“Everything Everywhere All At Once” was crowned Best Picture at the 2023 Critics Choice Awards.
The blockbuster absurdist comedy-drama film written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert led with 14 nominations and came away with four trophies at the star-studded bash at Los Angeles' Fairmont Century Plaza on Sunday night.
The flick's haul also included Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for the power duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert.
The pair beat off stiff competition from filmmaking legends such as James Cameron, Baz Luhrmann and Steven Spielberg for the former prize, and in disbelief, Scheinert showed the crowd the envelope with their names on and quipped: “It’s not a mistake!”
He went on to pay tribute to their fellow nominees and joked that it's "disgusting" the duo - who are known as the Daniels and started off making music videos - are even in the same category as their idols.
He said: “Thank you to all the storytellers and filmmakers that inspired me to become a filmmaker — you’re in the same category as me. That’s disgusting! Hello?! But you inspired me, and that means a lot. And your movies have changed my life.”
Kwan went on to thank his mother for inspiring Michelle Yeoh's character of Evelyn Wang.
He said: “She was the first person to plant the seed in my head that I could be a director.
“She [is] maybe the first Asian-American immigrant mother to ever tell their son to go to film school.”
Ke Huy Quan won Best Supporting Actor and the film also won Best Editing.
Angela Bassett was named Best Supporting Actress for “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”.
“The Whale” star Brendan Fraser and “Tár” star Cate Blanchett were named Best Actor and Best Actress, respectively.
An emotional Fraser - who underwent a major transformation to portray Charlie, an obese and reclusive English professor in the film - praised the director Darren Aronofsky and the cast for helping to pull him out of the "wilderness".
During his moving speech, he said: “'The Whale' is about love. It’s about redemption. It’s about finding the light in a dark place.
“I was in the wilderness, and I probably should have left a trail of breadcrumbs. But you found me and, like all the best directors, you merely just showed me where to go to get to where I needed to be.”
Blanchett also heaped praise on her director, Todd Field, who helped her achieve the "impossible" as the titular composer in the psychological drama.
She said: “You don’t stand here unless … [a] director asks you to do something that you think is impossible, and you’re terrified to do."
“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” was named Best Comedy and also landed Best Acting Ensemble.
“Better Call Saul” was named Best Drama Series and Bob Odenkirk was crowned Best Actor In A Drama Series for his starring role as Saul Goodman, while Giancarlo Esposito (Gus Fring) won Best Supporting Actor In A Drama Series.
Zendaya was named Best Actress In A Drama Series for “Euphoria”.
Daniel Radcliffe was named Best Actor In A Limited Series or Movie Made For Television for his titular role in “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story”, which also scooped Best Movie Made For Television.
Hulu's “The Dropout” was named Best Limited Series, while Amanda Seyfried (Elizabeth Holmes) took Best Actress In A Limited Series or Movie Made For Television
Jeff Bridges was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award, while the SeeHer Award went to Janelle Monáe.
The ceremony was hosted by comedienne Chelsea Handler.
The winners of the 28th annual Critics Choice Awards:
BEST PICTURE
Everything Everywhere All at Once
BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett – “Tár”
BEST ACTOR
Brendan Fraser – “The Whale”
BEST DIRECTOR
Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert – “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
BEST LIMITED SERIES
“The Dropout” (Hulu)
BEST DRAMA SERIES
“Better Call Saul” (AMC)
BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Zendaya – “Euphoria” (HBO)
BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Bob Odenkirk – “Better Call Saul” (AMC)
BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
“Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” (The Roku Channel)
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE SERIES
“Pachinko” (Apple TV+)
BEST TALK SHOW
“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (HBO)
BEST COMEDY SPECIAL
“Norm Macdonald: Nothing Special” (Netflix)
BEST ANIMATED SERIES
“Harley Quinn” (HBO Max)
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Claudio Miranda – “Top Gun: Maverick”
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Florencia Martin, Anthony Carlino – “Babylon”
BEST EDITING
Paul Rogers – “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP
“Elvis”
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Avatar: The Way of Water”
BEST COMEDY SERIES
“Abbott Elementary (ABC)”
BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
“Jean Smart” – Hacks (HBO Max)
BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
“Jeremy Allen White” – The Bear (FX)
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio”
BEST ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Daniel Radcliffe – “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” (The Roku Channel)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Angela Bassett – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Ke Huy Quan – “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Henry Winkler – “Barry” (HBO)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Sheryl Lee Ralph – “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Paul Walter Hauser – “Black Bird” (Apple TV+)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Niecy Nash-Betts – “Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” (Netflix)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Giancarlo Esposito – “Better Call Saul” (AMC)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Jennifer Coolidge – “The White Lotus” (HBO)
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“RRR”
BEST ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Amanda Seyfried – “The Dropout” (Hulu)
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Ruth E. Carter – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
BEST SCORE
Hildur Guðnadóttir – “Tár”
BEST SONG
Naatu Naatu – “RRR”
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert – “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Sarah Polley – “Women Talking”
BEST COMEDY
“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”
BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”
BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Gabriel LaBelle – “The Fabelmans”