The 2023 Independent Spirit Awards was held, just inches from the sand in Santa Monica, CA and it was absolutely Everything…Everywhere All At Once.
The event was filled with cast and crew from all of the critically-acclaimed films and television shows, like Tar, The Bear, Abbott Elementary, and of course, EEAAO. We saw Cate Blanchett hide under a table to avoid being a part of Hasan Minhaj’s bit, Stephanie Hsu run barefoot across the stage, and an endearing moment shared between Michelle Yeoh and Cate Blanchett, who have been pinned against each other all award season.
Everything Everywhere All At Once stole the show at the Spirit Awards, taking home seven awards of their eight nominations, their only nomination they missed out on was due to having both Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis nominated for Best Supporting Performance, in which Quan won. Seven awards is a new record for a single film at the Spirit Awards, prior to this year three films, “Moonlight,” “Sideways” and “Pulp Fiction,” had won six awards.
After winning Best Breakthrough Performance, Stephanie Hsu made it clear as to why so many people show up to the award show with smiles on their faces. She pointed out how comfortable the Independent Spirit Awards are and that she wouldn’t be able to run across the stage without shoes on at the Oscars.
This was also the first year the event featured all gender-neutral awards, which Jamie Lee Curtis pointed out in the Press Room, when she yelled, “Michelle, you beat a bunch of men,” to her co-star Michelle Yeoh, after Yeoh won Best Lead Performance.
On the television side, The Bear, stood out with winning Best New Scripted Series and Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series, with Ayo Edebiri taking home the award. We had the chance to speak with Edebiri prior to her win and she broke down her transition from being a teacher’s assistant to an award-winning actress.
A historic year all around for the 2023 Independent Spirit Awards.
