Movies for Grownups® Awards 2023 with AARP The Magazine

♪♪ -Next on "Great Performances"... -♪ Hello, grownups ♪ -...join us for the annual... ...honoring movies that matter.

-It's an honor to be here to celebrate all the great performances.

-That speak to the 50+ audience about family, love, assorted life issues, and more.

-I see a story.

-Join this year's Career Achievement Award Winner, Jamie Lee Curtis... -For the most part, I really like being a grownup.

-...and your host, Alan Cumming... -Is it appropriate for me to have an existential crisis on TV?

I know it's PBS, but, still.

[ Laughter ] -...for this year's star-studded Movies for Grownups Awards with AARP The Magazine.

-Thank you very much.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ Major funding for "Great Performances" is provided by... ...and by contributions to your PBS station from viewers like you.

Thank you.

♪♪ -Look around you.

This whole place is for people who want to escape.

-♪ Light ♪ ♪ Is all over us ♪ ♪ Like it always was ♪ -I am never giving up on us.

-♪ Like it always was ♪ -Who would want me to be a part of their life?

-♪ Shaped ♪ -Their response is going to be quick and it's going to be brutal.

-♪ By the clearest blue ♪ -We're just the messengers here.

-♪ But it's not enough ♪ -They do not know an evil is coming.

-They know you will protect them.

-♪ It's not enough, not enough ♪ [ Ring ] -Just want to make sure I do what's right for the kid.

He's got a daughter to support.

-You got a daughter to support!

-♪ Holding on tightly ♪ ♪ To the sides ♪ ♪ Never quite learning why ♪ -I was silenced.

I want my voice back.

-"The wicked flee when no man pursueth."

-You think we're wicked?

-♪ Whenever I feel it coming on ♪ ♪ You can be well aware ♪ ♪ If ever I try to push away ♪ ♪ You can just keep me, tell me ♪ ♪ Tell me, tell me you'll meet me ♪ ♪ Tell me, tell me you'll keep me ♪ ♪ Tell me, tell me you'll meet me ♪ ♪ Will you meet me more than halfway up?

♪ -Don't blame the player, blame the game, bruh.

-What the hell?

Don't do that.

-We stick together.

And we love each other.

-Yeah!

Being a teacher is being asked to show up every day and try our best.

-I like school.

All my friends are there.

-My dear boy, you'll be able to make friends everywhere.

-We survived because we had each other.

-Have each other.

♪♪ [ Cheers and applause ] [ "Hello, Dolly!"

plays ] -And now, please welcome your host, two-time Tony Award winner Alan Cumming.

[ Cheers, whistling, and applause ] -♪ Hello, grownups ♪ ♪ Well, hello, grownups ♪ ♪ It's so nice to be back here where we first met ♪ ♪ We're raising flasks, grownups ♪ ♪ Without masks, grownups ♪ ♪ Now, we're grander in all candor ♪ ♪ It's our ♪ ♪ Best one yet ♪ ♪ You hear the band swinging ♪ ♪ And your host -- that's me ♪ ♪ Is singing ♪ ♪ This old familiar tune ♪ ♪ That's in disguise ♪ ♪ So ♪ ♪ Rest at ease, grownups ♪ ♪ Pass the envelope, please, grownups ♪ ♪ Winners, prepare to come ♪ ♪ And get your prize ♪ Good evening.

♪ Hello, grownups ♪ ♪ Hello ♪ ♪ Grownups ♪ ♪ We're all here to celebrate ♪ ♪ TV and pics ♪ ♪ You're lookin' sharp ♪ ♪ Grownups ♪ ♪ It's for AARP ♪ ♪ Grownups ♪ ♪ This homecomin' has us hummin' ♪ ♪ 'Cause we're ♪ ♪ Lovin' flicks ♪ ♪ I see The Dude chillin' ♪ ♪ As the room is spillin' ♪ ♪ With big beloved stars ♪ ♪ From now and then ♪ So sorry.

♪ So ♪ ♪ Golly geez, grownups ♪ ♪ I'm prayin' on my knees, grownups ♪ ♪ Movies are back and here to stay ♪ ♪ Streaming will never go away ♪ ♪ Grownups are here ♪ ♪ To stay again ♪ [ Cheers and applause ] Thank you very much.

[ Applause ] Hello.

Hello, grownups, and welcome to the 21st Movies for Grownups Awards, celebrating the best in television and film.

It is so nice to be back where we belong -- in a fancy ballroom in Beverly Hills.

[ Laughter ] We celebrities have standards.

And we're happy to have all of you at home watching with us, too.

It's been too long.

Of course, the Movies for Grownups didn't go away during the last couple of years of isolation, but this is the first chance we've had to be back together in the same room, separated only by our own senses of self-importance.

[ Laughter ] I don't know about you, but I, for one, think it's really wonderful that movie theaters are back in business.

[ Cheers and applause ] [ Whistling ] [ Applause ] Movie fans around the country and, indeed, around the globe, have been getting back to enjoying films on big, giant screens with big, giant buckets of popcorn, with big, giant price tags.

[ Laughter ] I'm sure you'll all agree with me that we have all really missed the glorious, communal experience of enjoying a movie together in the same moment, sharing reactions with one another, whether it's laughing uproariously, cheering for the heroes, booing the villains, or sobbing into our big, giant buckets of popcorn.

[ Laughter ] Sharing an emotional experience as one tells us something about ourselves.

-Whoo!

[ Applause ] -And we have many of you in this room to thank for those experiences.

As the title of these awards suggests, we honor movies for grownups, which means movies made by grownups that speak to adult sensibilities.

Now, please note that these are not adult films.

[ Laughter ] Oh, no.

That is a ceremony that takes place in a trashy hotel in Vegas.

[ Laughter ] And, um, not only is it black tie optional, it's also clothing optional.

[ Laughter ] But, you know.

I don't know about you, but I'd give it a go next year.

[ Laughter ] Wouldn't you, Jamie?

[ Laughter ] She's in.

No, these are the films that feature grownup casts telling grownup stories.

We're so happy that, since these awards began, we've seen a dramatic increase in both the amount and quality of films for adults.

The same is true of the expanded offerings on television, which is why we're also proud to honor the best in TV programs and performances.

All of the nominees this year are outstanding and we are in for a great night.

[ Cheers, whistling, and applause ] [ Applause ] [ Laughs ] Throughout the show, we'll be presenting some great moments from the films that brought us out of our houses and back into movie theaters.

Our first nominee, for Best Movie for Grownups, is set more than 30 years after the hit blockbuster "Top Gun."

[ Laughter ] Tom Cruise returns as Pete Mitchell, who confronts the ghosts of his past as he leads naval pilots on a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those chosen to fly it.

Here's "Top Gun: Maverick."

[ Projector rattling ] [ Cheers and applause ] [ Suspenseful music plays ] -You think up there, you're dead, believe me.

-Whoa!

-My dad believed in you.

I'm not going to make the same mistake.

-We're going into combat on a level no living pilot's ever seen.

Not even him.

-Those are your pilots.

Anything happens to them... -Bogey in the air!

Bogey in the air!

-Retreat!

-You'll never forgive yourself.

-No turning back now.

-Come on!

-Jeez!

-Having any fun yet?

♪♪ [Indistinct] [ Cheers and applause ] [ Applause ] -And now, here are the nominees for Best Director.

♪♪ -Todd Field, "Tár."

-You wanna dance the mask, you must service the composer.

You gotta sublimate yourself, your ego, and yes, your identity.

You must in fact stand in front of the public and God and obliterate yourself.

[ Applause ] -Gina Prince-Blythewood, "The Woman King."

-Our ancestors weep for the pain we have felt in the dark hulls of ships bound for distant shores.

♪♪ When the wind blows, our ancestors push us to march into battle against those who enslave us.

-James Cameron, "Avatar: The Way of Water."

♪♪ -My father gave me this bow as he lay dying.

And he said protect the people.

[ Applause ] -Steven Spielberg, "The Fabelmans."

-I have respect for everything he works hard doing.

-He's afraid.

-He's scared if he does, those guys will beat him up again.

-What?

No, I'm not.

I never said that I was scared of them.

-You got beat up?

-You always dismiss what he does, what anyone does that's playful or imaginative as a pastime or a hobby.

-You already won, Mitz.

-Baz Luhrmann, "Elvis."

[ Cheers and applause ] -Oh, you're beautiful, thank you, ohhh, boy.

-He'll mention the VIPs that are here.

-We got some high rollers in here tonight.

-Get ready for the spotlight.

