor Casey Affleck accepts Best Actor for 'Manchester by the Sea' onstage during the 89th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. Kevin Winter/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

John Legend performs songs from best original song nominees "City of Stars" and "Audition" from "La La Land" at the Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

89th Academy Awards - Oscars Red Carpet Arrivals - Hollywood, California, U.S. - 26/02/17 - Jackie Chan. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

'La La Land' producer Jordan Horowitz (C) speaks while holing an oscar and the winner card before reading the actual Best Picture winner 'Moonlight' onstage during the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

US writer Tarell Alvin McCraney (R) delivers a speech on stage next to US director Barry Jenkins after they won the Best Adapted Screenplay for "Moonlight" at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

Barry Jenkins, foreground center, and the cast accept the award for best picture for "Moonlight" at the Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Ryan Gosling, right, stands with his arms folded as Emma Stone, center, congratulates Mahershala Ali, for winning the award for best picture for "Moonlight" at the Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. It was originally announced mistakenly that "La La Land" was the winner. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

NASA physicist Katherine Johnson (C) is surrounded by US singer and actress Janelle Monae (L), US actress Taraji P. Henson (2ndR) and US actress Octavia Spencer (R) as they present on stage the Best Documentary Feature award at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

Jimmy Kimmel and Warren Beatty laugh at the Oscars while the makers of La La Land and Moonlight mingle onstage. La La Land was mistakenly announced as the winner of best picture, instead of the true winner, Moonlight. Photo: Reuters

How Oscar host Jimmy Kimmel turned Trump into recurrent punch line

Host Jimmy Kimmel on stage at the 89th Oscars. Photo: AFP

epa05818129 A handout photo made available by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science (AMPAS) on 26 February 2017 shows host Jimmy Kimmel (C) onstage explaining the mix-up after the cast of La La Land was awarded the Oscar for Best Picture by presenter Warren Beatty during the 89th annual Academy Awards ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California, USA, 26 February 2017. The Oscars were presented for outstanding individual or collective efforts in 24 categories in filmmaking. EPA/AARON POOLE / AMPAS THE IMAGE MAY NOT BE ALTERED AND IS FREE FOR EDITORIAL USE ONY IN REPORTING ABOUT THE EVENT. ONE TIME USE ONLY. MANDATORY CREDIT. HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

epa05817982 A handout photo made available by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science (AMPAS) on 26 February 2017 shows Jimmy Kimmel tweeting to Donald Trump during the 89th annual Academy Awards ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California, USA, 26 February 2017. The Oscars were presented for outstanding individual or collective efforts in 24 categories in filmmaking. EPA/MARK SUBAN / AMPAS THE IMAGE MAY NOT BE ALTERED AND IS FREE FOR EDITORIAL USE ONY IN REPORTING ABOUT THE EVENT. ONE TIME USE ONLY. MANDATORY CREDIT. HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Spanish actor Javier Bardem (L) and US actress Meryl Streep arrive on stage to present the Best Cinematography award at the 89th Oscars on February 26, 2017 in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

In this Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017 photo, President Donald Trump pauses while speaking during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

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Tinseltown legends Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were handed the wrong envelope


Oscars auditors PwC apologise for Moonlight/La La Land best picture mix-up

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Tinseltown legends Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were handed the wrong envelope

Tinseltown legends Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were handed the wrong envelope