The Revenant leads charge at ‘whitewashed’ Oscars

Hollywood is set to hit the Oscars red carpet on Sunday for its annual show of glitz and pageantry honouring cinema’s finest, with a broiling row over diversity an awkward guest at the party. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s The Revenant is leading the charge for golden statuettes, with 12 nominations. But controversy over the “whitewashing” of nominations, there are no ethnic minority nominees in the main acting categories for the second year running, threatens to steal the limelight. Audience will be hanging on every word uttered by black comedian and actor Chris Rock, who is hosting despite calls for him to join a boycott. Insiders say the 51-year-old has completely rewritten his opening monologue in the wake of the scandal. Hopes for a more routine, less unpredictable red carpet opening looked promising, with forecasters promising glorious blue skies over Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre and a peak of 24 ° Celsius for the 88th Oscars ceremony, which gets going at 5:30 pm (0130 GMT Monday).

Jaws will drop if best actor doesn’t go to Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant, 22 years after his first of five acting nominations. A widely-anticipated best supporting actor Oscar for Sylvester Stallone, who reprises his turn as underdog boxer Rocky Balboa in Creed, would be one of the stories of the night. First-time nominee Brie Larson looks to be a lock for best actress, having dominated the awards season with her performance in Room. Best supporting actress favourite Alicia Vikander faces tough competition from star Rooney Mara, and from Kate Winslet.