-Mr. International Hotel himself.

[ Applause ] -This year's winner is Baz Luhrmann for "Elvis."

Here to present the award to his director is Elvis "hims-Elvis," the brilliant actor and Academy Award nominee Austin Butler.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -It is my sincere honor to be here today to present AARP's Movies for Grownups Best Director Award to a true visionary and my very good friend, Baz Luhrmann.

[ Cheers and applause ] Now, while technically Baz might be eligible for membership with this organization, I -- [ Laughter ] I can tell you from my personal experience working with him that he is one of the most playful, curious, and energetic people I have ever met.

Baz is truly young at heart, and each day on the set of "Elvis," he was -- he was like a kid in a candy shop, just approaching every scene with genuine enthusiasm, optimism, and precision.

He ran physical and mental circles around me every day.

[ Laughter ] With "Elvis," Baz set out to make an original movie about a 20th-century icon for 21st-century moviegoers that would resonate with different audiences in different ways, introducing Elvis to younger global audiences, and also speaking to fans around the world who already love him, and in many cases, remember seeing him live.

Now, Baz combined a mix of classic and contemporary music and artists.

It still stayed true to who Elvis was and what makes him timeless.

AARP encourages its members to redefine what we think of as middle-aged or retired to embrace their youthful, active, energetic selves.

And I can't think of a better ambassador or example of that both in life and on the big screen than Mr. Baz Luhrmann.

[ Cheers and applause ] Let's look at a few moments of Baz Luhrmann's incredible work in "Elvis."

-So what is it gonna be, how you gonna blow they wigs off?

-Well, the network wants me to do a ballad, but I'm thinking about cuttin' it up with "Hound Dog."

-Whoo, Elvis Presley, "Hound Dog."

And Uncle Miltie.

Strange things are happening every day.

-♪ You ain't nothing but a hound dog, hound dog ♪ ♪ Cryin' all the time ♪ ♪ You ain't nothing but a hound dog ♪ ♪ Cryin' all the time ♪ ♪ Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit ♪ ♪ And you ain't no friend of mine ♪ ♪ Well, they said you was high-classed ♪ ♪ Well, that was just a lie ♪ ♪ Yeah, they said you were high-classed ♪ ♪ Well, that was just a lie ♪ -See, folks, tomorrow, all of America will be talking about Elvis Presley.

My wiggling boy.

[ Laughter ] -Even as a little one, he made me laugh so.

He's so funny.

-♪ Never caught a rabbit ♪ ♪ You ain't no friend of mine ♪ ♪♪ [ Cheers and applause ] -Baz, get on up here.

I love you, man.

Come on.

♪♪ ♪♪ -Thanks, Austin.

I had to run up just to show you that I can in fact be youthful.

[ Laughter ] Thanks, thanks so much, AARP.

Uh, you know, we had to get out into the theater to make this show work.

We had to get older and younger audiences.

And I cannot tell you how many executive people told me, "Older audiences will not come out into the theater."

But, you know, eh, two weeks ago, Elvis, uh, had a birthday.

So he would've been 88.

I'm sure he would've been on the cover of AARP glorious, glossy magazine at least five times.

I mean, really.

What I do love about this organization is that it -- in a world that really is focused on youths and the new, rightly so, rightly so, it -- it also celebrates and acknowledges, you know, experience and age.

If I've learned anything in my journey, awards like this, they're not a me thing, you know, they're like a we thing.

[ Cheers and applause ] We have the most incredible, deeply collaborative ensemble cast led by Captain Tom Hanks, as we call him, the admiral.

And then we have, um, this miracle here, Mr. Austin Butler.

[ Cheers and applause ] I mean, uh, the miracle of Austin Butler.

I mean, Aust-- you humanized Elvis.

You brought his interior life, his spirituality, his sensitivity, and you revealed that in a way in which only a wife or a daughter would understand.

And it's time also to thank the Presley family.

We should express just how much they've been through and how they threw their arms and their embrace around our movie so deeply.

So we really acknowledge and thank them for that.

And, they knew Elvis, you know, as a father and as a person.

And the world knew him as an icon and like a rebel and a legend.

And so I want to dedicate this award to Mr. Elvis Presley.

Thank you very much.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ -Next, the award for Best Supporting Actress.

Here are the nominees.

-Jamie Lee Curtis, "Everything Everywhere All at Once."

-He told me about your situation.

I remembered when my husband served me papers.

I drove his Kia Forte through my neighbor's kitchen.

-Huh.

-You know what I say?

It's cold, unlovable bitches like us make the world go round.

[ Applause ] -Patricia Clarkson, "She Said."

-We're talking all workplaces where sexual harassment might happen.

Also, let's look for the enablers.

Fox kept O'Reilly on for quite some time after our story broke.

-And for decades before that.

-The network only ousted him when the advertisers jumped ship.

-Let's interrogate the whole system.

Why is sexual harassment so pervasive, and so hard to address?

-Gabrielle Union, "The Inspection."

♪♪ -This little piece of paper.

It's all I have left of the dream I held for you.

If you don't come back the son I gave birth to, consider this certificate void.

[ Applause ] -Angela Bassett, "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever."

-I found your brother in the breeze, pushing me gently but firm, like his hand on my shoulder.

Took some time, but he was there.

[ Applause ] -Judith Ivey, "Women Talking."

-Isn't it interesting that the one and only request we women would have of the men would be for them to leave?

[ Laughter ] [ Cheers and applause ] -This year's winner for Best Supporting Actress is Judith Ivey for her performance in "Women Talking."

To present her award, please welcome Emmy-, Tony- and Oscar-nominated actress and Movies for Grownups Career Achievement winner, Annette Benning.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Judith Ivey's performance in "Women Talking" is a quietly devastating triumph.

In fact, the film itself is astonishing, written and directed by Sarah Polley and featuring incredible roles for women across generations, especially mature characters who are often overlooked.

Based on the novel by Miriam Toews, which was inspired by a real-life incident, the film follows a group of women in a religious colony who are isolated from the modern world.

As Agata, Judy embodies the sage of the community who gives the women a sense of democracy and equality.

She inspires them to stand up to the abuse of power.

Through her decades of experience, as a two-time Tony Award winner and Emmy-nominated actress, Judy taps into a character who is direct and in control of her emotions.

Her portrait of this rational woman who has patience and empathy towards others is powerful in its grace, simplicity, and humor.

Here's a brief look at the compelling performance of Judith Ivey.

♪♪ -We could ask the men to leave.

-Ask the men to leave?

-None of us have ever asked the men for anything.

Not a single thing, not even for the salt to be passed, not even for a penny, or a moment alone, or to take the washing in, or to open the curtain, or to go easy on the small yearlings, or to put your hand on the small of my back while I try again for the twelfth or thirteenth time to push a baby out of my body.

[ Applause ] -It's an honor to present the Movies for Grownups Award for Best Supporting Actress to my friend Judy Ivey.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ My pleasure.

-Thank you for this beautiful, beautiful award.

I want to immediately say hello to my father, Nathan Ivey, who is 95 years young, and to -- [ Cheers and applause ] And to my mother, Dorothy Ivey, who just celebrated her 101st birthday.

[ Cheers and applause ] We all are members of AARP.

[ Cheers and applause ] And we often in our weekly call talk about what we read in the magazine that month.

And, um, it was three weeks ago, I realized, that we shared that one of our most informative articles was the best way to get up after you fall.

[ Laughter ] I never thought I would be sharing that conversation with my parents, but thank you, AARP.

[ Laughter and applause ] The great congressman John Lewis said, freedom is not a state.

It is an act.

And the women in "Women Talking" acted to find freedom and to have choice in their life.

So I thank you, AARP, for championing this very important film, "Women Talking," for championing acting.

And I have to say this, thank you for championing grown-ups that... [ Cheers and applause ] We all need support.

Quoting my Texan grandmother, [Southern accent] bless your hearts.

[ Laughter ] [ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Our next two Best Movie for Grownups Nominees are action dramas which both feature strong female characters who become unlikely heroes.

In the first, an overwhelmed laundromat owner uses her newfound powers to fight bewildering dangers from the multiverse.

The second is a remarkable epic in which a West African general trains the next generation of female warriors.

Here are "Everything Everywhere All at Once" and "The Woman King."

[ Cheers and applause ] -Across the multiverse, I've seen thousands of Evelyns.

You can access all their memories, their emotions, even their skills.

There's a great evil spreading throughout the many verses, and you may be our only chance of stopping it.

♪♪ Every rejection, every disappointment, has led you here.

