The always eclectic celebration brought out nominees, creatives, and old friends
Words by ELIZABETH VARNELL
The evening before the Academy Awards culminated in a dinner party hosted by Chanel and Charles Finch — the final bash before the ceremony itself — held at the Beverly Hills Hotel’s Polo Lounge on Saturday, March 1. The French fashion house, known for its deep ties to film, and Finch, the film producer who has served as the evening’s stalwart cohost, assembled an array of guests from a variety of fields for its 16th annual gathering, which included nominees such as Demi Moore, Felicity Jones, Coralie Fargeat, Colman Domingo, Jeremy Strong, Ralph Fiennes, Sebastian Stan, Adrien Brody, and Fernanda Torres.
Joining them were actors, musicians, writers, producers, and directors, including Lupita Nyong’o, Gia Coppola, Ava DuVernay, Natasha Lyonne, Lily Rose Depp, Brady Corbet, Patty Jenkins, Julian Schnabel, Denis Villeneuve, and, donning a brooch designed by Chanel, Mick Jagger. Others assembled for the evening were Willem Dafoe, Michael Keaton, Jeff Goldblum, Al Pacino, Leonardo DiCaprio, Riley Keough, sisters Elle Fanning and Dakota Fanning, Olivia Wilde, Questlove, Danielle Deadwyler, Sofia Boutella, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Rita Ora, Patrick and Jillian Dempsey, Louis Jacobson, Diane Warren, Phoebe Tonkin, and Nathalie Emmanuel, many of whom wore designs by the French house. Also on hand, and seated together as a dinner of steak au poivre, chicken parmesan, and French fries made the rounds, were Kim Kardashian, Jeff Bezos, and Lauren Sánchez.
As she shaped her collections, Gabrielle Chanel drew inspiration from the artists and filmmakers surrounding her, and the evening paid tribute to the house’s continued work of assisting preservationists with film initiatives, advancing new works, and facilitating access to screenings. In addition to convening industry creatives to celebrate the year in film, Chanel announced its support for the Academy Museum’s free-to-the-public March matinees as part of an ongoing partnership with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Before the party’s beloved ice cream sundaes arrived, Jagger’s presence, along with his date, Melanie Hamrick, sparked speculation of a possible Oscars appearance that proved to be prescient. The next evening, the Rolling Stones frontman announced the nominees for Best Original Song at the 97th Academy Awards, noting that he had stepped in for Bob Dylan, the 83-year-old singer whose early career inspired the nominated film A Complete Unknown. Dylan declined to present the award, citing his age. “I thought, ‘OK, I’m younger, I’m younger than Bob, I’ll do it,’” said Jagger, 81, onstage at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. His pre-Oscars stop at The Polo Lounge turned out to be quite an Easter egg.
March 3, 2024
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