HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA-- It was quite a night at the 96th Annual Academy Awards which took place March 10 at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. Jimmy Kimmel, who has hosted the Oscars four times, got the show off to a rousing start. There was never a dull moment with his sharp, pointed and funny set. Kimmel took aim at the Oscars for snubbing director "Greta Gerwig's "Barbie" which nearly single handedly saved the movie industry. "Barbie" became the highest grossing movie of 2023 and made a phenomenal $1.446 billion worldwide. Kimmel also poked fun at "Barbie" stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling whose showstopping performance of "I'm Just Ken" is still being lauded as one of the show's most exciting moments.

Robert Downey Jr., who won the "Best Supporting Actor" Oscar for "Oppenheimer" couldn't escape from Kimmel either. But another major highlight was Kimmel firing back at former President Donald Trump who took to Social Media to criticize the host.

It was high entertainment all around and in my humble opinion ranked as one of the more entertaining Oscar shows. According to Variety, The 96th Annual Academy Awards drew 19.5 million viewers. The 2023 telecast garnered $18.8 million.

N2Entertainment.net was honored to cover the 96th Annual Academy Awards and be backstage with fellow press as the winners of the evening were trotted out to discuss their journey to obtain the coveted Oscar, and how much it means to them. Here are a few of the notable quotes from the some of the big winners. In case you were wondering, Robert Downey Jr. didn't come back stage which is why he's not among the list here.

CORD JEFFERSON-- (Best Adapted Screenplay, "American Fiction")

Q. Congratulations. I feel like you kind of foreshadowed your success with the character Adam Brody's "Get your tux ready, we're going to the big show." And so, here we are. So, I want you to speak to the importance of being recognized for a film that shined a light on the stereotypes and also kind of poked fun of the stereotypes of black characters in film.

A. Yeah. Look, there's a Victor Hugo quote that he says, "Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come." And so, you know, I was very passionate about this film. Everybody who worked this film is very passionate about it. Nobody was there for the money because we didn't have any money. So, people were there because they believed in it. And so, to be here now and to receive this -- this kind of response is -- is, yeah, it feels incredibly surreal. I'm so grateful for it. I think everybody on the film is so grateful for it. Yeah. Just the sort of -- we didn't have a huge marketing budget, so we relied on word of mouth a lot and people who liked the film telling other people they liked the film. So, yeah, it is -- you know what? Hopefully the -- hopefully the lesson here and tried -- kind of what I tried to convey in my speech is that there's an audience for things that are different. There is -- there is an appetite for things that are different. And, you know, a story with black characters that's going to appeal to a lot of people doesn't need to take place on a plantation, doesn't need to take place in the projects, doesn't need to have drug dealers in it, doesn't need to have gang members in it. But there's an audience for different depictions of people's lives, and that it -- there is a market for depictions of black life that are as broad and as deep as any other depictions of people's lives.

Q. I wanted to ask about sort of the world building in Boston that you did in the film. Can you tell me about what you learned about Boston and Massachusetts and the area in general while you were producing "American Fiction" and then kind of, like, how that played into everything you did in the film?

A. Yeah. I mean, the -- I wanted to depict a different kind of Boston than is normally depicted in the films. So I said no pictures of Fenway Park, no pictures of duck boats on the Charles, right. It's sort of -- I wanted to -- I wanted to explore a different side of Boston and, you know, one of the different sides of Boston is black people. You know, you don't really see -- it, you know, there's a lot of "The Departed," which I love. There's a lot of the town, which I love. "Gone Baby Gone", which I love. Like, most of the depictions of Boston are sort of like, you know, it is sort of like working class Italians or Irish people. And I think that, you know, there's a whole other side of Boston that we don't -- that we don't really see. And I think it was important, you know, we weren't able to shoot in Martha's Vineyard because the film didn't have Martha's Vineyard money, but, you know, there's a little bit of sort of, like, a nod to Oak Bluffs in the film and sort of a nod to the black community that is sort of thriving in that -- in that part of the world. So, yeah. It's important to me to... all it was was -- not all it was, but -- but it was important to me to reflect the diversity of the black experience, you know. It is -- we are just as nuanced and complex and diverse as any other group of people. And so, to me, showing that side of Boston that isn't normally shown and showing these kinds of people who aren't normally shown on the big screen, it was -- that's important to me. It's just -- I think it's important to show diversity within diversity. I mean, it's sort of like people assume that diversity means one thing, and you have one black guy in a room and that gives you the totality of the black experience. And to me, it's important to recognize that there is no -- no one black person contains the totality of the black experience; that you have people in the projects, of course; you had people who were slaves, of course. But, you know, between the sort of, like, after the sort of, like, pole over here of the slave, you have the pole of being President of the United States. That's part of the black experience in this country. And you have millions of stories in between those two poles to tell. And so if we could just show a different side of that part of the world, if we showed a different side of Massachusetts, if you show that sort of, like, different side of Martha's Vineyard and Oak Bluffs and just show that to people, that's important to me. I'm sorry I was so verbose. I talk too much. I'm sorry, but thank you.