♪♪ [ Cheers and applause ] -♪ Power, my power ♪ ♪ They'll never take my power ♪ -You are called to join the king's guard.

-♪ They'll never take my power ♪ -No kingdom in all of Africa shares this privilege.

Train hard, fight harder.

Fight or we die.

[ Women shouting ] ♪♪ We are the spear of victory.

We are the blade of freedom.

♪♪ We are Dahomey!

[ Women whooping ] ♪♪ -♪ They'll never take my power ♪ ♪ My power, my power ♪ ♪ They'll never take my power ♪ ♪ My power ♪ -This year's award for Best Screenwriter goes to Academy Award nominee and Nobel Prize Literature Laureate Kazuo Ishiguro for "Living."

[ Applause ] To present, please welcome journalist and best-selling author of "The Library Book" and "The Orchid Thief," which was made into the Oscar-winning film adaptation, Susan Orlean.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ -Adapting Akira Kurosawa's film "Ikiru," which was based on a novella by Leo Tolstoy, unparalleled novelist and screenwriter Kazuo Ishiguro has created a quiet masterpiece.

"Living" tells the story of an ordinary man reduced to a shadow existence by years of oppressive office routine.

At the 11th hour, he makes a supreme effort to turn his dull life into something wonderful.

Kazuo's screenplay is not unlike his novels -- elegantly written and with a keen sense of the minute, almost imperceptible moments that make up life.

Here's a brief glimpse of "Living."

♪♪ [ Soft music plays ] -I wonder if you ever stop on the way home and watch the children play, in the street or in the yard.

When the time comes and their mothers call them in, they're often reluctant, they -- they get a little contrarian.

But that's as it should be.

Far better that than to be the child you occasionally see sitting by himself in the corner not taking part, not happy, not unhappy, merely waiting for his mother to call him in.

[ Soft music plays ] I've become afraid that I might end up like that child.

And I so very much do not wish to do so.

[ Applause ] -It's my pleasure to present the Movies for Grownups Award for Best Screenwriter to Kazuo Ishiguro.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Well, ladies and gentlemen, from as far back as my memory will go, I've loved being told stories.

And from soon after I began creating my own stories, usually not always in the form of novels, I came to settle on this belief: the exchanging of stories isn't just fun or desirable.

It's something essential to our well-being.

Stories are how we humans share our feelings and ideas, our anger, our sadnesses, our hopes, our regrets, our differing perspectives, and visions.

It's where we go to say to each other, "This is how it feels to me.

Does it feel that way to you too?

Can you understand at all what I'm saying?"

Today, a quarter of the way into our century, I believe we need not only stories that are good and true, we need also stories that can bring us together, that can be shared by as wide a range of people as possible.

We don't all of us need to have the same opinions, but we do need to be taking part in the same conversation.

[ Applause ] Thank you.

I'm hugely grateful to the AARP for this award for screenwriting, which by implication honors all those who worked so superbly on our film "Living," including our director Oliver Hermanus, and the magnificent Bill Nighy.

I feel truly honored that my own work should have been considered alongside that as such lavishly talented filmmakers as those on tonight's nomination lists.

I salute them all with gratitude and admiration.

And thank you, Susan Orlean, for your ridiculously generous presentation.

And thank you, everyone.

Have a great evening.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Now let's celebrate the work of the nominees for Best Supporting Actor.

♪♪ -Brendan Gleeson, "The Banshees of Inisherin."

-I just have this tremendous sense of time slipping away in me, Padraic.

And I think I need to spend the time I have left thinking and composing and just... trying not to listen to anymore of the dull things that you have to say for yourself but I'm sorry about it.

I am like.

-Woody Harrelson, "Triangle of Sadness."

-Do you think it's possible to wash that?

-Well, I don't think that's possible, ma'am, because this is a motorized vessel.

-Yeah.

-So we don't have any sails.

-Ke Huy Quan, "Everything Everywhere All at Once."

♪♪ [ Applause ] Andre Braugher, "She Said."

-You have to imagine that every call you make is being recorded.

And you're being followed.

Don't let Weinstein talk to you unless it's on the record.

-I'd be interested in talking to him even off the record.

-No, if Harvey has something to say, he needs to say it publicly.

I've dealt with him before.

It's ugly.

-Judd Hirsch, "The Fabelmans."

-You, mister director, you don't wanna do this, but your daddy tells you because, you wanna make your own picture, huh?

Yeah, yeah, believe me, Sammy boy, I get it.

Family, heart, nuh.

It'll tear you in two.

[ Cheers and applause ] -This year's winner for Best Supporting Actor is Judd Hirsch for his performance in "The Fabelmans."

Presenting his award, the star of the film, Gabriel LaBelle.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ -Hello.

Good evening.

Uh, you know, I-I-I-I don't know Judd like most of you know him because I wasn't alive to watch him on "Taxi" every week.

Um, I wasn't alive when he was first nominated for an Academy Award in "Ordinary People" because that movie came out the year my parents graduated high school in 1980.

And I was definitely not around to watch him snag two Tony Awards and a third nomination for "Talley's Folly," "I'm Not Rappaport," and "Conversations with My Father."

[ Cheers and applause ] I don't know him like you do because I'm like 20 years old.

Though none of you know him like I know him.

None of you know what it's like to be locked in a bedroom for two days with this crazy, crazy man.

[ Laughter ] You know?

This man with only 10 minutes of screen time snagged yet another Oscar nomination for "The Fabelmans" at 87 years old.

[ Cheers and applause ] And none of you were there for that.

So let's take a look at some of his work in "The Fabelmans."

[ Cheers and applause ] -You see what she got in her heart is what you got, what I got.

Art.

Like me, like you I think.

We are junkies.

Art is our drug.

Family, we love.

But art, we are meshuga for art.

You think I wanted to leave my sisters, my mama, and my papa and go stick my stupid head in the mouth of lions?

-P-Putting your head in -- in a lion's mouth is art?

-[ Laughing ] No, sticking your head in the mouth of lions was balls.

Making sure the lion don't eat my head -- that is art.

[ Cheers and applause ] -I am -- I am so honored to have worked with this man.

Ladies and gentlemen, my friend Mr. Judd Hirsch.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -That's the silliest introduction I've ever had.

[ Laughter ] I mean, they say that we're here as, uh, grown-ups for the -- movies for grown-ups.

I think every actor in this room, no matter what your age, we're not grown-up.

[ Laughter ] None of us could admit to that.

If we were grown-up, we wouldn't be able to do this, I tell ya.

You gotta have some kind of a, I don't know, beginning mind and never, and never, and never leave it, you know.

He'll find that out later.

[ Laughter and applause ] Now, I assume all of you voters understood what the hell I was doing in this movie, uh, this family movie.

I mean, to be considered a member of, um, Steven Spielberg's family in a movie like this is the stretcher of the imagination.

Steven, he always said that, um, or he -- he said in this effect that there were no aliens or, um, dinosaurs in this movie.

Well, he was wrong.

[ Laughter ] I am one of both of those things.

[ Laughter ] He simply said that we needed someone to play the person in his life who, um, forced him to follow the art in his gut and become a director.

And I said, "W-Who?"

And he said, "Some scary great-uncle."

And I said, "From where?"

And he said, "I don't know, I think maybe the Ukraine."

And I said, "Well, what did he sound like?"

And he said, "Ah, we hardly understood a word he said."

[ Laughter ] So I waited for some further description and, uh, there was none.

[ Laughter ] I mean, he said just read the script.

And, uh, that was the last direction I got from one of the most important directors of America.

[ Laughter ] Well, I guess you all must have, you know, understood what I was doing in this movie, or my character, because you gave me this.

[ Laughter ] [ Applause ] Which I truly, I really do appreciate this.

I'm humbled by this.

I mean, I don't know how you came up with it, but anyway.

So, oh, and here's the kicker.

Well, perhaps the real redeeming quality of my character -- he gets to leave the film in a taxi.

So I was -- [ Applause ] Yeah, mixing metaphors.

Okay.

So I will cherish this.

I will cherish this.

Thank you.

And good night.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Now to present this year's recipient of our Career Achievement Award, please welcome an Emmy- and Tony-nominated actor, currently nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in the Apple TV+ film "Causeway," Brian Tyree Henry.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -I want you all to think about the first time Jamie Lee came into your life.

And I promise you that whenever it was, she left an impression.

For example, right?

[ Cheers and applause ] For example, for me, it was when she graced the screen as Lori Strode in "Halloween" with a scream that has yet to be matched by anyone since.

