Nominees Jessie Buckley and Rose Byrne kicked off the 2026 Academy Awards on the red carpet, but it was the darkly comic thriller One Battle After Another that stole the show, taking home the coveted Best Picture award.
The ceremony, hosted by Conan O'Brien for the second consecutive year, featured a highly unpredictable best-picture race against the vampire blockbuster Sinners, which had a record 16 nominations.
Security was tight at the Dolby Theatre, with multiple traffic checkpoints and metal detectors in place following a federal warning about a potential Iranian threat targeting California.
The look and feel of the ceremony, which included a Zen garden-inspired red carpet and stage design, aimed to create a sense of calm in an increasingly chaotic world.
