Oscars 2020 Live Blog

The Oscars always has surprises in store – but was anyone truly ready for the 2020 Academy Awards? This year’s ceremony had it all – landmark wins, unusual speeches, actors taking the piss out of Cats, and a Randy Newman sing-a-long. for good measure Read through Empire’s live blog to relive how it all happened – from Parasite’s surprise victories, to that unannounced Eminem performance that had everyone scratching their heads. Scroll to the bottom and read up to the top for a step-by-step rundown of the 92nd Oscars. Looking for the full winners' list? Read that here, and head this way for the rest of our Oscars 2020 coverage.

Note: all the times below are in GMT

04.36am We've now taken the time to compose ourselves after what turned out to be a truly incredible night. Parasite made history: It is the first film to win Best Picture and Best International Feature at once, the first film not in the English language to win Best Picture, and the first film from South Korea to be nominated for any Oscars – let alone win four. It's difficult to think about much else right now, but let's remember Brad Pitt, let's remember the women making documentaries, let's remember Janelle Monáe... and how could we forget Eminem. It's all feeling a little surreal – but that might be because the morning commuters will probably be getting their trains before we get some sleep. And with that, it's time to bring this live blog to a close. Thank you to everyone who watched and read along with us – we hope you had as much fun as we did. See you next year, and until then: #BongHive for life.

04.27am PARASITE HAS WON BEST PICTURE. HOLD THE PHONES, TELL THE NEWS. BONG JOON-HO'S PARASITE HAS WON THE OSCAR FOR BEST PICTURE.

04.21am This is it. Only one more award to go. Will former frontrunner 1917 still take it? Or is Parasite taking over to go all the way and win Best Picture? Any room for Little Women, or, curveball, Ford v Ferrari? Eminem was right. Palms are sweaty.

04.18am Another solid win – Renée Zellweger takes home the gold for her turn as Judy Garland in Judy. With this, Pitt, Dern, Phoenix and Zellweger have swept all the major ceremonies as the four winners consistently across the board for their respective performances. Zellweger nods to her fellow nominees and collaborators, and to everyone's hero and inspiration, Judy Garland herself.

04.08am Joaquin Phoenix takes the Oscar for Best Leading Actor, for his role as Arthur Fleck in Joker. It's been the most revered performance this awards season, so this comes as no surprise. He gives an intelligent and impassioned speech about supporting animal rights, about platforming more diverse voices with tangible action, and by quoting his late brother River Phoenix. It'll be interesting to see how Joaquin's career choices evolve according to his vocal values expressed this awards season.

04.01am Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell use their secret performance slot to sing The Beatles' 'Yesterday', to score the Academy's In Memoriam segment. A beautifully touching rendition, the Bond theme is clearly in safe hands.

03.54am This is not a drill: Director Bong has swooped in and won Best Director for Parasite. He thought he was done for the night after winning Best International Feature, but apparently not. The master uses his speech to shoutout his fellow nominees, praising the masters Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino for inspiring him to make movies and for platforming his work. "Thank you, I will drink until tomorrow morning," he says before leaving the stage. But could he win one more award by taking home the big one before the drinking begins? Best Picture for Bong? Could it be?

03.43am Joker composer Hildur Guðnadóttir wins the Oscar for Best Original Score. This is her first nomination, and the third ever win for a female composer. She ends her earnest speech by saying: "To the girls, to the women, to the mothers, to the daughters, who hear the music bubbling within, please speak up, we need to hear your voices." And for Best Original Song, Sir Elton John takes home the trophy for _Rocketman'_s '(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again'.

03.26am Back on the stage for the second time of the night, it's Director Bong for Parasite. He takes home the award for Best International Feature, making this the first win under the new name, renamed from Best Foreign Language Film. Let's give praise to the #BongHive_,_ and also use this moment to praise Bong's interpreter Sharon Choi who has been seamlessly translating for the filmmaker throughout this whole awards season.

03.21am Bombshell wins for Best Makeup and Hairstyling! The film saw Charlize Theron undergo a major metamorphosis to play Fox news anchor Megyn Kelly, prosthetic facial features aplenty. The team thanks the actress, who breaks down with emotion in the front row of the audience.

03.15am It's official – Avengers: Endgame will not be winning any Oscars. The Academy awards 1917 for Best Visual Effects.

03.10am James Corden and Rebel Wilson take to the stage to present the Oscar for Best Visual Effects in... their costumes from Cats. Is it a good dig at a bad movie? Is it too soon to laugh about it? Is this actually happening? Are we hallucinating at this point in the evening?