But when I actually got to experience Jamie Lee, which is what it is, by the way, an absolute experience, it was on a flight.

Years ago I was on a plane with a friend but he was sitting a few aisles behind me.

And right there sitting next to me was Jamie Lee.

I mean, this is the first moment in my life that I'm face-to-face with a woman I've admired for so long and all that's standing between us is nothing because my seat is right next to her.

Uh, well, I wasn't gonna ask her to get up, but she overheard the conversation, looked up and said, "Do you want to change seats with me, daddy-o?"

Like she called me daddy-o, okay?

I need you to really let that sink in.

[ Laughter ] This was the worst question to have to answer, but I said through gritted teeth, "Yeah, sure, that is -- that's cool."

And just like that, she swapped seats with my friend.

And needless to say I haven't spoken to that friend since.

Okay.

[ Laughter ] Finally one night we were appearing together on Jimmy Kimmel's show.

And I got to meet her backstage and tell her what a big fan I am.

She took my number, physically wrote it on her hand, and I vowed that after that, there was no way I was gonna let another moment to sing her praises pass me by again, which is why I stand before you tonight to honor this incredible woman... [ Applause ] ...in the best possible way that I can.

Before "Halloween," TV viewers got a glimpse of Jamie Lee serving a doughnut to Peter Falk in "Columbo."

Do you remember that?

Which then led to parts in blockbuster mysteries like "Knives Out."

In between there were hilarious and jaw-dropping performances in "Trading Places" with Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd.

[ Cheers and applause ] "A Fish called Wanda" opposite Kevin Kline, John Cleese and Michael Palin.

[ Cheers and applause ] There's the action hit "True Lies," which you would -- [ Cheers and applause ] Which all of you would be lying to yourself if you didn't try to do that incredible strip tease at one point in your life.

Or at least think about it.

Some of y'all are gonna do it tonight.

I see you.

[ Laughter ] And family favorites like "Freaky Friday," which -- which before you get excited, I promise you we will not reboot together, okay?

And let's be honest, only a powerhouse like Jamie Lee can create moments like the ones I've mentioned before, and they still sit with you.

They stay with you.

She leaves such an impression on every person who is lucky enough to be a part of her stratosphere, and yet she is still the genuine human who is willing to swap seats with a stranger on a plane and turn around and call him friend.

And just this past year, she gave two incredible performances in "Halloween Kills" and "Everything Everywhere All at Once," the latter earning her an Academy Award nomination.

[ Cheers and applause ] [ Cheers and applause continue ] And just so you can have a fresh impression in your brain, let's take a look at why Jamie Lee Curtis is this year's Movies for Grownups Career Achievement Award recipient, shall we?

[ Cheers and applause ] [ Ominous music plays ] ♪♪ [ Telephone rings ] [ Telephone rings ] -Hello?

-Hello?!

[ Laughter ] Now, you may only see a pile of boring forms and numbers, but I see a story.

-Look, I'm 24 years old and from a small miserable little mining town you've probably never heard of.

The only thing I got going for me in this whole big wide world is this body, this face and, what I got up here.

-To call you stupid would be an insult to stupid people!

I've known sheep that could outwit you.

I've worn dresses with higher IQs.

-He sees me as some sort of kindred spirit or something.

-Have you been thinking of me?

-When I think of you, I see my own life flash before my eyes.

-Well, he's a creep.

-But he's a charismatic creep.

It's just I keep allowing this guy to account for so much of what I think of myself, and the bottom line is I know that's wrong.

-She's got a way to go but she's one smart repressed lady.

-Becky, I hope our daughters never feel like us.

-You're in my body and I'm in your body.

Why don't we like?

[ Claps ] -Yes, yes, I see what you're saying, uh, uh, a jolt!

Okay, now when I say go, ready?

-Yeah.

-Go!

-Hey, Mom, can I -- -Ugh!

-Ow!

Ow, ugh.

-Okay.

Okay, that was stupid.

-Stupid idea?

-Uh-huh.

Don't dwell on the past, island boy, we're having a party.

Cheese, wine, and Blairey's favorite -- hickory honey ham.

[ Screams ] [ Horns honking ] -Aaaaah!

[ Truck horn blares ] [ Gunshots ] ♪♪ -He waited for this night.

He's waited for me.

I've waited for him.

[ Slow music plays ] -[ Sighs ] -Are you alright?

-I was just thinking about Dad's games.

This all feels like one.

Like something he'd write, not do.

I keep waiting for the big reveal.

♪♪ -I just wanted to do something outrageous, and it felt really good.

And I just wanted to be able to look back, and say see?

I did that, I was reckless, and I was wild, and I...did it!

-♪ The reeling figures pass on by ♪ ♪ Like ghosts in some forgotten play ♪ ♪ And still sometimes remember ♪ -I guess I'm trying to find something that means the same to me as going for the gold medal.

-Five, six, seven, eight.

-♪ For tomorrow ♪ ♪ But tomorrow never came ♪ -I like breaking records, I like setting records and breaking 'em.

I like being the best.

-♪ When you hear the price they paid ♪ ♪ I'm sure you'll come and join the masquerade ♪ [ Applause ] -Everyone, please, please give it up for one of the best disruptors I know for her Career Achievement Award.

The Career Achievement Award winner.

Come on up here.

Jamie Lee Curtis.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ [ Cheers and applause continue ] -Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

He's wearing a velvet tie.

Um, so you know when you meet a fellow grown-up and you look at each other and you realize that although you couldn't be more different somehow, in fact, you're exactly the same?

That's the story exactly of the movie "Causeway" that you are so stunning in.

[ Applause ] But it's also because it's about life on life's terms and truth and consequences of moments, which is very adult and a very grown-up idea.

And that's what it means being grown-up.

And that's how it's been with Brian since we first met.

And I appreciate your beautiful words.

-I love you.

-I know.

[ Applause ] I know you do.

And I love you too.

And I'm so glad that we're friends.

And thank you for sharing your thoughts.

So the truth of the matter is, I love grown-ups.

Grown-ups dress nicely, and they say please and thank you and often write thank-you notes.

And they mostly say what they mean and mean what they say and try not to say it mean.

I mean, grown-ups have boundaries.

[ Applause ] And for the most part, I really like being a grown-up.

I mean, all of that, you know, prepubescent, uh, and adolescent angst and sores and bad haircuts and clothing choices, you know, they disappear when grown-ups grow up.

I just -- I love that we sort of know who we are and what we're about and what we like and what we don't like.

And that has given me great confidence.

I love that we know we're here for something more than shiny things and Instagram likes.

I love that we know and recognize that it is our responsibility to do our part before we die, to simply make the world better.

[ Applause ] And really this Life Achievement Award recipient really should be every single grown-up pediatric nurse from every single children's hospital in the world standing up here instead of me.

[ Cheers and applause ] You talk about a life of achievement and service, that's really what it means to be a grown-up.

Now, in my profession that I affectionately call show-off business... [ Laughter ] ...I love that everybody on a film set acts like a grown-up.

I mean, for the most part, they act like grown-ups, and... [ Laughter ] I will not name names, but y'all know who you are.

But you know what I mean?

I love that everybody loves their job.

Just the enthusiasm of someone answering you in a really positive way thrills me, that everyone is building together towards something, toward the same goal.

To make art, to make the day, to make the schedule, to make the release date, and then to bring it to people all over the world.

It really flips my grown-up switch.

I love movies and TV shows like "Tár" and "Living" and "Women Talking" and "Everything Everywhere All at Once" and "Banshees of Inisherin" and "Till" and "Top Gun" and "The Fabelmans," "Elvis," "She Said," "The Odd Man" -- sorry -- "The Old Man," "Abbott Elementary," "Blackbird."

They all make me proud of all of the grown-up artists working in this field.

Now, I've been doing this for a long enough time now, I'm a grown-up and I've made a lot of films that have delighted a lot of grown-ups.

And for all of the thousands of people who I collaborated with, and for all the legions of fans who pay their good after-tax dollars to see them, to all of them, and to all of you in this room, grown-up movie lovers, I'm grateful for this creative life.

And I'm grateful to AARP tonight for this beautiful recognition.

God bless you all.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -The next two films nominated for Best Movie for Grownups are not musicals, but they are music-ish.

The first is a psychological drama which charts the downfall of a fictional composer and conductor.

The second follows the life of the king of rock 'n' roll through the perspective of his enigmatic manager, Colonel Tom Parker.

Here are "Tár" and "Elvis."

♪♪ ♪♪ -There's no reason to get caught up in any intrigue.

