Carolyn Giardina/ The Hollywood Reporter
The wizards behind Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049 on Sunday night won the Oscar in visual effects, topping a field that included Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Kong: Skull Island, Star Wars: The Last Jediand War for the Planet of the Apes.
It was the second Academy Award for Blade Runner 2049‘s VFX supervisor John Nelson, who previously won for Gladiator in 2001. It was the first Oscar for Gerd Nefzer, Paul Lambert and Richard R. Hoover.
Referring to the legacy of the original 1982 Blade Runner, Nelson admitted he’s been hearing “it better be good” for two years, regarding 2049. Saluting the entire crew, he said the film was “a labor of love, 6-7 days a week for a year and three quarters.”
War for the Planet of the Apes, as well as the previous two Apes films, had all won the top prize at the Visual Effects Society Awards, but didn’t go on to an Oscar win.
Read the winners’ full acceptance speeches. below.
John Nelson: Yes, yes, yes, yes! Thank you so much, Academy members, Academy, for this great honor. Thank you Denis Villeneuve, whose guts are seen in every frame of this film, especially in the visual effects. Thank you Andrew Kosove, Broderick Johnson, Roger Deakins, Joe Walker, Dennis Gassner, Bill Carraro, Karen Murphy, Richard Clegg, Habib Zargarpour, up there in the hereafters, Deak Ferrand, Victor Mueller, Cynthia Yorkin, D-Neg, Framestore, MPC, Buff, Rodeo, UPP, Atomic Fiction, Warner Bros., Sony, Shonyang, Deb and Miles. And —
Paul Lambert: This is so surreal. I share this with my incredible team led by Michelle, my family, especially for putting up with the crazy hours of the last 22 years. Hopefully my boys are watching right now. And to all the people who have had such a big influence on me and my career, thank you.
Richard R. Hoover: To all my friends in Montreal, merci beaucoup, this is for you.
Gerd Nefzer: Danke schön, Germany, thank you, great!