Inside the 2020 Oscars Parties

Variety Staff
·15 min read

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The end of the 2020 Awards Season is upon us! As Hollywood A-listers and executives party all the way up to and through the main event on Sunday night, Variety will be all over town reporting from inside all the biggest A-list bashes and the most intimate gatherings. Keep checking back for all the latest updates…

Alfre Woodard’s 11th Annual Sistahs Soiree
The Private Residence of Jonas Tahlin, CEO of Absolut Elyx, Los Angeles, Feb. 5
More than a decade after throwing her first gathering of actresses of color, Alfre Woodard’s annual bash has become part of her living legacy.

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“I didn’t get to come last year, I was about four hours into the wilderness of Vancouver Island and four hours, two planes, a ferry and a jet away,” Woodard told Variety, lounging on a velvet couch inside the lavish private estate where she hosted this year’s event. “But what was exciting is that I sent them a video and they all sent back videos and pictures and I realized that it didn’t need me. I knew that, but they didn’t know that. it’s the sister’s soiree, it’s not Alfre’s Soiree.”

An invite to the intimate gathering is a coveted one, with the event growing in size over the years — Woodard has a running guest list of 40 black actresses and says that around 25-30 are able to join the party each year, factoring in travel and work commitments. “If all 40-something ever come, I’ve got to find a bigger budget and a bigger house,” she laughed.

And though the venue has changed over that time, the primary mission of the event has stayed the same. “Because family is important and sisterhood is the nexus of any family,” she explained. “Especially in cultures that they have used division to separate us, to subdue us, to keep us down. It is very important to claim our kinship and let other people know, ‘You don’t get to do that. That my sister; I’m not in competition with my sister.’”

“There’s so many legends here that I feel really honored to sit at a table within to get, to learn from. So, I really just want to like soak up knowledge. I’m going to be, I’m a sponge tonight, that’s my job,” “Waves” star Taylor Russell told Variety as she entered the soiree for the first time. Luckily for the 25-year-old up-and-comer, she had Woodard to literally grab her hand and lead her around the room, introducing her to those women.

In addition to Russell, this year’s honorees included “No Time to Die’s” Lashana Lynch and Best Actress Oscar nominee Cynthia Erivo. The “Harriet” star – who is just an Oscar short of becoming the youngest performer to earn the coveted EGOT — is working away to prepare for her live performance on Sunday night’s telecast.

“We’ve been talking about what we want it to look like. We want to feel like we’re trying to, we’re getting a treatment for it and we have rehearsal I think tomorrow night or the next day. Um, we’re working to make it a special moment. I really wanted to feel special; win or lose, I want people to be lifted when they hear it and to feel good when they hear this song.”

Erivo was also thrilled with the announcement that her “Harriet” co-star Monáe would be performing at the big show too. “It means that like, my sister’s going to be there, it’s so cool. I don’t know what she’s performing. I’m gonna sneak and try and find out, but it’s going to be really to cool.”

Lynch joined the group for the first time last year, just before her role in “Captain Marvel” launched her onto a path toward superstardom. “It felt like the first day of school with like all black women, which is a privilege,” she recalled. “And I just had a really great time listening and absorbing. This year, I think it’s the same thing, honored or not, I’m still listening and I’m absorbing and um, paying attention to all the lessons that are being passed down to me from generations above, which is highly special.”

Only the cocktail hour is open to press, where the actors mix and mingle before settling into a no-holds barred conversation about the intimate details of their experiences as working black actors in Hollywood. Janelle Monáe circled up with Kiki Layne and Laura Harrier next to the fireplace, while Amandla Stenberg and Tracee Ellis Ross huddled for a private conversation across the room, and Yolanda Ross and Aisha Tyler chatted in chairs to the side.

Rounding out the class of 2020 were LaTanya Richardson, Edwina Findley Dickerson, S. Epatha Merkerson, Danielle Brooks, Lynn Whitfield, Tina Lifford, Tiffany Haddish, CCH Pounder, Loretta Devine, Margaret Avery, Lorraine Toussaint, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Vanessa Bell-Calloway ­— who all cheered “Alfre!” while posing for the annual group photo. — Angelique Jackson

Diane von Furstenberg and the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ Oscars Luncheon
Private Residence, Beverly Hills, Feb. 6
For the sixth year, Diane von Furstenberg hosted the intimate gathering of female Oscar nominees at her picturesque estate in Los Angeles. And though headlines during this year’s award season have focused on the fact that women and people of color have been noticeably absent from some of the marquee categories (including the Best Director category at this year’s Academy Awards), the iconic fashion designer wants to reframe that narrative.

“We don’t have [the nominations] for the big categories, but we have more nominations this year than ever,” von Furstenberg told Variety. And as for the best way to continue the upward trend, her suggestion was simple: “Just talent and push the men out.”

