Jamie Foxx went into the 2005 Oscar ceremony the heavy favourite to win the lead actor award for his efficiency as Ray Charles in “Ray.” Positive sufficient, presenter Charlize Theron referred to as out his title.
(Al Seib/Los Angeles Occasions)
Rather a lot has modified since February 2005: YouTube hadn’t but launched, Hurricane Katrina wouldn’t hit till August, and Disneyland was about to have fun its fiftieth anniversary.
However issues had been taking place on Feb. 27, 2005, on the 77th Academy Awards on the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. It was the primary Oscar ceremony the place multiple Black performer was vying for the lead actor trophy. And one in every of them took house the golden statue: Jamie Foxx.
You’ll be able to name him ‘Ray’
Foxx went into the night the heavy favourite to win for his efficiency as Ray Charles in “Ray.” Oscar voters love biopics, and Charles (who died a number of months earlier than the movie was launched) was a beloved musical icon. Foxx additionally was nominated within the supporting actor class for his portrayal of a taxi driver in “Collateral,” although he didn’t win that trophy.
Foxx introduced his daughter Corinne, then 11, to the ceremony as his date. After Charlize Theron learn his title because the victor, Foxx hugged Corinne and took to the stage, maintaining the vitality going by getting the viewers to do Charles’ signature call-and-response of “oooh!” and “aaah!”
Foxx thanked director Taylor Hackford for “taking a chance on this film,” and proceeded to provide shout-outs to the primary Black actor to win within the class, Sidney Poitier, and Halle Berry, the primary Black performer to win a lead actress Oscar. He additionally thanked Estelle Marie Talley, his grandmother. “She was my first acting teacher. She told me, ‘Stand up straight. Put your shoulders back. Act like you got some sense.’
He also gave Corinne a nod from the stage: “I want to thank my daughter for telling me just before I got up here, ‘If you don’t win, Dad, you’re still good.’”
Maintaining it actual
Many of the different lead actor nominees got here to the ceremony with a number of nominations (and in a single case, a number of wins) underneath their belt already — and, bar one, they had been all taking part in real-life folks.
Don Cheadle, the only real nominee who was a newcomer to the Oscar competitors, was competing for his efficiency as hotelier Paul Rusesabagina in “Hotel Rwanda,” whereas Johnny Depp had obtained his second lead actor nomination, this time for portraying writer J.M. Barrie in “Finding Neverland.” Leonardo DiCaprio, acknowledged for his efficiency as Howard Hughes in “The Aviator,” was nonetheless 11 years from successful his first Oscar in 2016 (for “The Revenant”), however this was his second nomination and first within the lead performing class after an earlier nomination for his supporting flip in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape.”
Clint Eastwood, who directed, produced and co-starred in “Million Dollar Baby,” performed the one fictional character within the bunch, Frankie Dunn. He had beforehand received Oscars for finest image and directing (each for 1993’s “Unforgiven”), and this evening he earned an analogous double for “Million Dollar Baby.” However he stored his streak of by no means successful an performing Oscar intact: Morgan Freeman and Hilary Swank would win the supporting actor and lead actress trophies, respectively, whereas Eastwood needed to be content material with simply being nominated in that class.