-I'm worried.

She's starting to disappear into herself.

♪♪ -You wanna dance the mask, you must service the composer.

You gotta sublimate yourself, your ego, and yes, your identity.

♪♪ You must in fact stand in front of the public and God and obliterate yourself.

♪♪ ♪♪ [ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -He was my destiny.

I wish to promote you, Mr. Presley.

-♪ Warden threw a party in the county jail ♪ -Are you ready to fly?

-I'm ready.

Ready to fly.

♪ Oh, since my baby left me ♪ -Tomorrow all of America will be talking about Elvis Presley.

-Elvis, try not to move around so much during the takes.

-♪ Heartbreak hotel ♪ ♪ Oh, I love my darlin' ♪ I just gotta be making the most of this thing while I can.

♪♪ It's goin' to be over in a flash.

♪♪ -We are the same, you and I.

We are two odd lonely children, reaching for eternity.

♪♪ The greatest show on Earth.

[ Cheers and applause ] -And now please welcome the CEO of AARP.

FYI, she's okay, LOL.

Jo Ann Jenkins.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ -At AARP, the work we do, we do for all, benefiting every generation.

That's why our award for Best Intergenerational Movie, which recognizes films that feature an intergenerational cast, is so important.

I'm very pleased that this year's winner is "Till," the true story of Mamie Till Mobley, who became one of the leading educators and activists in the civil rights movement.

Told through her perspective, the movie examines the agony of racism as it follows Mamie's courageous pursuit of justice for her son.

In the Jim Crow South of 1955, 14-year-old Emmett was beaten and murdered by white supremacists while visiting relatives in Mississippi.

Due to Mamie's tireless efforts, this ordinary teenager became a posthumous civil rights icon.

The film displays the universal power of a mother's ability to change the world as Mamie's poignant journey of grief turned to action.

It is also celebrating the beauty and strength of women within the extended Till family, as we see the impact of his life and death on those who loved him.

I urge everyone to see this heart-wrenching portrait that compels all of us to look at a time that many would choose to forget.

Here are a few moments from "Till."

♪♪ -Oooh!

Alright now, you're gonna miss your train.

Bo?

When you get down there -- -Oh, not again, Mama.

I've already been to Mississippi.

-Only one time before and you started a fight with another little boy.

-He was pickin' on me.

-You're in the right to stand up for yourself but that's not what I'm talking about.

Well... they have a different set of rules for Negroes down there.

Are you listening?

-Yes.

-You have to be extra careful with white people.

You can't risk looking at them the wrong way.

-I know.

-Bo, be small down there.

-Like this?

[ Applause ] -And now accepting the award for the Best Intergenerational Movie on behalf of "Till" are the actors who played Emmett and his grandfather, Jalyn Hall and Frankie Faison.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -First of all, um, it is a great honor to accept this award and it's a great honor to be be here with AARP.

I've always wanted to be in this club.

And when I finally joined the club, it's -- it was great.

It was like, "Hey!"

It made me feel younger, not older.

[ Applause ] And this film is one that brings young people and the elderlies together.

And it like -- this is the spirit of "Till."

The spirit of "Till" is to show the young people that they have support of the elders, that they're there for them, they're pulling for them, and they will defend them at any cost.

At any cost.

[ Applause ] Because when we get to the point that we're not looking after our youngsters, then we've lost the world as far as I'm concerned.

So I'm like -- I applaud "Till" for that.

And I applaud Jalyn for being such an amazing actor who brought so much to the role and say something, Jalyn.

Just anything.

[ Laughter ] I'm done.

-Oh, man.

I just want to -- I'm really happy to be up here for the first time, uh, in front of all of you.

And, you know, thank you.

I thank you.

But I do want to say, first, we're thanking everybody.

We're thanking Danielle.

I wish she was here.

Uh, amazing job as Mamie.

We're thanking, um, us too because we just -- we're the best duo here, you know.

Whoopi Goldberg, Chinonye, MGM, Orion, AARP, I'm putting in my ties now, give ya boy the discount, you know.

[ Laughter ] I'm on the way.

Shout-out to Mom deuce, Yma McGowan, everybody's mom is the best mom, but I got a gift from God, so thank you, guys.

-Thank you guys.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Over the last couple of years, we spent more time on our couches streaming movies than we did seeing them in crowded theaters.

Thankfully, for those of us who can't get out, or those of us who just can't make up our minds, we can now do both.

But since everything is streaming these days, it's hard to know, what is a movie, and what is a TV movie slash limited series.

And for that matter, what's a TV show?

And what's TV?

[ Laughter ] And what's it all about?

And is it appropriate for me to have an existential crisis on TV?

I know it's PBS but still.

[ Laughter ] I think not.

In situations like this, I find it good to sing.

♪♪ ♪ Old secret agents and cowboys on stallions ♪ ♪ Racy vacations with sexy Italians ♪ ♪ Public school teachers who give their kids wings ♪ ♪ These are just some of the binge-worthy things ♪ Hello.

♪ Murders in buildings and serial killers ♪ ♪ Sitcoms and dramas and spine-tingling thrillers ♪ ♪ True crimes obsessions that spark whispering ♪ Sorry.

♪ These are just some of my binge-worthy things ♪ ♪ When the bills come, when the phone rings ♪ ♪ When I'm quarantined four times ♪ ♪ I simply just binge-watch my favorite things ♪ ♪ 'Cause all of them can ♪ ♪ Be streamed ♪ ♪♪ Thank you very much.

[ Cheers and applause ] Oh, don't indulge me.

And now the awards for TV.

This year's winner for Best TV Series is "The Old Man."

Based on the novel by Thomas Perry, this action thriller revolves around Dan Chase, an ex-CIA agent who's been living off the grid in Vermont for 30 years.

Here are a few moments from "The Old Man."

♪♪ [ Applause ] [ Dramatic music plays ] [ Gunshot ] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [ Gunshot ] ♪♪ [ Cheers and applause ] Accepting is the co-creator of "The Old Man," Jonathan E. Steinberg.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Thank you.

It's pretty cool.

when Warren Littlefield, sent my partner, Dan Shotz and I, a copy of "The Old Man" by Thomas Perry all the way back in 2017 and asked if we'd like to help adapt it, I had two answers for him.

I said, "This is great.

And this feels like an opportunity to do something really special with casting."

And two, "I think if you play your cards right adapting 'The Old Man,' there really ought to be an AARP award in it for you."

So... [ Laughter ] I nailed both of those.

It's a true story.

Um, it's been an extraordinarily long road since those first conversations.

Setbacks and delays and frustrating moments and scary moments, and some truly terrifying moments.

But on the other end of it all, we managed to do what we set out to do, which was to tell a story about human beings at a point in their life in which they assumed all that was left for them was running out the last act of a predetermined story, but who then woke up to the idea that it's never too late to find meaning and connection and purpose in this life, and to make bold choices to pursue it all.

Thank you to Movies for Grownups and the AARP for recognizing and seeing value in a story like ours.

To our leader and our friend Jeff Bridges... [ Cheers and applause ] ...for showing us all what courage and grace and love in the face of true mortal adversity really looks like.

To the visionary Jon Watts, to Robert Levine, Daphne Olive, for pouring their heart and soul into helping to imagine this story into being.

To my partner Dan, for keeping us both alive through all of this.

To Dan's wife, Emily, for keeping Dan alive through this.

[ Laughter ] For my dad, Chuck, who I promised I'd say his name out loud, Eileen, to my kids, Eric Greenberg -- I'm gonna wedge him in there with my family.

And to my wife, Rebecca, for somehow making all of this work and for making all of it worth it.

Thank you.

I love you.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ -This year's winner for Best TV Movie/Limited Series is "Black Bird."

To present the award, here's one of the stars, Golden Globe winner Paul Walter Hauser.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Oh, that eerie, cute little music.

[ Laughter ] Yeah.

"Black Bird" is definitely a grown-up limited series.

This captivating story of relationships and investigations on parallel courses subverts the crime genre by enlisting the help of people behind bars to solve its mysteries.

Here's a brief look at "Black Bird."

[ Cheers and applause ] -I just do things, I'm not -- I'm not in control.

It's like that girl Marion, the college girl.

-Now, you know her name, Larry.

-Tricia Reitler, yes.

-You know the Marion police arrested another man in that case.

-He didn't do it.

No.

There was one in Wisconsin near one of the re-enactments.

And some in Indiana, I can't remember which ones I hurt.

It's just I'm so tired all the time.

I'm always tired, you know, and sad.