That kind of candor and determination is exactly what makes von Furstenberg such an attractive host for the annual event, presented in partnership with the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences in anticipation of the opening of the Academy Museum. “People had this idea before, [but] we wouldn’t entrust the Academy female nominees with anyone else except you,” Academy CEO Dawn Hudson said of the designer.

As one of this year’s 64 female nominees — though Hudson suggests the number is actually 67 thanks to Scarlett Johansson, Cynthia Erivo and producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff’s double nominations — Laura Dern was on hand to celebrate and has attended the luncheon in year’s past.

“The first year I was here, we all sat on that couch. We can’t fit on that couch anymore. And that makes me really happy and I look forward to four years from now where we can’t fit in this house,” she recalled.

Dern also serves as a governor of the Academy’s actors branch and, like von Furstenberg, is hopeful that the industry can find a way forward toward increased inclusion for women and people of color.

“There’s not enough talk around [how] a woman gets to have her shot at directing a movie and then she doesn’t get a second shot, even though she’s made a great and successful first film,” Dern told Variety. “So, we have lots to do. We need to make sure that that support is there and that people are thinking inventively and creatively from casting to crewing.”

After the group of 30 nominees and guests (including a special appearance by Anita Hill) enjoyed the luncheon, the honorees passed a microphone around the room reflecting on their journey to become Academy Award nominees in a system that doesn’t widely promote that possibility to them. Lasting for about half an hour, some personal statements were emotional, while others were humorous — i.e. 11-time nominee Diane Warren, who introduced herself as “Susan Lucci,” making light of the fact she’s yet to win an Oscar for songwriting. But overall the message of the afternoon was one of solidarity. “The Irishman” producer Jane Rosenthal was one of the last nominees to speak, reminding the attendees to continue to help one another advance in the business. “It’s up to all of us to make sure that when the doors are open we have the flood gate, the tsunami to step through,” Rosenthal said.

Event co-host Tessa Thompson delivered the closing remarks, thanking von Furstenberg for her hospitality, saying that when she arrived at the event, the fashion designer “hugged me and immediately re-tied my [DvF] jumper, which is like being knighted.” Thompson went on to highlight some of the female filmmakers who were not nominated for their 2019 films and therefore not present at the event, including Lulu Wang, Chinonye Chukwu, Mati Diop and Melina Matsoukas.

Thompson also issued a challenge to the attendees, the Academy and the entertainment industry as a whole. “I want us to remember that the Oscars themselves are a story that we tell to the world. … When the winners ascend the stairs, we tell new stories about the ideas that matter, about people who matter. And every year I think we have the opportunity to rewrite the story,” she said.

“I feel incredible faith … especially after hearing all of you speak that the people in this room will to continue to fight for this systemic change that I think we are beginning to see, to fight for continued commitment to equity in film finance, distribution and marketing, so the stories and people that the Academy honors begin to really reflect the world in which we find ourselves.” — Angelique Jackson

Vanity Fair Hollywood Calling Exhibit Opening
The Annenberg Space for Photography, Century City, Feb. 4
Ahead of Sunday night’s Vanity Fair Oscar party, the magazine celebrated its former cover stars — and their major pop culture moments — at the opening of the Vanity Fair Hollywood Calling exhibit in Los Angeles.

Two of Vanity Fair’s biggest cover stars, Demi Moore — who famously graced the cover in August 1991 while flaunting her baby bump — and Caitlyn Jenner — who announced her transition in the July 2015 issue — joined the celebration at the exhibit. At one point, Jenner lounged on the floor, posing next to her cover and musing that five years later “it’s been an interesting ride.” Moore was joined at the event by daughter Rumer Willis, wearing complimentary black and white dresses as they admired Moore’s maternity moment (while pregnant with daughter Scout) on display at the venue.

Vanity Fair editor in chief Radhika Jones spoke to Variety about the opening of the exhibit and the celebs (including “Bombshell” nominee Charlize Theron) who showed up to reflect on their photo shoots and spreads of years’ past.

“It’s incredibly inspiring and it does speak to the iconic legacy of the magazine and these moments in photography that I think do carry on in the culture,” Jones said. “So, it’s exciting to be here and to witness it and I hope a lot of people come and see these pictures and draw their own inspiration.”

Inside the party, Elizabeth Chambers posed with friends inside an interactive photo booth designed by VF photographer Marc Seliger, replicating one of his sets from the exclusive post-Oscars bash. Guests also enjoyed cocktails and passed appetizers while walking through the exhibit of some of the magazine’s most iconic (and some never-before-seen shots), as well as a behind the scenes video of how the Vanity Fair photo shoots are executed. The exhibit runs at the venue from Feb. 8 – July 26. Also present at the event were Rachel Zoe, Taylor Russell, Ian Harding, Ashley Greene, Bobby Berk, and Sharon Stone, who was most recently profiled for the magazine just before her 60th birthday in March 2018.

