Demi Moore’s Oscar Nom Morning: “Screaming,” Ryan Murphy’s phone call and a bittersweet reality check
Demi Moore official is an Oscar nominee. The Hollywood icon broke into the industry by creating box office hits and starring in films that won her collaborator awards (Ghosts, Some Good People)—but as she said when she won the Golden Globe for best actress earlier this monthUp to now she has never won any award for acting. Now, for her gonzo, career-best, moving performance in the body horror satire matter, The actress is the frontrunner to win the year’s Oscar a field of best actress competition. Her film was also nominated in the Best Film, Director and Screenplay categories. (The latter two both went to make movies Coralie Fargeat.)
Moore’s performance as an actress who uses extreme measures to combat the realities of a sexist and ageist industry resonated with audiences and the industry alike. Or perhaps especially with them. As she discussed with me last fall above Little golden boys podcastsThis role requires her to look inward, confront vanity, dig deep as she takes a leap into the unknown. “I had a pretty good idea of the nature and style of the extreme [Fargeat’s] storytelling that goes beyond reality but is based on a sense of reality,” she told me back then. “However, you can’t prepare for blood and your head being smashed against the mirror.”
Less than an hour after her Oscar nomination was announced, I reached Moore by phone.
Vanity Fair: Congratulations, Demi!
Demi Moore: We did a little bit of yelling here with my dogs, my daughter on FaceTime, but now she’s here and I’ve got two of them gone. And yes, I am screaming. I think I’m still in shock and only now am I starting to feel calmer. I have Ryan Murphy calling me on the other end of the line. I’ll have to call him back right away.
Set the scene for me. Did you know you were going to watch? Are you feeling stressed this morning?
I definitely felt nervous last night, but then I got pretty distracted and really believed in what was real—because then a new fire broke out not far from my house. It just dropped me into another reality. But I set an alarm to wake up so I’m not sleepy. [Laughs]
I’m curious, since you mentioned it, how you feel about the Academy moving forward in light of everything going on in LA. I’m glad to hear you’re safe, but this is a strange time for all this exciting news, isn’t it?
Obviously this is a very sensitive time. I think there’s still the importance of continuing. You see how important this is to our community and what this represents for our community. It’s the culmination of all the hard work and I’m amazed at how our community has pulled together during this time. It’s amazing to see all the different organizations working to do everything we’re doing to honor and support what happened—because it’s beyond devastating. And a little joy is fine. We need that.
I wanted to ask you a little bit about the movie overall and the wonderful feeling that Coralie gave you. How did you feel when you saw the nominations for best film and director?
To me, that’s everything the movie represents. There are so many aspects of a triumph that have taken place in the recognition of this genre, of this film. It was a sign of change and a door that opened up other possibilities for many other filmmakers and artists. Recognition truly feels like it’s so much bigger than me.
“Mark of Change” might apply to you, too—especially your first nomination for this film. It’s quite sweet, isn’t it?
It’s so sweet! It’s so sweet. I feel truly humbled, and knowing that this vote comes from my colleagues is even sweeter. The first round of nominations were from my fellow actors, and it was truly incredibly humbling.
How has the past month been for you since the Globes? Have you been able to inventory them all? Things changed in our city dramatically and quickly after that.
Yes and no – because I have an actual day for that before everything changes, and I have to evacuate. I don’t have the strength. It’s been a whirlwind because we’re really experiencing an incredible contrast right now. Reaching such heights and then being reminded of what’s really important.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
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