Anthony Hopkins responds to his Oscars win, pays tribute to Chadwick Boseman

If you stayed up late to take in the biggest awards at Sunday night’s Oscars (stream now on CTV), odds are you were among the viewers who had some thoughts about THAT lackluster ending. You know, the one where producers presented the year’s best film (Nomadland) ahead of the Best Actress (Frances McDormand, Nomadland) and Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins, The Father) categories.

People assumed the Academy moved the presentation around and didn’t save the Best Movie award for last as per usual because everyone expected Chadwick Boseman to win posthumously for his work in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. (He did win at the Globes and at the Critics Choice Awards, after all.) So when Hopkins, (who won the category at the BAFTA Awards) took home the Oscar for his portrayal of a father who is losing his grip on reality, people were shook.

Even Hopkins himself was surprised to have won, which explains why neither he nor any official designated person was there to accept the award on his behalf on Sunday night. (Joaquin Phoenix, who won last year for The Joker and presented the award, simply accepted on his behalf instead.)

But Hopkins didn’t let the moment go completely unnoticed once he heard the good news. He shared his thoughts with the internet bright and early on Monday morning with an acceptance speech video.

“A good morning. Here I am in my homeland in Wales and at 83 years of age I did not expect to get this award, I really didn’t,” he said from a beautiful (if not windy) hill overlooking trees and some water. “[I’m] very grateful to the Academy and thank you. And I want to pay tribute to Chadwick Boseman who was taken from us far too early,” he added. “And again thank you all very much. I really did not expect this. So I feel very privileged and honoured. Thank you.”

Hopkins’ win is historic in its own way. With the award, he becomes the oldest actor to ever win an Oscar, a title previously held by Christopher Plummer, who won for Best Supporting Actor in 2012 for the film Beginners. The actor, who passed away in February at the age of 91, was 82 years old at the time of his win.

Hopkins also surpassed actor Henry Fonda with Sunday night’s announcement: Fonda was previously the oldest Best Actor winner for his work in On Golden Pond. He was 76 years old when he won the trophy in 1982.

The fact that Boseman’s body of work has never been celebrated properly at the Oscars is understandably frustrating for fans. Boseman’s nomination for the role of Levee in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom was his only Oscar nomination before his untimely passing last summer. The Black Panther star was 43 years old when he lost his battle with colon cancer in August 2020, but he helmed an impressive number of notable roles before his death including Jackie Robinson (42), James Brown (Get on Up), and Thurgood Marshall (Marshall). At this point, fans of the actor can only hope the Academy pulls a Hitchcock and gives Boseman his due recognition at a future show with an honourary award.

Watch the full 93rd Academy Awards on CTV.ca and the CTV app.

BEFORE YOU GO: Everything you need to know about the 93rd Academy Awards

[video_embed id='2188540']BEFORE YOU GO: Everything you need to know about the 93rd Academy Awards [/video_embed]