# 89th Academy Awards
The 89th Academy Awards, presented by the [Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences](https://www.edgepedia.org/academy-of-motion-picture-arts-and-sciences) on Sunday, February 26, 2017, honored films released in 2016 and is best remembered for the ceremony's final award, Best Picture, being announced for the wrong film.[1](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017) The ceremony took place at the [Dolby Theatre](https://www.edgepedia.org/dolby-theatre) at the Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, was hosted by [Jimmy Kimmel](https://www.edgepedia.org/jimmy-kimmel) for the first time, and was televised live on the ABC Television Network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT and in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.[2](https://www.oscars.org/news/jimmy-kimmel-talks-oscars-host-gig-jimmy-kimmel-live)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date and venue | Sunday, February 26, 2017, Dolby Theatre at the Hollywood & Highland Center, honoring movies released in 2016[1](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017) |
| Host | Jimmy Kimmel, hosting the Oscars for the first time[2](https://www.oscars.org/news/jimmy-kimmel-talks-oscars-host-gig-jimmy-kimmel-live) |
| Producers | Michael De Luca and Jennifer Todd, their first involvement with the Academy Awards[3](https://www.oscars.org/news/michael-de-luca-and-jennifer-todd-produce-89th-oscars) |
| Best Picture | *Moonlight* (Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski, Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, producers), after *La La Land* was mistakenly announced[1](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017) |
| Nomination leader | *La La Land* with 14 nominations, tying the record held by *All About Eve* (1950) and *Titanic* (1997)[4](https://oscars.org/sites/oscars/files/89th-sidebars.pdf) |
| *La La Land* haul | Six awards from 14 nominations[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-oscars-2017-academy-awards-news-20170226-story.html) |
| Broadcast | Live on ABC at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT; televised in more than 225 countries and territories[2](https://www.oscars.org/news/jimmy-kimmel-talks-oscars-host-gig-jimmy-kimmel-live) |
| Notable records | First Muslim actor to win an Oscar (Mahershala Ali); first black performer with the acting triple crown (Viola Davis); youngest Best Director winner (Damien Chazelle, 32)[6](https://time.com/4682772/oscars-2017-records-broken/) |
## Production and broadcast
Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs announced on November 4, 2016 that [Michael De Luca](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-de-luca) and [Jennifer Todd](https://www.edgepedia.org/jennifer-todd) would produce the telecast, their first involvement with the Academy Awards. De Luca, a three-time Oscar nominee as a producer of *Captain Phillips*, *Moneyball*, and *The Social Network*, had been president of production at [Sony Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/sony-pictures), DreamWorks, and New Line Cinema; Todd was president of Pearl Street Films, the company founded by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon.[3](https://www.oscars.org/news/michael-de-luca-and-jennifer-todd-produce-89th-oscars)
**The host.** Kimmel, host and executive producer of ABC's *Jimmy Kimmel Live!*, was announced as host in December 2016. Academy CEO Dawn Hudson described him as "razor sharp, funny, and unpredictable, and has proven himself a master of live event television."[2](https://www.oscars.org/news/jimmy-kimmel-talks-oscars-host-gig-jimmy-kimmel-live) It was the first time the talk show host had presented the Oscars, although he had previously hosted the 2012 and 2016 [Emmy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/emmy-awards).[7](https://time.com/4635815/2017-oscars-nominations-list/)
The nominations were announced on January 24, 2017 by Boone Isaacs, joined by Oscar-winning and nominated Academy members including [Jennifer Hudson](https://www.edgepedia.org/jennifer-hudson), Brie Larson, Jason Reitman, and [Ken Watanabe](https://www.edgepedia.org/ken-watanabe).[8](https://www.oscars.org/sites/oscars/files/89th_noms_announcement.pdf)
## Winners and nominees
*La La Land*, Damien Chazelle's musical, led the field with 14 nominations, the most nominated musical of all time and a tie with *All About Eve* (1950) and *Titanic* (1997) for the most nominations of any film.[4](https://oscars.org/sites/oscars/files/89th-sidebars.pdf) • [7](https://time.com/4635815/2017-oscars-nominations-list/) It won six awards: Best Director (Chazelle), Best Actress ([Emma Stone](https://www.edgepedia.org/emma-stone)), Cinematography (Linus Sandgren), Original Score ([Justin Hurwitz](https://www.edgepedia.org/justin-hurwitz)), Original Song ("City of Stars"), and Production Design.[1](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017)
The acting awards went to [Casey Affleck](https://www.edgepedia.org/casey-affleck) for *Manchester by the Sea* and Emma Stone for *La La Land* in the lead categories, and to [Mahershala Ali](https://www.edgepedia.org/mahershala-ali) for *Moonlight* and [Viola Davis](https://www.edgepedia.org/viola-davis) for *Fences* in the supporting categories.[1](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017) Other winners included *Zootopia* for Animated Feature, *The Salesman* (Iran) for Foreign Language Film, *O.J.: Made in America* for Documentary Feature, *Hacksaw Ridge* for Film Editing and Sound Mixing, *Arrival* for Sound Editing, *The Jungle Book* for Visual Effects, *Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them* for Costume Design, *Manchester by the Sea* for Original Screenplay, and *Moonlight* for Adapted Screenplay.[1](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017)
