SANTA MONICA, Calif. - The cast of "Hairspray" and its breakout star, Nikki Blonsky, were among the early winners at the Critics' Choice Awards on Monday night. The cast was named best acting ensemble, and Blonsky won best young actress.
The 19-year-old thanked "my mommy who's sitting here crying and my other mommy who's at home, John Travolta." Travolta famously cross-dressed to play Edna Turnblad.
The teen-pregnancy film "Juno" was also a double winner, collecting trophies for best comedy and for screenwriter Diablo Cody.
With no picket signs in sight, stars were free to attend despite the Hollywood writers' strike.
And attend they did, with Hollywood royalty Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie among the show's guests. George Clooney also walked the red carpet -- but he wouldn't have had there been pickets outside.
"I belong to six unions," he said before the show. "I wouldn't cross a picket line."
Clooney, a nominee for his starring turn in "Michael Clayton," was also set to present the inaugural Joel Siegel Award to Don Cheadle for his humanitarian work.
The Writers Guild of America strike, which began Nov. 5, has effectively shut down Hollywood and cast a pall over Tinseltown's awards season. But the Critics' Choice Awards, presented by the Broadcast Film Critics Association at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium and broadcast live on VH1, wasn't covered by guild contracts.
The guild's promise to picket Sunday's Golden Globe Awards prompted organizers to scrap the ceremony in favor of an hourlong press conference to announce the winners.
But celebrity nominees and presenters turned out for the critics' nods.
The outdoor adventure film "Into the Wild," written and directed by Sean Penn, came into the contest with a leading seven nominations. "Juno" followed with six, while "Atonement," "Michael Clayton," "No Country for Old Men," "Sweeney Todd" and "Hairspray" had five nominations each.
All, with the exception of "Hairspray," were also contenders for best picture, along with "American Gangster," "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly," "The Kite Runner" and "There Will Be Blood."
Awards were to be presented in 18 categories.
The Broadcast Film Critics Association, which represents 199 TV, radio and online critics from the United States and Canada, founded the Critics' Choice Awards in 1995.
___
On the Net:
http://www.bfca.org/critics.aspx
No comments:
Post a Comment