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The most coveted award of the Oscars has descended into chaos, with La La Land mistakenly named the Best Picture winner, instead of Moonlight.
The celebrated musical had been widely tipped to win, and its cast and crew were on the stage accepting the gong when they were interrupted with the words no Oscar winner wants to hear: "I'm sorry, there's a mistake."
Shockwaves rippled through the Dolby Theatre as it became apparent there had been an unprecedented blunder.
Veteran actor-direct Warren Beatty tried to explain that he and Faye Dunaway announced the wrong winner because the envelope they had been handed bore incorrectly the name of best actress winner, Emma Stone, and the movie title La La Land.
"I opened the envelope and it said 'Emma Stone, La La Land'. I wasn't trying to be funny," said Beatty, who had looked confused as he fumbled with the card.
Host Jimmy Kimmel came forward to inform the cast that Moonlight had indeed claimed a historic upset, showing the envelope as proof.
La La Land producer Jordan Horwitz repeatedly said "this is not a joke" before graciously passing his statue to the Moonlight producers, saying they deserved the win.
Kimmel tried to focus the audience's attention firmly on the silver lining.
"I don't know what happened. I blame myself for this. Let's remember it's just an awards show," he said.
"I mean, we hate to see people disappointed. But the good news is we got to see some extra speeches.
I knew I would screw this show up. I really did."
Until the final blunder, the glittering ceremony had seesawed between jabs at US President Donald Trump and passionate arguments for inclusivity.
- Best film: Moonlight
- Best actor: Casey Affleck
- Best actress: Emma Stone
- Best director: Damien Chazell
- Best supporting actor: Mahershala Ali
- Best supporting actress: Viola Davis
- See the full list of winners here
Though many expected the awards to be one long parade for La La Land, it didn't play out that way. Awards were spread around to Moonlight, Manchester by the Sea and Hacksaw Ridge, among others.
La La Land's director, 32-year-old Damien Chazell, became to youngest director to win an Oscar.
His leading lady Emma Stone was named best actress, besting Isabelle Huppert (Elle), Ruth Negga (Loving), Natalie Portman (Jackie), and Meryl Streep (Florence Foster Jenkins).
"I still have a lot of growing and learning and work to do. And this guy is a really beautiful symbol to continue on that journey," she said, clutching her Oscar.
She laughed as she warned the film's cast, and her friends: "I'm going to hug the hell out of you when the feeling re-enters my body."
Despite the resurgence of sexual harassment allegations, Casey Affleck claimed the best actor award for Manchester by the Sea.
"I'm proud to be in your company. You guys are very brave and I admire what you do," the shocked actor told his fellow nominees, including Ryan Gosling (La La Land) and Denzel Washington (Fences).
"I wish I had something bigger and more meaningful to say, but I'm ... just dumbfounded to be included. It means a lot to me."
As expected, Viola Davis and Mahershala Ali won Oscars for their supporting roles. They were among a record seven actors of colour nominated this year, in stark contrast to 2016 when there were none.
Davis claimed best supporting actress for Fences, the story of an African-American father struggling with race relations in the United States while trying to raise his family in the 1950s.
She spoke of her pride at being part of an industry that exhumes and exalts the extraordinary stories of ordinary people from the past.
"The people who dreamed big and never saw those dreams to fruition. People that fell in love and lost," she said in an emotional speech.
"I became an artist and thank God I did because we are the only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life."
There were few surprises as Ali won best supporting actor for Moonlight, in which he plays a Miami drug dealer who mentors a young boy who is being teased and bullied.
At the Screen Actors Guild Awards he spoke of his experience being Muslim, but he kept his Oscars focus on thanking his teachers, along with the film's cast and his wife, who gave birth to a daughter four days ago.
Ali thanked his wife for "being such a soldier through the process".
More to come.
Topics: academy-awards-oscars, event, arts-and-entertainment, film-movies, human-interest, awards-and-prizes, actor, united-states
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