[ Applause ] -So accepting this award for Best Limited Series is my friend, my executive producer, ladies and gentlemen, please give it up for Kary Antholis.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Wow, thank you, AARP, for this honor.

Thank you, Zach, Jamie, Matt, Allie, and every single member of the stupendous Apple TV+ team.

Thank you to our crew, every last one of you who labored in the Louisiana heat and hurricanes to make this all work.

To my partners, Alexandra Milchan, Scott Lambert, Richard Plepler, Bradley Thomas, and my bestie in the trenches, Dennis Lehane, who crafted a story that said relevant things about men and their sometimes toxic view of women.

Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, Sepideh Moafi, Greg Kinnear, and every other uber-talented member of our acting crew.

Dennis gave you words, you turned them into art.

And finally, Dennis wrote the role of Big Jim specifically for Ray Liotta because he felt no other actor could do it the justice Ray could, and he was right.

We miss you, Ray.

We dedicate this to you.

And damn, we wish you were here.

Thank you, all.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ -The next category is Best TV Actress, and the winner is Sheryl Lee Ralph for "Abbott Elementary."

[ Cheers and applause ] To present our award, here's her friend and costar Lisa Ann Walter.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Hi, everybody.

Uh, just gimme a sec.

Hi, how you doing?

Yeah, I'm thrilled to be here in front of you guys tonight.

I am over the moon that, uh, I am here, uh, to present the award for Best Actress in a TV show to the first woman of color to win a Supporting Actress Emmy in 35 years.

[ Cheers and applause ] My friend Sheryl Lee Ralph.

The cast and crew of "Abbott Elementary" are so very proud of her.

Uh, we are also grateful that the viewers, especially teachers, love the series.

For those who haven't seen it, uh, what are you even doing with your life?

[ Laughter ] But just FYI, um, "Abbott" shines a light on the absurdities and difficulties of teaching in the public school system in Philadelphia, but really it could be anywhere in the country today.

We also deal with aging in our community and what it means to grow older in your job and in your personal life.

Like her "Abbott" character, Barbara Howard, Sheryl has spent a lifetime overcoming.

For her entire career, Sheryl has stood up to bullies.

As an activist, she spent the better part of 40 years fighting for the LGBTQ community.

[ Cheers and applause ] There's a lot of Sheryl in Barbara.

And thanks to her understanding of the character and her dedication to letting Barbara live and breathe, we are nominated for some of the biggest awards in this town, so, thank you, Sheryl.

[ Laughter ] Here is a moment of Sheryl's work on "Abbott Elementary."

[ Cheers and applause ] -As a good Christian woman, I would never mark my body with such an obscenity.

I don't even believe in saying that word out loud.

My favorite B word?

Barbara.

Bible.

Blessing.

Blueberries.

[ Laughter, cheers, applause ] -It is truly a joy to present the Movies for Grownups Award for Best Actress, TV, to my costar, my friend, my work wife, Sheryl Lee Ralph.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ Keep clapping, she's not here yet.

[ Cheers and applause continue ] ♪♪ -Before I say one thing about me, I would like to say happy birthday to my mother-in-law who will be turning 100 years old.

[ Cheers and applause ] She is still driving.

[ Laughter ] She is still taking my clothes to the dry-cleaners.

[ Laughter ] She is still collecting the rent from the buildings that she owns.

[ Cheers and applause ] And she is still tap dancing every week.

[ Cheers and applause ] So, everybody in here, baby, life is different.

At 100, you too can still be driving.

You too can still be tap dancing.

You too can still be wearing dresses like this at 101!

[ Cheers and applause ] I am happy to look at this audience because I get to say to Judith Ivey, thank you, Judith, 'cause when I joined the cast of "Designing Women," you were one of two women that couldn't have been nicer to me.

Thank you.

[ Cheers and applause ] Mm!

And that Bridges man.

[ Laughter ] He and his brother used to be on that show with their daddy.

[ Laughter ] And I used to say to myself, "That boy is cute."

[ Laughter ] Oh, yeah, I get to say to AARP, thank you very much for shining the light on aging.

Ah.

[ Applause ] Life has been very, very good to me.

And I'm happy to stand here as a grown-ass woman.

[ Laughter and applause ] I get to go to work every day at "Abbott Elementary" with people I like.

[ Laughter and applause ] Oh, yeah, we like each other, all of us.

I get to work with a young woman who could be my daughter, who looked at me and said, "Ms. Ralph, I am not sleeping on your talent.

You are what we need in our show.

And you don't look like your age, but we're gonna make you look your age."

[ Laughter and applause ] And I want to thank our hair and makeup department for doing such a very good job.

[ Laughter and applause ] Quinta Brunson, Lisa, Chris, Janelle, our elder statesman, William Stanford Davis.

Did I forget anybody?

-Tyler.

-Tyler from "Everybody Hates Chris."

He's a man now.

[ Laughter ] We get to create some wonderful intergenerational TV every week.

And if there's one thing I've learned in life as you grow older, make sure you have some young friends.

[ Laughter and applause ] And to everybody who might be watching who might be young and say, "I don't wanna grow old," trust me, there is an alternative.

[ Laughter ] And I don't think you want that.

So please, take care of yourself.

Take care of your young body.

Take care of your middle-aged mind.

Take care.

Take care of the people you love.

And if your mother-in-law or mother is still alive at 100, call 'em up on the phone and tell them how much you love them.

I love you.

Thank you, AARP.

We're growin' old, baby, yes, we are.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Our final TV category is Best Actor and the winner is the star of "The Old Man," Jeff Bridges.

[ Cheers and applause ] Presenting is his good friend, Grammy and Academy Award-winning composer, T Bone Burnett.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Generosity is the hallmark of an artist, and Jeff Bridges is in his art and his life the soul of generosity.

Jeff's first acting role was as an infant at a train station in "The Company She Keeps" in 1951.

From what I understand, he knocked the role of infant out of the park.

[ Laughter ] But it was a role he outgrew.

We first started working together a few years later, almost 50 years ago now, in "Heaven's Gate," one of the great disaster movies of all times.

[ Laughter ] Throughout his whole long, extraordinary life in the arts, Jeff has taken risks.

He has never played it safe.

He has followed his muse.

And I have to say I am, we are all most grateful to that muse.

Now he is not only an old man, he is the old man.

[ Laughter ] Here's a look at what this old man has been up to lately.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -911.

What's your emergency?

-Yep.

My name is -- is Dan Chase.

I'm at 92 Nelville Street in Norwich.

A man just broke into my house with a gun, he fired at me, I fired back, I-I-I shot him.

I-I think he's dead.

-Sir, please stay on the line.

Repeat your name again?

-My name is Dan Chase.

[ Cheers and applause ] -For taking this risk, he is receiving the Movie for Grownups Award for Best Actor, TV.

Please welcome an artist and a human being of the highest order, Jeff Bridges.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Thank you.

Thank you, T Bone.

This is wonderful.

Hey, you know, I dig being an old man myself.

One of the reasons is because, well, you get to have old friends, old, old friends like this guy here.

And you also get to accumulate more new friends.

John Lithgow, you know, Amy Brenneman, Alia Shawkat, Hiam Abbass.

You know, these guys are just a delight to work with, and they're so good.

I love playing with them.

And "The Old Man" has the most amazing team.

Uh, it all starts with, uh, Jon, Jon Steinberg, who you just met, uh, our showrunner and his partners, Dan Shotz and Robert Levine.

And I'm up here representing you guys.

Uh, I want to thank, uh, the folks that are behind the scenes.

There's Julie Berghoff, our production designer, our makeup artist, and my dear friend Thomas Nellon.

My stand-in and also a dear friend, Loyd Catlett.

All these cats are my friend, Tommy DuPont, Zach Wermers, Christopher Huddleston, Sarah Gilford, Tim Connolly, Henry Kingi, Gene Seavers, Bob Wallerstein, Rick Kurtzman, James.

Becky Pedretti, my dear assistant, as well as Susanna Contreras, who holds down our fort so beautifully.

And of course, my talented and gorgeous wife, Sue, and our daughters, Isabelle, Jessie, and Hayley.

[ Applause ] Well, they're incredible and so damn supportive.

They supported me through my health challenges right in the middle of shooting "The Old Man."

You know, I really appreciated the dedication of the cast and the crew, you know, you know, holding it all together until I could get back.

So, uh, thank you, guys, and, uh, Movies for Grownups.

Thank you for this.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Our final two nominees for Best Movie for Grownups are "Women Talking" and "The Fabelmans," where everyone is talking.

