Al Pacino reveals why he didn't say Best Picture titles in Oscars presentation: 'Seems to be some controversy'

EW has learned that it was a decision "made in creative" to have Pacino skip reading the 10 films nominated for Best Picture before announcing a winner.

Al Pacino is clarifying why he didn't say hello to his 10 little friends — okay, okay, movie titles — that were nominated for Best Picture as he presented the Oscars' highest competitive honor at Sunday night's 96th Academy Awards.

After show host Jimmy Kimmel needled Pacino's conversational delivery of the news that Oppenheimer won Best Picture, the Scarface star issued a statement to EW explaining that it was a production decision to have him not recite the names of the nominated films.

"There seems to be some controversy about my not mentioning every film by name last night before announcing the Best Picture award," Pacino said. "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."

EW has also learned through another source that it was a decision "made in creative" to have the 83-year-old immediately read the name of the Best Picture-winning film instead of saying all 10 titles again, as the show included clip packages for each of the nominees that played during the ceremony.

"I realize being nominated is a huge milestone in one's life and to not be fully recognized is offensive and hurtful," Pacino's statement added. "I say this as someone who profoundly relates with filmmakers, actors, and producers, so I deeply empathize with those who have been slighted by this oversight, and it's why I felt it necessary to make this statement."

EW has reached out to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for further comment.

Pacino's approach garnered attention online, initially because he appeared on stage by himself and not with Michelle Pfeiffer, his Scarface costar who was previously announced to present at the show but had to miss out on the telecast due to a conflict.

"This is the time for the last award of the evening, and it's my honor to present it. Ten wonderful films were nominated, but only one will take the award for Best Picture," Pacino told the audience. "And, uh, I have to go to the envelope for that, and I will. Here it comes. And my eyes see Oppenheimer. Yes. Yes."

Audience members were seemingly confused by Pacino's words, as they didn't applaud until he confirmed again that Oppenheimer had won and the film's score played in the room.

"I guess he's never watched an awards show before," Kimmel joked Monday morning in an interview with Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos. "It seems like everyone in America knows the rhythm of how it's supposed to go, down to 'And the Oscar goes to…' but, uh, not Al."

Watch Pacino present Best Picture at the Oscars above.

Check out more from EW's The Awardist, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis, and our podcast diving into all the highlights from the year's best in TV.

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Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.