03.06am Cynthia Erivo gives a goldstruck rendition of Best Song nominee 'Stand Up' from Harriet in a liquid-gold dress. Erivo is also nominated for Best Leading Actress. If she wins tonight, she will be the youngest artist to win an EGOT.

02.57am And it's another win for Le Mans '66! James Mangold's driving thrill-ride takes home the Oscar for Best Editing. It's also up for Best Picture, to the surprise of some. But with two awards in the bag, could the race be heating up?

02.53am Unsurprisingly but entirely deservedly – Roger Deakins wins the Oscar for Best Cinematography for his work on 1917. This is the second Academy Award and fifteenth nomination for the master. The WWI epic boasts an illusion of one continuous take, with gliding and immersive visuals bringing the viewer into the viewpoint of two young soldiers on a mission against the clock.

02.41am Anyway, back to the awards. Le Mans '66 (Ford v Ferrari to our stateside friends) picks up the Oscar for Best Sound Editing, after which James Mangold is given a shoutout for Best Director, and Best Sound Mixing goes to 1917 – making this the first win of the night for Sam Mendes' WWI frontrunner.

02.32am Ah yes, just about halfway through the 2020 ceremony we are now privy to Eminem performing 'Lose Yourself'. For some reason. Live. On the stage. A song which came out 18 years ago. Everyone in the audience is either lip-syncing or head-banging, so at least they're having a good time. The song ends and we cut to the adverts, because apparently that performance did not need any explanation.

02.21am Happy birthday Oscar-winner Laura Dern! Everyone's favourite spiky divorce lawyer wins the award for Best Supporting Actress after sweeping this entire season for her performance as Nora in Noah Baumbach's Marriage Story. While Dern has been a Hollywood stalwart for decades, this is her first Oscar win. In a moving acceptance speech, the actress thanks the Academy and Netflix, as is customary, but then she also thanks her parents Diane Ladd (her date for the evening) and Bruce Dern. "They say never meet your heroes, but sometimes you're blessed and they're your parents". She always has had a way with words.

02.17am And for Best Documentary Short – it goes to Learning To Skateboard In A War Zone (If You're A Girl). It's proving to be a momentous night for female non-fiction filmmakers, a sign of a positive, inclusive future to come.

02.11am The Oscar for Best Documentary Feature goes to American Factory. It was a strong category this year, with four out of five nominated films co-directed by women, telling stories of Macedonia, of Syria, of Brazil and of America. Although the favourite from this awards season, For Sama, a visceral first-person perspective from Aleppo, didn't win – there really wasn't a wrong answer for this category.

02.02am A perfect period piece wouldn't be complete perfect period dresses, and so the Oscar for Costume Design goes to Jacqueline Durran for her work on Greta Gerwig's Little Women. The costume designer thanks the Academy and her director, who tearfully mouths back "I'm so happy". A sight to behold.

01.57am It was indeed for Production Design – and it does indeed go to Once Upon A Time in Hollywood! Quentin Tarantino's love letter to Tinseltown comes to life with a rich tapestry of visual landmarks, courtesy of Production Designer Barbara Ling and Set Decorator Nancy Hay. This is the second trophy for OUATIH tonight – but there are still many, many more to go...

01.55am Maya Rudolph and Kristen Wiig are here to present an award. Is it about acting? Production design? Both at the same time? It's still not clear – but their singing skit is certainly giving us more ideas than ever. Did we mention there isn't actually a host this year?

01.50am The Academy Award for Best Live-Action Short Film goes to The Neighbors' Window, which you can watch above. This was director Marshall Curry's fourth nomination and first win.

01.45am And for Best Adapted Screenplay, the statuette goes to Taika Waititi's anti-hate satire Jojo Rabbit. The director thanks his mother for first giving him the book Caging Skies, and dedicates his award to indigenous children wanting to make art. With this win, Waititi is the second indigenous person to win an Oscar, after Buffy Sainte-Marie won for Best Original Song in 1982.

01.40am #BongHive rise up! Parasite takes home the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, winning the first of a possible six Bong Joon-ho's Palme d'Or winner is up for. This also marks a momentous occasion, as it's the first time a film from South Korea has been nominated for any Academy Awards – and now, the first time it's won!

