Reason Behind Wes Anderson’s Oscar Absence: Eight-time Oscar-nominated filmmaker Wes Anderson finally earned his first Oscar trophy for his 2023 film “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.” Surprisingly, he wasn’t there to receive it. Instead, presenters Issa Rae and Ramy Youssef accepted the trophy on his behalf.
Many in the cinematic world dream of being honored with an Oscar trophy, and it means a lot to receive the trophy at the Academy podium in front of a star-studded crowd. If this is such a big deal, then what kept Anderson from receiving the biggest honor himself? Well, he prioritized his work by letting go of the big moment of receiving his inaugural Oscar award.
Wes Anderson skipped a big moment and prioritized his work
Wes Anderson couldn’t attend the 96th Academy Award due to his work commitment. The director missed the big moment of receiving his first Oscar trophy as he was busy with his upcoming project. Entertainment Weekly confirmed that Anderson’s still-untitled new film began production yesterday morning in Germany, rendering Anderson unable to attend the biggest Award night in Los Angeles.
Despite scheduling conflict between the Oscars and his new project, Anderson managed to provide a text for the acceptance speech he would have given, thanking longtime producer Steven Rales, the family of Roald Dahl, and his cast and crew. His text read:
“If I could have been there, I (along with Steven Rales) would have said ‘Thank you’ to: The family of Roald Dahl (Luke and Liccy); the team at Netflix (Ted/Scott/Racheline/Lisa/Catherine/many others); Benedict and Ralph and Ben Kingsley and Dev and Richard and Bob and Adam and Jeremy and John and Jim and Rich and Jim and Polly and more. Also I would have said: If I had not met Owen Wilson in a corridor at the University of Texas between classes when I was 18 years old, I would certainly not be receiving this award tonight.
But unfortunately, Steven and I are in Germany, and we start shooting our new movie early tomorrow morning, so I did not actually receive the award or get a chance to say any of that.”
“The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” is a Netflix adaptation of the Roald Dahl short story of the same name. The adventure/comedy film stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Ralph Fiennes, Dev Patel, Ben Kingsley, and Richard Ayoade.
The details of his upcoming project are scarce. However, we know that Anderson is co-writing the film along with his frequent collaborator, Roman Coppola. The film will consist of an incredibly talented cast, including Bill Murray, Michael Cera, and Benicio del Toro. Anderson’s upcoming untitled project has now begun production but has not yet set a release date.
