Oscars 2017: La La Land producer Jordan Horowitz hailed ‘a gentleman’ for ‘graceful’ Moonlight handover in Best Picture mix-up

He was the first person on stage to announce the real winner
'Graceful': viewers have praised La La Land producer Jordan Horowitz for his Oscar handover
ABC
Ben Travis27 February 2017
The Weekender

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La La Land producer Jordan Horowitz has been hailed ‘a gentleman’ for the way he handled one of the most awkward Oscar gaffes in recent memory.

Horowitz was the first person on the stage to acknowledge that Moonlight had won Best Picture when the award was mistakenly given to La La Land.

“Guys, I’m sorry, no – there’s a mistake,” he said, rushing towards the microphone.

“Moonlight, you guys won Best Picture.

“This is not a joke, come up. This is not a joke, Moonlight has won Best Picture. Moonlight. Best Picture.”

Viewers praised the way Horowitz cleared up the confusion and quickly announced the real winner, with screenwriter Seth Grahame-Smith hailing his ‘dignity and grace’.

Actress Jessica Chastain also praised Horowitz on Twitter as a ‘class act’ after the air had cleared.

Warren Beatty, who presented the Best Picture award, somehow ended up with the Best Actress in a Leading Role envelope in his hand, which featured Emma Stone as the winner for La La Land.

Academy Awards 2017 Oscars Winners - In pictures

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Speaking in the press room after the ceremony, Moonlight director Barry Jenkins said he has had 'no explanation' for the confusion.

“I will say, I saw two cards, and so things just happen," he said. "I wanted to see the card, to see the card, and Warren refused to show the card to anybody before he showed it to me. And so he did.

“He came upstairs and he walked over to me, and he showed the card. Everyone was asking, ‘Can I see the card?’ And he was like, ‘No, Barry Jenkins has to see the card, I need him to know.’ And I felt better about what had happened.”

Emma Stone has claimed that she was holding her Best Actress card the ‘entire time’ during the Best Picture gaffe – lending further confusion to the incident.

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