After the bash, Berk is turning his attention to hosting Elton John’s Oscar viewing party benefiting John’s AIDS foundation alongside his “Queer Eye” co-stars Jonathan Van Ness, Karamo Brown and Tan France. But what does that job entail? “I think it’s just like stand there in a cute outfit,” he joked.

“I still I can’t wrap my head around the fact that Elton John asked us to host his party with him. It’s insane. So I’m very excited. I’ve got the outfit,” Berk continued, teasing that he’ll be wearing “shiny silver, with a lot of bling, maybe a corset.” — Angelique Jackson

EMILY’S List’s 3rd Annual Pre-Oscars Brunch and Panel Discussion
The Four Seasons Hotel, Beverly Hills, Feb. 4
“After the election of 2016, which I now refer to as “that night,” partnering with EMILY’s List allowed me to do something concrete to ensure that women would make their mark in 2018 and guess what? We did,” EMILY’s List Creative Co-Chair Chelsea Handler said during her opening remarks at the organization’s 3rd Annual Pre-Oscars brunch and panel discussion Tuesday morning. “We elected the first Native Americans, the first Muslim American, the first transgender American, we had many, many firsts in 2018.”

The panel, entitled ““Defining Women: The Power of Lifting-Up Women’s Voices from Hollywood to Washington DC,” featured a lively discussion between actresses Amber Tamblyn, Eva Longoria and Uzo Aduba, former Texas U.S. state senator and candidate for U.S. House (TX-21) Wendy Davis and musician Amanda Shires, as well as words from EMILY’S list executive director Emily Cain and president Stephanie Schriock.

The event celebrated the achievements made in the 2018 elections by the political action committee, which aims to elect pro-choice, progressive Democratic female candidates to office, and emphasized the importance of the organization’s mission ahead of the 2020 elections. It also marked the beginning of Oscars week, during an award season that has been controversial for its lack of female representation in major nomination categories.

Tamblyn moderated the panel and told Variety that as an Academy voter, she had been very disappointed by the nominations but was encouraged by the scrutiny they had received.

“The simple fact that the nominations themselves were practically overshadowed by the larger conversation of who had been left out,” Tamblyn said. “The women of color, people of color, actors, directors, women in general, that almost overshadowed the nominations themselves and that’s not nothing. It wasn’t really until the #OscarsSoWhite campaign, which was started by a black woman, before that, this was not an important conversation. So, I think even the fact that we are being forced to have the conversation, openly and presently, means a lot. We can’t discount that, and we have to keep having it.”

The actress also explained why she would be supporting Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren for the Democratic nomination. “I think Elizabeth Warren is the intersection of everything that I would love about a presidential candidate,” Tamblyn said. “She is warm, she’s fiery, she’s incredibly intelligent, her experience is unparalleled, especially in business and finance. She’s a former Republican, most of her family are Republicans, with deep ties in progressiveness and progressive platforms. She’s approachable, but she’s still terrifying. I don’t know if it gets any better than that.”

Longoria told the audience that she was motivated to help get out the Latina vote. “I’m a ninth generation Texan,” Longoria said. “I’m more American than Donald Trump. So, knowing that there is a large group of us, we never crossed the border, the border crossed us and so giving a voice to that community, my community, is really what birthed the Eva Longoria Foundation. And specifically, with Latinas, with women. What we are going to do this year for the elections is really focus on Latinas because they are really going to make the difference in some key districts.”

Drawing a comparison between her past experience as a track and field athlete and the importance of solidarity among women, Aduba told the audience, “My coach my entire life always used to talk about, the 4X100 meter race. You can be that anchor leg all you want. That baton is not getting around the track without those three other ladies. Doesn’t matter how fast you are going that 100. Ok, so you have to step out of that comfort zone and reach out and cling heavily, loop, link arms, cling with that lady standing beside you, that friend.”

The panel also followed the debacle at the Iowa Democratic caucuses, which still hadn’t produced a clear victor at the time of the event. Panel host committee member — and Elizabeth Warren supporter — Yvette Nicole Brown shared her reaction to the caucuses and her advice for changes moving forward.

“Because of what happened last night — which was a shitshow, excuse me — I hope that now we’ll make sure that Iowa is no longer the first,” Brown said. “I hope it will also ensure that there is no more caucusing. Let’s just have a primary. Let’s have a countrywide primary. Let’s knock it out all at once. Let’s spend that year campaigning in all the states and then on one day, let’s all get together and everybody vote and then we will know who our nominee is and then we can get busy trying to get rid of whatever horrible person is in office.” — Ashley Hume

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