[ Laughter ] Thank you.

I'll be here all night.

"The Fabelmans" is Steven Spielberg's semi-autobiographical original story about an aspiring filmmaker who explores the power of film to see the truth about his dysfunctional family.

I know, another one.

[ Laughter ] In "Women Talking," the members of an isolated religious colony discover a shocking secret about the men of the community who control their lives and fate.

Here they are.

♪♪ [ Applause ] -Movies are dreams... ♪♪ ...that you never forget.

[ Projector runs ] ♪♪ -What kind of movie are we gonna make?

♪♪ -You dismiss what he does that's playful or imaginative.

You could afford to be a little encouraging.

-She should've been a concert piano player.

What she got in your heart is what you got.

-You can't just love something.

You also have to take care of it.

-It's more important than your hobby.

-Can you stop calling it a hobby?

[ Glass shatters ] -What was your favorite part?

♪♪ [ Applause ] ♪♪ -Hope for the unknown is good.

It is better than hatred of the familiar.

♪♪ And we cannot endure anymore violence.

♪♪ -We have been preyed upon like animals.

Maybe we should respond like animals.

-How would you feel if in your entire life... ...it never mattered what you thought?

When we liberated ourselves, we will have to ask ourselves who we are.

♪♪ [ Applause ] -Our next award recognizes the outstanding work of the cast of "She Said."

Presenting the award for Best Ensemble, here is a dear friend of Movies for Grownups -- Two-time Emmy nominee Wendie Malick.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -At a time when journalism is too often under siege, the remarkable ensemble of "She Said" portray the courage and persistence that underscores the value of investigative reporting.

This spell-binding film follows New York Times reporters Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor, who together broke one of the most important stories in a generation, one that helped spawn a sweeping movement, shattered decades of silence around the subject of sexual assault in Hollywood, and altered American culture forever.

Many were not willing to put themselves through the ordeal of coming forward only to face more abuse.

Others had been coerced into secrecy.

And then there were those courageous women who went on the record, including Sarah Ann Masse and Katherine Kendall, who are here with us tonight.

[ Applause ] This film brought to life the camaraderie and sisterhood that developed between these intrepid journalists who worked tirelessly to reveal the facts and the survivors and eyewitnesses who found the strength to tell their stories.

Here's a look at "She Said."

♪♪ -I was told that the wrongdoing in Hollywood is overwhelming.

-People have tried to write this story before.

He kills it every time.

-Harvey adamantly denies any allegation of assault.

-He played people.

He was a master manipulator.

This is bigger than Weinstein.

This is about the system protecting abusers.

♪♪ -We're all here, Harvey.

-Who have you talked to?

♪♪ [ Applause ] -I am honored to present the Movies for Grownups Award for Best Ensemble to the cast of "She Said."

Accepting are Patricia Clarkson, Jennifer Ehle, Sarah Ann Masse, and Katherine Kendall.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [ Applause ] -Um, thank you, AARP.

Uh, it is a privilege to be here tonight with the remarkable casts that have been represented, uh, throughout this movie year.

But as you see, these two remarkable women, Sally Ann and Katherine, they are survivors, and they are actresses that lived to tell the tale.

[ Applause ] And by honoring them tonight, you honor all the survivors of the gross miscarriage of justice and abuse in this -- in our business, sadly, often performed by grown-ups.

But we are here tonight to celebrate their survivor's story.

And we thank you with all our hearts, and we thank the great cast we got to work with -- Carey Mulligan, Zoe Kazan, Andre Braugher, Frank Wood.

We loved every minute of working with all of you.

We loved our director, our producer, our writer.

They're all women.

Our show was lousy with women, thank God.

And we want to thank Universal and Donna Langley.

You are the best.

Thank you.

And Jennifer Ehle.

The great Jennifer Ehle is here tonight.

[ Applause ] Um, and I want to give a special shout-out to my date tonight.

It's my godson.

Uh, his name is Nicholas.

He's 17 years old.

He's way, way, way too young to be here, but he looks forward to joining AARP... [ Laughter ] ...33 years from now.

We'll all be dead.

Good luck.

We love you.

[ Applause ] ♪♪ -And now here are the nominees for Best Actress.

♪♪ -Emma Thompson.

"Good Luck to You, Leo Grande."

-Well, that all sounds very achievable.

-Oh.

Does it?

Oh, good, good.

'Cause I -- I -- Ugh.

I have no frame of reference.

I've tried, um, looking on the Internet, but it's alarming, frankly.

I mean, if you type in "classy porn" to Google, up pop 12 windows of erections.

I mean, there's no buildup at all.

Have I booked enough time?

-Michelle Yeoh.

"Everything Everywhere All at Once."

-You are like puppets.

You know?

Puppets?

You can do things you normally cannot do.

It's like that movie.

Um, you -- that movie -- -Okay.

What are you talking about?

"Racacoonie."

What?!

-Huh?

-"Racacoonie."

You know the one with the chef -- CHCHCHCHCHCH!

-- and he makes bad food, pooey, and then this raccoon sit on his head.

Ooh, control him, and then he cooks good food!

-Cate Blanchett.

"Tár."

♪♪ -[ Grunting ] ♪♪ -Viola Davis.

"The Woman King."

It is the girl who was silenced in those shackles by those men.

♪♪ I've hidden her away.

I have denied her pain.

♪♪ But I'm going to hear her now.

-Lesley Manville.

"Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris."

-Here we go, girls.

Come on.

Down tools.

Come on.

Get behind me.

Join us.

Yeah, got a really important job today.

Ooh, you look lovely.

-Mrs. Harris!

-Come.

Come and do this for me.

-Mrs. Harris!

You must stop this at once!

You have no idea what you are doing.

-Oh, yes, I do.

It's called a strike.

Ha!

[ Applause ] -This year's winner for Best Actress is Michelle Yeoh for her action-packed performance in "Everything Everywhere All at Once."

To present her award, her co-star and fellow Academy Award nominee Stephanie Hsu.

♪♪ -[Singsong voice] Hello!

Hello, grown-ups.

Um, that's fun.

I was really excited to say that.

Um, okay.

[ Laughs ] You know, when I -- when I first told my mom that I had booked my first-ever studio feature, she said something to the likes of, "Cool."

When I told her that Michelle Yeoh was going to be playing my mom, she said something to the likes of, "Oh, my God!

I love Michelle!

She's amazing!"

Needless to say, Michelle is a legend in our household.

I am so very honored tonight to be presenting Michelle Yeoh with the Best Actress Award for perhaps the most spectacular performance of her legendary career.

This is a performance that has brought families closer together across generations that has made my mother feel seen for the very first time in an American movie theater.

I truly believe that the reason our movie works is due to the precision of Michelle's craft, paired with the unshakeable fight within her.

It is a fight of a mother's love.

It is a fight of an artist's passion.

I imagine it is that same fight that drove her for the last 40 years to finally get her chance to be the leading lady in "Everything Everywhere All at Once" to show us all what she's always known she's capable of.

She couldn't be here with us tonight, but she wanted to share her gratitude for this award on tape.

[ Applause ] -Thank you so much, AARP, for giving me this award.

I am so sorry I could not be there with you all in person, as I'm in London shooting "Wicked," which I am very excited to share with you soon.

As members of the AARP, you all know what it means to grow older and suddenly have to find new ways to stay vital and relevant, because we never give up and we are not really older, but wiser and seasoned and more mature.

When I first read the script for "Everything Everywhere All at Once," I knew immediately how special it was.

I have been making movies for 40 years, but never had I seen anything so original and out there that would give me the opportunity to show everything I'm capable of.

Not just the action scenes that have been a hallmark of my career, but to tell a grown-up story about a housewife, a mother, who is taken for granted, but through love and compassion becomes a superhero.

At 60, I knew what the role of Evelyn Wang meant to me as an actor, but I truly had no idea how anyone, let alone people our age, would relate to it or if they would like it at all.

But you did.

You embraced our film and started a conversation across generations.

You recognized the special, the weird, and the whole everything bagel.

And maybe, just maybe, you recognized something of yourself and your own journey in it.

And so it is with deep gratitude that I accept this award for Best Actress.

It means so very much to me.

Thank you.

[ Applause ] -And now the nominees for Best Actor.

♪♪ -Brendan Fraser.

"The Whale."

-I need to know that she's gonna have a decent life where she cares about people and other people care about her... and she's gonna be okay.

-I need to go.

-Mary.

-I have to go.

-She doesn't have anyone else!

I need to know that I have done one thing right with my life!

