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Oscars Analysis: Why 'Oppenheimer' Dominated, 'Killers' Crashed and 'Poor Things' Outperformed 'Barbie'

The Hollywood Reporter's executive editor of awards coverage dissects Sunday night's results.

Universal chair Donna Langley lured Nolan away from his longtime home at Warner Bros. and gave him $100 million to make an epic in which explosions are emphasized less than brilliant people conversing with one another in small rooms — not the easiest sell — and then, thanks to the steady hands of chief marketing officer Michael Moses and director of national publicity Jen Chamberlain, the studio turned it into a blockbuster. On Sunday night, I caught up with a high-level awards strategist not involved with the Poor Things campaign who expressed admiration for the job that Searchlight did — on a budget — with the film, singling out the company’s impressive creative advertising, much of it attached to the clever slogan “Defy expectations,” as helping it to punch above its weight. Netflix devoted a ton of resources to its 2023 awards slate, especially Maestro, and though the company landed 19 noms across 11 films, a really impressive feat, it emerged with only one win, best live-action short for Wes Anderson ’s The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.

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