01.34am Frozen 2's 'Into the Unknown' is up for Best Original Song tonight. Idina Menzel, who voices Princess Elsa in the film, performs an onstage rendition tonight – but she's not alone. To anchor the worldwide phenomenon of the Frozen universe, Menzel is joined by the women voicing Elsa around the world. Thailand, Spain, Russia, China and more. A true sight to behold.

01.28am Best Animated Short goes to Hair Love – which you can catch up with in full on YouTube now. The filmmakers urge audiences to seek representation of diverse voices onscreen, and dedicate the award to Kobe Bryant.

01.24am And the Oscar for Best Animated Feature goes to Toy Story 4! It was the sequel we weren't sure we needed, but certainly it came through when it needed to. The creative team calls the film a love letter to families, saying, "This is for our parents, for our wives, for our kids." Pixar stands as strong as ever.

01.20am Next up, Animated Feature. Beanie Feldstein takes to the stage before presenting... presenter Mindy Kaling. No host this year, but for some reason every presenter is getting their own introduction tonight. We're enjoying every indulgent minute.

01.15am Ending the season as it began for him, Brad Pitt takes home the first award of the night for Best Actor in A Supporting Role in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Pitt has been going from strength to strength this season, picking up just about every possible award for his performance as stuntman Cliff Booth – Globe, BAFTA, SAG and all. This is Pitt's second Oscar, after starring in Best Picture winner 12 Years A Slave. "Leo, I'll ride on your coattails any year," Pitt says in his thank you speech to co-star Leonardo DiCaprio, after making a noble shoutout to stunt coordinators for their singular work.

01.10am Steve Martin and Chris Rock are here to... not host? The pair deliver a monologue about the lack of recognition for artists of colour, offer a few digs at Jeff Bezos and Martin Scorsese, before swiftly passing on to Regina King to present the first award. Their role isn't entirely clear. Will they come back again? Are they actually in charge of everything? Surprises all round!

01.02am It begins! We're already off to an impressive start, as despite being host-less for the second year in a row, the Oscars begin with Janelle Monáe bursting onto the stage with a rendition of Mr Rogers' 'Won't You Be My Neighbor', which turns into a tailored Oscars-themed rendition of her song 'Come Alive (War of the Roses)'. She asks the audience to celebrate the women directors in the room and to celebrate Black History Month, as flower petals fall from the ceiling. A transcendental moment – no host could do it better.

12.50am T 10 minutes, one and all. The stars are taking their seats inside the Dolby Theatre, we're putting the kettle on again in South London. All the months of watching and debating and voting have led up to this. The 2020 Oscars are finally upon us.

12.39am Presenting alongside Portman tonight is boy wonder Timothée Chalamet. The actor isn't nominated tonight – despite putting in a fine performance as Laurie Laurence in Greta Gerwig's Little Women, but has still made it over for the night. In terms of his outfit... valet chic? Frank Ocean fan? We're not sure what it all means. It's only his second Academy Awards though, the young star can still learn.

12.26am Natalie Portman is presenting an award this evening, and has arrived to make a statement. While this year's Best Director category features five men – the Academy having only nominated five women in the entire history of the Oscars – the actress is wearing a Dior cape, embroidered with the names of women the Academy has failed to nominate over the years – including Honey Boy director Alma Har'el.

12.14am Jojo Rabbit director Taika Waititi impresses as ever in his natural habitat: in front of the camera. The film is nominated for six awards tonight, including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. But the most important thing we've learned from tonight's broadcast is that Waititi's star sign is Leo. The man is never camera shy – it checks out.

12.14am Power couple Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig have arrived! Both filmmakers are nominated for Marriage Story and Little Women respectively – although neither for Best Director, despite showing promise early in the season. While both screenplays have been recognised – Original for Baumbach, Adapted for Gerwig, the snubs still hurt. Perhaps we'll see them up for Best Co-Directors on their Barbie film next year.

11.43pm The queen herself Olivia Colman has arrived on the red carpet. Last year she won the Oscar for Best Actress for her role in _The Favourite. A_nd now? She's back and pulling out the stops once again. Who needs a nomination when you could turn up, go blonde, and have fun.

11.07pm Julia Butters, the 10-year-old star of Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, has arrived on the red carpet. Although these are her first Oscars, the actress has come prepared. While she waves with one hand, she holds onto her bag with the other. It contains a turkey sandwich, in case of emergencies.

10.45pm Exactly two hours and 15 minutes to go until the ceremony begins – we're here, and we're ready to go. Snacks aplenty, red carpet ready, our energy drinks haven't even worn off yet. Is it too late to catch a flight out?