‘Oppenheimer’ Wins Big at Critics Choice Awards 

Christopher Nolan accepts the award for best director for "Oppenheimer" during the 29th Critics Choice Awards on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024, at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP)
Christopher Nolan accepts the award for best director for "Oppenheimer" during the 29th Critics Choice Awards on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024, at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP)
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‘Oppenheimer’ Wins Big at Critics Choice Awards 

Christopher Nolan accepts the award for best director for "Oppenheimer" during the 29th Critics Choice Awards on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024, at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP)
Christopher Nolan accepts the award for best director for "Oppenheimer" during the 29th Critics Choice Awards on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024, at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP)

"Oppenheimer," Christopher Nolan's epic movie about the creation of the atomic bomb, cleaned up at the Critics Choice Awards on Sunday, winning best picture and seven other prizes over its rivals as the Oscars race heats up.

The $1 billion-grossing movie, now the clear frontrunner for the Academy Awards in March, also won for best director, supporting actor, cinematography, score, ensemble, editing, and visual effects.

Collecting his prize for directing, Nolan thanked the critics who "helped with convincing mainstream audiences that a film about quantum physics and apocalypse could be worth their time."

Robert Downey Jr. thanked his fellow "Oppenhomies'" as he followed up his Golden Globe win with another best supporting actor prize.

Despite the dominance of "Oppenheimer," the remaining acting categories rewarded other films at the gala -- one of a raft of major awards shows in the run-up to the Academy Awards, which take place this year on March 10.

Emma Stone won best actress for "Poor Things," a surreal dark comedy in which she plays a Victorian reanimated corpse with the brain of an infant, who gradually learns about the world but refuses to pander to its social mores and hierarchies.

"Playing Bella was one of the greatest joys of my life. I got to unlearn a lot of things in playing her -- unlearn parts of shame, and societal stuff that gets put on us," she said.

"I'm very grateful to the critics... but I'm just learning not to care what you think," Stone joked.

The award is her latest after she won at last weekend’s Globes -- as did Paul Giamatti, who famously celebrated his victory by taking a late-night trip with his trophy to California's popular fast-food chain In-N-Out Burger.

"I didn't think my week could get any better than going viral for eating a cheeseburger," joked Giamatti as he won the best actor trophy for 1970s-set prep school comedy "The Holdovers."

"It's a good story about people connecting in divisive times. So, thank you for helping get it out to audiences."

The win puts the veteran actor, known for hits like "Sideways," head-to-head with Cillian Murphy, who portrays J. Robert Oppenheimer in Nolan's biopic, for the Oscars race.

Fellow "Holdovers" star Da'Vine Joy Randolph consolidated her position as this year's best supporting actress with her latest win for her portrayal of the school's grieving cook.

The Critics Choice Awards -- chosen by almost 600 members of North America's largest critics organization -- laid out a red carpet and lavish gala at a former airport hangar in Los Angeles for Hollywood A-listers.

Although "Barbie" -- the other half of last summer's "Barbenheimer" box office phenomenon -- has so far failed to capture top prizes this awards season, it was showered with honors in a range of other categories.

The film won for best comedy, original screenplay, song, production design, costume, and hair and makeup.

French courtroom drama "Anatomy of a Fall" won for best foreign-language film, and "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" was named best animated movie.

"American Fiction" won best adapted screenplay, while Harrison Ford accepted a career achievement award at the gala, hosted by comedian Chelsea Handler.



Mariah Carey Wasn't Always Sure About Making a Christmas Album

FILE - Mariah Carey performs at the New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square, Dec. 31, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Brent N. Clarke/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - Mariah Carey performs at the New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square, Dec. 31, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Brent N. Clarke/Invision/AP, File)
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Mariah Carey Wasn't Always Sure About Making a Christmas Album

FILE - Mariah Carey performs at the New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square, Dec. 31, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Brent N. Clarke/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - Mariah Carey performs at the New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square, Dec. 31, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Brent N. Clarke/Invision/AP, File)

Mariah Carey relishes the fact that she has become culturally synonymous with Christmas — thanks in part to the longevity of her iconic song “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” and its ubiquity every year when the holidays roll around.
But the Grammy winner admits she initially wasn’t sure about doing a Christmas record when her label pitched it. “I was a little bit apprehensive,” she recalls, reflecting on her album, “Merry Christmas,” turning 30 this month.
Ahead of her appearance at Sunday’s American Music Awards and an upcoming Christmas tour that kicks off in November, Carey spoke with The Associated Press about the advice she would give to young artists navigating fame and the use of her song, “Always Be My Baby,” in Ari Aster’s 2023 horror comedy, “Beau Is Afraid.”
The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
AP: What has it been like to celebrate nearly 20 years of “The Emancipation of Mimi” and reflect on this album’s legacy? CAREY: I think “The Emancipation of Mimi” is one of my albums where there were different boundaries that got pushed aside and I was really happy about that because I needed to come back, apparently. And so, it was a comeback. But it’s one of my favorite albums. And celebrating it this year and this celebration of “Mimi” was really fun because I never get to do those songs. I never do them. And this this time I did.
AP: Because of that kind of underdog feeling, you felt some artistic liberty and empowerment that maybe you hadn’t before? CAREY: Yeah, I feel like people were ready to re-embrace me. And, you know, how did I feel about that? I mean, I feel like the album “Charmbracelet” was a very good album too, but not everybody knew that album. So, you know, when “We Belong Together” came out after “It’s Like That,” which didn’t do as well but still did pretty well. Whatever.
AP: “It’s Like That” is a great song. CAREY: It’s a good song. And I love performing it. You know, I go through stages with these albums. It’s interesting.
AP: Your first Christmas album, “Merry Christmas,” is turning 30 this month. That was obviously a formative record for you and your career. Do you remember anything about its inception? CAREY: So that was the record company saying, “You should do a Christmas album.” And I was like, “I don’t know that I should at this juncture.” Because, you know, I was very young and was just starting out and I felt like people do Christmas albums later in their lives. But now people have started to do them whenever, like right at the top of their career. So, I mean, what was I feeling like? I was a little bit apprehensive and then I was like, “I love this.” And I decorated the studio and just had the best time.
AP: Chappell Roan has made headlines for speaking out about how she is grappling with sudden fame. As someone who has been in the public eye for so long, do you have advice for young artists who are dealing with this? CAREY: Well, I have been through my share of dramas and it’s not fun because you grow up thinking, “I want to be famous.” I mean, really with me, it was always, “I want to be a singer. I want to write songs.” But “I want to be famous” was right there with it. I feel like it was probably because I didn’t feel like I was good enough on my own because of the things I went through growing up. And that’s not a good way to feel, you know?
But my advice would be try your hardest to go into this industry with a love of your talent or what’s really real for you. You know, if it’s like, “I want to be famous. I want to run around with those people, whoever they are, the famous people,” then it’s probably not the best idea.
AP: Have you seen Ari Aster’s “Beau Is Afraid” with Joaquin Phoenix? CAREY: Yes. I had to approve that. I thought it was interesting the way they used my song, “Always Be My Baby.” That was interesting. I mean, it didn’t really match with the movie, but, you know, I was just being edgy by saying, “You know, okay, fine.” It was very different. I mean, I wasn’t reluctant, but I thought, “This is something way different than I’ve done ever.”