DA'VINE JOY RANDOLPH (Best Supporting Actress, "The Holdovers")

Q. What does it mean for you for your mental health and emotional well-being having this kind affirmation?

A. Oh. What it does for my mental health. I mean, I think you'd be selling yourself short if you make it about the awards. It's too hard of a career. The beautiful thing and the hard thing about being an actor is that it requires you to have resilience and self-confidence and belief in yourself when no one else does, when you are constantly getting "nos" and you're saying, "Nope, I'm going to keep going." So, actually, in many ways, while it can challenge your mental health, it also can strengthen it because you have to fortify yourself in a way that some people never ever have to do. So, for that, I'm grateful. I would say also, you know, you just keep yourself grounded, surrounded by people who care and love you, and stay close to what's real. And, again, I'm just very adamant about it would not be on your heart if you weren't meant to do it. And I know it can be challenging to wait that wait, but when it happens, it's a full circle moment, and you know it was worth it.

Q. You mentioned in your speech that you felt that you always wanted to be different and now you feel you can be yourself. How does it feel for you to have that realization that you are enough as is?

A. I knew I was always different. And so, therefore, I thought maybe I needed to conform to something else because when I looked at the show for many years as I was growing up, I didn't necessarily see myself there; yet, that was the model of success. So I was on this journey of trying to figure out how I could mold myself to that because I thought that's what success would mean. And what I have begun to find in my journey is that in being myself and doing the work and staying focused and driven and clear, I could do exactly the same thing whilst being myself.

Q. What moment stands out for you during this whole awards season because you've won, I think, 57 of them so far?

A. I think the biggest thing is the camaraderie. I didn't know what to expect. You know, I didn't know if it was going to be a dog-eat-dog thing, if it would be, like, you know, really aggressive. And what's been so beautiful is having this relationship with people that are going through the same thing with you, a support system that you can rely on and the friends that I've made because of it.

Q. Congratulations. My question for you has to do with your speech. You spoke extensively on how several people, including your teacher, your mom, just pushing you, helping you, enabled you to get to this point in your career. As a black actress who's spoken severally on just the importance of being seen, how important is it to constantly pay it forward?

A.It's imperative because the people who've done it before me allowed me to be in this position now. And so the type of work I do, my strive for authenticity, for quality allows there to be a new standard set where we can tell universal stories in black and brown bodies, and it can be accepted and enjoyed amongst the masses. It's not just black TV or black movies or black people, but instead a universal performance that can be enjoyed by all.

Q. I often carry mementos from loved ones who have gone on with me. How important to you was that to have your grandmother's glasses with you in this movie?

A. It was crucial. I knew that this was going to be a difficult role for me to take on, and that it was going to require a lot of vulnerability from me. And I knew that she was just someone in my life that would allow me to get right back to the center. And there was many women -- I did a lot of research and did little subliminal messages, if you will, with hair-dos and details and accessories beyond the glasses, giving homage to women from the Jeffersons, Phyllis Hyman, stuff like that. So that I included all of these women who impressionized me, and so that people that knew-knew, and that meant a lot because it felt like a love letter back to black women.

Q. Good evening, Da'Vine. I've been holding space for you for quite some time. I'm from what is called a blighted city, Chester, Pennsylvania, right outside of your hometown of Philadelphia. Would you talk to me a little bit about how you can encourage creatives from underserved communities to stay the course?

A. Due to being undeserved and underserved communities, the beautiful thing that erupts is your imagination and your creativity because you don't have much. And so you have this innate ability to create. That's a gift, and that's something that will serve you that when you do have the resources it's easy. Something I think we as black people are very good at is making a lot out of very little, and I think that's a super power and something that we should applaud ourselves for and uplift ourselves so there's nothing that's never too little. It's always just enough.

CILLIAN MURPHY--Best Actor ("Oppenheimer")

Q. Congratulations and well done. Folks back home in Ireland are waking up to this brilliant news
and they're sharing your success. They're absolutely, absolutely delighted for you, but they want to know how you are feeling holding that lovely statuette in your hands now. Please tell us and please don't hold back because we love emotion in Ireland.

A. It's a little bit of -- I'm a little bit of a daze, you know.I'm very overwhelmed. I'm very humbled. I'm very grateful. And you know, very proud to be -- to be Irish standing here today.

Q. Your career as far as chapter and verse when it comes to variety of range. But let's say in the fullness of time if people remember you, or commemorate you or even chose to define you, by "Oppenheimer," would you be content with that?

