Though Anthony Hopkins' Best Actor win at Sunday night's Oscars wasn't a complete surprise – he had, after all, won deserved earlier trophies for his role in The Father – you do get the feeling that the ceremony's producers had been gambling on another posthumous trophy for Chadwick Boseman, ending their show on an emotional high rather than the somewhat confusing finale that actually occurred, especially since Hopkins wasn't present to accept. The veteran actor has offered a short speech, however, one in which he paid tribute to Boseman.
Accepting for his portrayal of a man suffering with encroaching dementia, the 83-year-old shared his surprise at the victory, and his thanks, and talked of Boseman "who was taken from us far too early". Rather than make the trip to either Los Angeles or the Oscars' London satellite hub for pandemic safety reasons, Hopkins had stayed in Wales. He now becomes the oldest Oscar winner in history.
The Father, meanwhile, will finally arrive in the UK on 11 June. For more on Sunday's Oscar events, check out our full coverage.