The Best Picture field also included *Arrival*, *Fences*, *Hacksaw Ridge*, *Hell or High Water*, *Hidden Figures*, *Lion*, and *Manchester by the Sea* alongside *La La Land* and *Moonlight*.[1](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017)
## The Best Picture announcement error
The ceremony ended with what the Los Angeles Times called one of the most epic mix-ups in the history of the Academy Awards. Presenters [Warren Beatty](https://www.edgepedia.org/warren-beatty) and Faye Dunaway first announced *La La Land* as the winner of Best Picture; a *La La Land* producer then announced from the stage that *Moonlight* had in fact won.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-oscars-2017-academy-awards-news-20170226-story.html) *La La Land* producer Jordan Horowitz handed the award to *Moonlight* writer-director Barry Jenkins.[9](https://time.com/4683539/oscars-best-picture-moonlight-la-la-land-beatty/)
**Cause of the error.** Beatty, explaining onstage with Kimmel beside him, had opened the envelope intended for Best Picture and found it held Best Actress winner Emma Stone's name, which led Dunaway to read out *La La Land*.[10](https://time.com/4683820/la-la-land-moonlight-oscars-1934/) The Los Angeles Times reported the error could have resulted from a faulty envelope design as much as bad backstage distribution.[11](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-oscars-2017-89th-academy-awards-updates-20170226-htmlstory.html) PriceWaterhouseCooper, the accounting firm that counts the votes and provides the winners' envelopes, apologized to Beatty, Dunaway, *La La Land*, and *Moonlight*.[12](https://time.com/4683613/pwc-apologies-moonlight-oscar-mixup/) Kimmel later devoted his *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* monologue to explaining what had happened on stage.[11](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-oscars-2017-89th-academy-awards-updates-20170226-htmlstory.html)
It was not the first such error at a top Oscar category: at the sixth ceremony in 1934, host Will Rogers announced the Best Director winner with "Come up and get it, Frank!", and Frank Capra, nominated for *Lady for a Day*, rose before host Will Rogers clarified he meant Frank Lloyd of *Cavalcade*.[10](https://time.com/4683820/la-la-land-moonlight-oscars-1934/)
## Records and significance
Several milestones were set on the night.[6](https://time.com/4682772/oscars-2017-records-broken/)
- Mahershala Ali became the first Muslim actor to win an Oscar, for Best Supporting Actor in *Moonlight*.
- Viola Davis's win for *Fences* made her the first black performer, male or female, to win a competitive Oscar, Emmy, and Tony, the acting triple crown.
- Damien Chazelle, at 32, became the youngest person to win Best Director, several months younger than Norman Taurog had been when he won for *Skippy* (1931).
- *O.J.: Made in America*, at 467 minutes, became the longest film to win an Academy Award, beating *War and Peace* by more than half an hour.
- Sound mixer Kevin O'Connell won for *Hacksaw Ridge* after 20 nominations without a win, ending the longest losing streak in Oscar history.
- Dede Gardner, a *Moonlight* producer, became the first woman to win Best Picture twice as a producer, after *12 Years a Slave*.
*Moonlight*, which follows a young, gay, black man growing up in 1980s Miami, became the first Oscar winner with an all-black cast, and its win, combined with Davis's and Ali's, followed the #OscarsSoWhite controversy of the previous year's ceremony.[13](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/moonlight-la-la-land-standouts-compete-oscars) • [14](https://media-cdn.rollcall.com/epstein-files/House_Oversight_019849-019854.pdf) *La La Land*, the favorite going into the night, took six awards from its record-tying 14 nominations.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-oscars-2017-academy-awards-news-20170226-story.html)
## References
1. [The 89th Academy Awards | 2017, Oscars.org](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2017)
2. [Jimmy Kimmel Talks Oscars Host Gig on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!", Oscars.org](https://www.oscars.org/news/jimmy-kimmel-talks-oscars-host-gig-jimmy-kimmel-live)
3. [Michael De Luca and Jennifer Todd to Produce the 89th Oscars, Oscars.org](https://www.oscars.org/news/michael-de-luca-and-jennifer-todd-produce-89th-oscars)
4. [89th Annual Academy Awards Sidebars, Oscars.org](https://oscars.org/sites/oscars/files/89th-sidebars.pdf)
5. ['Moonlight' wins in unprecedented upset during a night of many firsts, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-oscars-2017-academy-awards-news-20170226-story.html)
6. [Every Record Broken at the 2017 Oscars, TIME](https://time.com/4682772/oscars-2017-records-broken/)
7. [Here Are the 2017 Oscar Nominations, TIME](https://time.com/4635815/2017-oscars-nominations-list/)
8. [89th Oscars Nominations Announcement, Oscars.org](https://www.oscars.org/sites/oscars/files/89th_noms_announcement.pdf)
9. [Oscars 2017: What Went Down After Best Picture Mix Up, TIME](https://time.com/4683539/oscars-best-picture-moonlight-la-la-land-beatty/)
10. [What It Feels Like to Suddenly Realize You Didn't Actually Win That Oscar, TIME](https://time.com/4683820/la-la-land-moonlight-oscars-1934/)
11. [Oscars 2017 updates: What really happened backstage at the Academy Awards, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-oscars-2017-89th-academy-awards-updates-20170226-htmlstory.html)
12. [Accounting Firm PwC Apologizes for Oscars' Best Picture Mix-Up, TIME](https://time.com/4683613/pwc-apologies-moonlight-oscar-mixup/)
13. [At the Oscars, wins for 'Moonlight' and calls for art without borders, PBS News](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/moonlight-la-la-land-standouts-compete-oscars)
14. [Serious Moonlight, Roll Call](https://media-cdn.rollcall.com/epstein-files/House_Oversight_019849-019854.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Awards and screen reference › Academy Awards ceremonies and categories*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license