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Academy Awards 2024: American Fiction Wins The Oscar For Best Adapted Screenplay
Cord Jefferson made a plea to Hollywood after winning the Best Adapted Screenplay for American Fiction at the 2024 Academy Awards.
American Fiction won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, marking Cord Jefferson's first feature film. The film, which follows a Black author who embraces racial stereotypes, is also nominated for best picture. Although a victory in the Oscar is considered a longshot, it allows Hollywood to show its affection for the film.
American Fiction wins Best Adapted Screenplay
During the accepting speech for the Best Adapted Screenplay, Cord Jefferson used the stage to shed light on the challenges faced by upcoming creatives in Hollywood and advocated for inclusivity in the industry.
He began, “This means the world to me. Thank you so much to the Academy, thank you so much to everybody who worked on the film.”
“I’ve been talking a lot about how many people passed on this movie and discussing it and I worry that sometimes [it] sounds vindictive, and I don’t want to be vindictive, I’m not a vindictive person anymore,” Jefferson continued. “I’ve worked very hard to not be vindictive anymore.”
He continued, “And it’s more a plea — it’s a plea to acknowledge and recognize that there are so many people out there who want the opportunity that I was given.... I understand that this is a risk-averse industry, I get it."
“But $200 million dollar movies are also a risk, you know?” he added. “And it doesn’t always work out but you take the risk anyway. And instead of making one $200 million dollar movie, try making 20 $10 million dollar movies or 50 $4 million dollar movies. Like, you can — there are so many people, I just feel so much joy being here, I felt so much joy making this movie, and I want other people to experience that joy, and they’re out there I promise you.”
“The next Martin Scorsese’s out there, the next Greta’s out there — both Gretas, the next Christopher Nolan’s out there I promise you. They just want a shot and we can give them one and this has changed my life. Thank you all who worked on this movie for trusting a 40-year-old Black guy who has never directed anything before. It’s changed my life, thank you — I love you all, thank you so much.”
The other nominees in the category were Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach for Barbie, Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer, Tony McNamara for Poor Things and Jonathan Glazer for The Zone of Interest.
About American Fiction
American Fiction is a 2023 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cord Jefferson, in his feature directorial debut. Based on the 2001 novel Erasure by Percival Everett, it follows a frustrated novelist-professor who writes an outlandish satire of stereotypical "Black" books, only for it to be mistaken by the liberal elite for serious literature and published to both high sales and critical praise. It stars Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, and Keith David.
It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2023, where it won the People's Choice Award. It received a limited theatrical release by Amazon MGM Studios on December 15, 2023, with an expansion on December 22, 2023.
It received positive reviews and grossed $22.5 million. It was named one of the top 10 films of 2023 by the American Film Institute and has received numerous accolades, including Best Adapted Screenplay at the 77th British Academy Film Awards. The film received five nominations at the 96th Academy Awards including Best Picture, winning Best Adapted Screenplay for Jefferson.
Following are the cast and the characters they played in the movie;
- Jeffrey Wright as Dr. Thelonious "Monk" Ellison
- Tracee Ellis Ross as Dr. Lisa Ellison
- Issa Rae as Sintara Golden
- Sterling K. Brown as Dr. Clifford "Cliff" Ellison
- John Ortiz as Arthur
- Erika Alexander as Coraline
- Leslie Uggams as Agnes Ellison
- Adam Brody as Wiley
- Keith David as Willy the Wonker
- Okieriete Onaodowan as Van Go Jenkins
- Myra Lucretia Taylor as Lorraine
- Raymond Anthony Thomas as Maynard
- Miriam Shor as Paula Baderman
- Michael Cyril Creighton as John Bosco
- J. C. MacKenzie as Carl Brunt
- Patrick Fischler as Mandel
- Ryan Richard Doyle as Ned
- Skyler Wright as Brittany
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