A. Very content I mean, you know, you've got to move forward, but this has been a huge, huge moment for me. The movie is so special to me and myself and Chris have such a special relationship that I just feel very privileged to be continuing to work with him and I'm very proud of at, you know, that this is a film that is provocative and that asks questions and is challenging but yet, you know, so many people want to see it. So I'm really, really proud of that.

Q. How does it feel to not
only reach this point in your career but do it side by side with Chris (Nolan) who is emerged as one of the most important collaborators of your career?

A. It's very, very special. You know, we've been working together for 20 years. I think he is the perfect director. He is an extraordinary
writer and he is an extraordinary producer and he is extraordinary visually and extraordinary director of actors and he presents this film like no one else does in the world. And I just can't believe my luck. You know, I did a screen test for him when I was a kid and I thought that would be it. And it would be just enough to be in a room with Chris for a couple of hours and here we are. So I'm -- I'm just so humbled and thankful.

CHRISTOPHER NOLAN (Best Director, "Oppenheimer")

Q. Congratulations. What are your plans for tonight?

A. My plan's to hit the Governor's Ball and meet up with my kids again and have a little celebration with the family, and, yeah, we're looking forward to it, so thank you.

Q. I'm curious because I know that being a director is -- really involves having confidence in your ideas and your vision. How has it been for you to see "Oppenheimer" be embraced by both audiences and now your peers at just the highest possible level?

A. It's just the most incredible thrill. When you make a film on a large scale, obviously, you -- you have to believe there's some audience for it out there. But starting with the release of the film in July, the response from people around the world far exceeded anything that I imagined possible, and, you know, winning this recognition from my peers, is just, I mean, the icing on the cake. It's just very -- it's very important to me. It's really a wonderful finish to what's been an incredible year.

Q. I think it has been a long journey. You deserved an Oscar a long time ago, but also it has been a long journey telling this story, so what's your take about making this movie but also the real story now that the journey has ended?

A. I mean, I think it's difficult to have perspective on something you're still in the middle of really, and this has been a long journey for all of us. But as I was saying starting with the responsive audiences around the world to "Oppenheimer" which far exceeded our expectations, you know, the fact that particularly young people were coming to see the film, they were seeking out a large format film. There were so many things that came together for us with this film, so it's been an incredible journey, incredible process. I don't think I have much perspective on it. You know, ask me again in six months or something.

Q. Remember at the Critics' Choice Awards, I asked you if you were ready for the Oscar, and you told me don't jinx it. So, are you ready for the Oscar now?

A. I am. Thank you. (Laughter). And thank you for not jinxing it, yes. No, I'm -- I'm ready for it, happy to receive it, and very, very grateful to the Academy. So thank you.

Q. What does it mean to have two now in your hands?

A. It means I can do curls. (Lots of laughter). They're very heavy. It's such a thrill. I mean, to be recognized as a director by my peers, the nomination itself from the directing bunch of the Academy, it's very, very special to me as was winning the Directors Guild Awards. For the film to win "Best Picture" is just a testament to so many different people who were involved in the film, our incredible cast and our incredible crew. So that's really an unbelievable thrill.


EMMA STONE--Best Actress ("Poor Things")

Q. How are you?

A. Hi.

Q. You seemed more than I have ever seen on the Oscar stage completely shocked.

A. Oh, boy. Well, I mean, I don't know if it was more than ever. And it -- really?

Q. Really.

A. Oh, God. I think I blacked out. Yes, I was very shocked. I still feel like I'm - I'm spinning a little bit. So, yes, it was -- it's a huge honor, and I'm very -- yes, I'm very surprised.

Q. Hi. I just would like to, a little levity, check on the dress.

A. Yes, they sewed me back in. Right when I came back, they sewed me back in, which was wonderful. I generally do think I busted it during, "I'm Just Ken." I was so amazed by Ryan (Gosling) and what he was doing, and that number just blew my mind. And I was right there, and I just was going for it, and, you know, things happen.

Q. I want to know what you learned playing Bella Baxter in this movie?

A. She is a character that is so, so important to me. It -- I think the chance to -- to play a person starting from scratch, but in a total metaphorical, can't-really-happen-in-real-life way, who's gaining language and skills at a rapid pace every day and getting to, sort of, chart that course and realize that she was just full of -- of joy and curiosity and true love, of not just the good, but the challenging in life and was fascinated by all of it, that was an amazing, an amazing lesson to take with me and to try to get to live in the shoes of every day. So I really miss playing her ever since we wrapped filming, which was a long time ago. It was like two and a half years ago. I miss Bella. And I'm really grateful that we got to celebrate the film tonight and over these past few months. And, yeah, I just, I love her. Thank you, guys, so much.