Actor Michelle Yeoh has explained what happened after an interaction she had with Emma Stone was branded awkward by Oscars viewers.
Stone took to the stage to collect the Best Actress gong, which she won for her performance in Poor Things.
She was met on stage by previous winners of the award for Best Actress.
Among them was Michelle Yeoh, who won the award in 2023 for her role in Everything Everywhere All At Once.
The Academy Award-winning actor had been set to hand over the Oscar, but viewers were confused when she appeared to hesitate in giving the award to Stone. Take a look:
Stone appeared to look a little confused as Yeoh didn’t let go of the award.
The pair then walked over together towards Jennifer Lawrence, who won Best Actress in 2013, before finally handing over the award.
And now Yeoh has explained that while she caused some ‘confusion’, her intention was to get Stone’s friend Lawrence involved as the award was handed over to share in the moment.
Taking to Instagram, she wrote: “Congratulations Emma!! I confused you , but I wanted to share that glorious moment of handing over Oscar to you together with your best friend Jennifer!!”
Yeoh added that she ‘reminded me of my Bae Jamie Lee Curtis’ and that they are ‘always there for each other!!’
The post was accompanied by photos of a beaming Yeoh handing over the Oscar with Lawrence, as well as one of her and Stone hugging.
As she accepted her award, the Stone joked that her dress had broken, and fought back tears during her acceptance speech.
Stone’s victory in the category of Best Actress came as a surprise to many, as Lily Gladstone had been considered a frontrunner for her performance in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon.
It wasn’t the only awkward moment of the night, as Al Pacino took to the stage to announce the final award for Best Picture.
But rather than going through each of the ten nominees, Pacino got right to the point and announced that Oppenheimer was the winner.
Many viewers were left confused by the incident, and Pacino has since explained that this was not a mistake but a deliberate decision by producers who were concerned about run time.
In statement per Variety, he said: “There seems to be some controversy about my not mentioning every film by name last night before announcing the best picture award.
“I just want to be clear it was not my intention to omit them, rather a choice by the producers not to have them said again since they were highlighted individually throughout the ceremony.
“I was honored to be a part of the evening and chose to follow the way they wished for this award to be presented.”
Here are some of the winners from the night:
Best director
Anatomy of a Fall – Justine Triet
Killers of the Flower Moon – Martin Scorsese
Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan – WINNER
Poor Things – Yorgos Lanthimos
The Zone of Interest – Jonathan Glazer
Best actor
Bradley Cooper – Maestro
Colman Domingo – Rustin
Paul Giamatti – The Holdovers
Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer – WINNER
Jeffrey Wright – American Fiction
Best actress
Annette Bening – Nyad
Lily Gladstone – Killers of the Flower Moon
Sandra Huller – Anatomy of a Fall
Carey Mulligan – Maestro
Emma Stone – Poor Things – WINNER
Best picture
American Fiction
Anatomy of a Fall
Barbie
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer – WINNER
Past Lives
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest
Best supporting actress
Emily Blunt – Oppenheimer
Danielle Brooks – The Color Purple
America Ferrera – Barbie
Jodie Foster – Nyad
Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers – WINNER