May, Elaine

Denzel Washington and Bill Murray were on hand to present the awards during the off-camera ceremony.On Friday night in Hollywood, a Marvel superhero accepted an honorary Oscar from one of the biggest movie stars in the world.Too bad it wasn’t televised.The scene was the Governors Awards, an intimate ceremony at the Loews Hollywood Hotel where Samuel L. Jackson was given that Academy Award by an absolutely delighted Denzel Washington, who threw his arms around Jackson as they rocked back and forth, laughing. The 73-year-old honoree reminisced about a career that has included an Oscar-nominated “Pulp Fiction” performance as well as multiple appearances as the superspy Nick Fury in Marvel movies.“I got out there to entertain audiences the way Hollywood entertained me: Make them forget their lives for a few hours and be thrilled, awed or excited in the big room where make-believe lives,” Jackson said.He eyed his new piece of golden hardware. “When I got this call last year, it was unexpected,” Jackson said. “But I guarantee you, this thing is going to be cherished.”Though the honorary Oscars were once a staple of the live telecast, they were stripped from the show in 2009 because of still-continuing concerns over the its length. That led the academy to create the Governors Awards, an untelevised ceremony devoted solely to the honorary Oscars that also became one of the schmooziest nights of the season, a party where dozens of would-be contenders vied for face time with voters.Explore the 2022 Academy AwardsThe 94th Academy Awards will be held on March 27 in Los Angeles.Oscars Preview: Looking to catch up quickly on all the basics ahead of the event? This guide can help. The Hosts: Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes plan to keep the show moving and make it funny, though they will acknowledge the war in Ukraine.A Win for Streaming: A streaming service film could win the Oscar for best picture for the first time. A few years ago, it would have been hard to imagine.‘Seen That Before?’: Four of the best picture nominees this year are remakes or reboots of earlier films.Best Actress Race: Who will win? There are cases to be made for and against each contender, and no one has an obvious advantage.That element of the show was dramatically curtailed this year, when the Governors Awards were delayed from their original Jan. 15 berth because of Covid fears. By the time Jackson and writer-director Elaine May, actress-director Liv Ulmann, and actor Danny Glover gathered last night to receive their honorary awards, voting for this year’s Oscars had already been closed for days, and many of the nominees instead opted for Friday-night parties thrown by their agencies and studios.But while the ceremony was smaller, the speeches were allowed to go on at great length, as there was no frantic network executive demanding they be trimmed. Glover acknowledged as much after he spent several minutes speaking off the cuff about the political activism that led him to receive the academy’s Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. He also made room to lavish praise on Ulmann as well as his presenter, Alfre Woodard.“I haven’t referred to the teleprompter at all,” Glover said with an apologetic smile. “Sometimes we actors get a little lost without a script.”The Norwegian actress Ulmann told several stories about the winding path that led her to become a key collaborator with the director Ingmar Bergman. For a long time, Ulmann said, she was made to feel bashful about her calling.“In Norway, you have to live by a certain rule: Don’t brag,” she said, before slyly adding: “That’s why I brought 20 people tonight. They can tell Norway, ‘It is true, she got an Oscar.’”Our Reviews of the 10 Best-Picture Oscar NomineesCard 1 of 10“Belfast.” More