-Bill Nighy.

"Living."

-I beg you to reconsider.

I beg you.

Or at least keep the application open for one more week.

What harm can that do?

-Adam Sandler.

"Hustle."

-I love this game.

I live this game.

And there's a thousand other guys waiting in the wings who are obsessed with this game.

♪♪ Obsession's gonna beat talent every time.

You got all the talent in the world, but are you obsessed?

-Tom Hanks.

"A Man Called Otto."

-Oh, no.

No, no, no!

Stop!

Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop!

Stop!

Stop!

Get out of the car.

Get out of the car.

-I'm sorry.

I just -- -How you can make it this far through life without knowing how to back up a trailer.

My God.

A dog with one front paw and cataracts could've done better than that!

And an automatic.

Of course.

[ Beeping ] What the hell is that?

-Tom Cruise.

"Top Gun: Maverick."

-I'm a fighter pilot... ...a Naval aviator.

It's not what I am.

It's who I am.

[ Cheers and applause ] This year's winner for Best Actor is Brendan Fraser for his performance in "The Whale."

Presenting his award is his Academy Award-nominated co-star from the film, Hong Chau.

♪♪ -In "The Whale," Brendan Fraser gives not just a career-defining performance, but joins a small pantheon of actors who have left such an indelible impression on cinema audiences that their characters are immediately recalled upon seeing just a single image.

Let's picture Robert De Niro as boxer Jake LaMotta, sweaty, a swollen eye in "Raging Bull"... Sally Field as a factory worker defiantly holding a union sign in "Norma Rae."

Harrison Ford as an archaeology professor, Indiana Jones, doing -- I don't know -- just being sexy.

[ Laughter ] Now picture Brendan Fraser as Charlie, a recluse but still a father, desperate and determined to reconnect with his daughter in his final days.

What's remarkably different is that we never see Charlie leave his apartment.

He barely leaves his couch.

And yet audiences are taken on a profound, emotional journey.

"The Whale" is a film about the value and confounding fragility of human connection.

Its truth and emotional core is the extraordinary portrayal of a broken man searching for redemption.

♪♪ -She saved him.

♪♪ She wasn't trying to hurt him.

She was trying to help him.

-Who are you talking about?

-He's goin' home.

She did that.

-Charlie -- -She didn't do it to hurt him.

She did it to send him home.

-Do you feel lightheaded, Charlie?

Look at me.

-She's trying to help him.

-Who?

-Ellie.

She was trying to help him.

She just wanted to send him home.

♪♪ Do you ever get the feeling that... people are incapable of not caring?

♪♪ People are amazing.

♪♪ [ Applause ] -It's my pleasure to present the Movies for Grownups Award for Best Actor to Brendan Fraser.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -Thank you.

Herman Melville once wrote, "To know how to grow old is the master work of wisdom and one of the most difficult chapters in the great art of living."

So I thank you for this recognition, AARP.

[ Applause ] Thank you.

I -- I'm -- I'm moved.

I-I'm honored.

I'm privileged to be included amongst this extraordinary group of you -- actors, creators.

And I just have to say that it feels a little bit weird for me to be seated at the grownup table.

AARP does wonderful work to curtail ageism and championing, as they say, Movies for Grownups.

But let's face it.

I've always been a kid at heart.

[ Laughter ] If I saw half of this renewal and reward some 20, 25 years ago, I would not have been qualified to operate that equipment.

It would've been too much, too soon.

But for right now...I get it.

Have gratitude, live for others, and I'm lucky to be invited among the few who get to do my job, which is the best job in the world.

And I'll let you all in on a little secret that's gonna make me have to take some mail on this.

But I'm -- I'm big boy.

We actors would happily do this job whether we or anyone else considered us to be successful or not.

This guy that I play in the movie "The Whale," he's called Charlie.

I think -- I think that he's like a lot of many older people out there today who feel that -- that they're not visible and they're grappling with illness and loneliness and they're -- they're trapped in guilt and regret.

And our humble movie shows how even someone living like that, even in the darkest of places, we can still find redemption and we can free ourselves from all that's weighing us down.

He finds love and light for himself and for those around him.

And with all of my whale-sized heart, I wish the very same for all of us seated here at the grownups table tonight.

[ Applause ] So thank you.

Please take your elbows off the table and pass the gravy.

Good night.

♪♪ ♪♪ -Throughout the show, we've seen clips of all the films nominated for Best Movie for Grownups.

Once again, here are the nominees.

♪♪ -"The Fabelmans."

"Women Talking."

"Top Gun: Maverick."

"Everything Everywhere All At Once."

"The Woman King."

"Elvis."

"Tár."

[ Applause ] -And this year's Best Movie for Grownups is... "Top Gun: Maverick."

To present the award, here's the actor who plays Hangman, Glen Powell.

[ "Top Gun Anthem" plays ] ♪♪ -I feel like that theme is gonna follow me around for the rest of my life.

That's not a bad way to enter a room.

[ Laughter ] Um, good evening.

Uh, thank you to the AARP for having me.

I'm very thrilled to be here, uh, and also to know that the Best Movie of the Year, uh, "Top Gun: Maverick."

[ Cheers and applause ] Yeah.

Yeah.

You know, when I was a kid, uh, and I'd go to the movies and the lights would go down and I'd see the, uh, Bruckheimer logo, I'd know it was gonna be -- it was gonna be a freaking awesome ride, whatever it was.

The movies he's produced have been some of my favorites.

And after I saw "Top Gun 1" for the first time, uh, I knew I wanted to be an actor or a pilot.

Now I'm both.

He makes films that make you want to be a part of that magic.

And while shooting this movie, one of my favorite exercises that Jerry Bruckheimer taught me was, "When in doubt, just close your eyes.

Sit in the audience.

Watch the movie you're making with the audience.

How are they feeling?

What are they thinking?

How can you move them?

How can you give them adventure, comedy, romance?

How can you blow their minds?"

And without decades of producing at the highest level, "Top Gun: Maverick" would not have been possible.

Now, opening weekend of "Top Gun," I was invited to join Jerry on his party bus.

And, uh, it's not like a retirement party bus.

This doesn't have an elevator.

This has a pole.

[ Laughter ] We, uh, went to different theaters around LA to experience "Top Gun" with an audience.

And everybody else is watching the audience, and I'm watching Jerry watch that audience, and I was brought back to that moment he told me to close my eyes and think about the audience.

And we were there.

We were there with the audience that we dreamed we were gonna be there with, and it was magical -- to be with your hero who is smiling ear to ear, watching the audience have their minds blown.

And to get a smile from Jerry Bruckheimer is a very good thing.

It's hard to earn, but it's wonderful when you get it.

The fact that my path has intersected with two of my heroes, Tom Cruise and Jerry Bruckheimer, has been absolutely surreal and life-changing.

Since we began this journey over four years ago, this man has been a source of advice in my career, an anchor in a changing business, and a vision for what is possible.

And in 2022, he saved the movie business.

[ Applause ] I called him a hero, and now I have the pleasure of calling him a friend.

Jerry, you complete me.

[ Laughter ] Uh, it's my honor to introduce a legend I would love to make an Oscar winner, Jerry Bruckheimer.

[ "Top Gun Anthem" plays ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Thank you.

"Top Gun: Maverick" has been a 36-year journey, a dream that never wavered or died.

After almost four decades, all the pieces fell into place and we finally released the much-anticipated sequel, just when everybody seemed to need it the most.

[ Applause ] That long journey comes with many people to thank, and I will start with the most important.

That's the audience.

I am tremendously grateful to the millions of fans of all ages, especially the audience of grownups who came out of their homes to watch "Top Gun: Maverick" at a time when many of them had not been to a theater in years.

And that is the power -- [ Applause ] That is the power of movies.

They draw people together from all walks of life, all backgrounds, to have a shared experience, to bring some magic into their lives.

Sometimes you laugh or cry.

Sometimes you're exhilarated.

And sometimes, if you're lucky, you get to do all three.

That's what "Top Gun: Maverick" did.

I have to thank our gifted director, Joe Kosinski.

Without his tireless effort, this movie would not be possible.

A special thanks to our amazing cast and crew who put their hearts and soul into this film, which was a physically exhausting experience, one that tested the very limits of their endurance and perseverance.

Our own force of nature, producer and star Tom Cruise.

[ Applause ] Tom, thank you for your passion and dedication.

You always strive for excellence -- with one goal in mind, to thrill and entertain audiences.

You never disappoint.

It's a privilege to work with you and an honor to be your friend.

There are two more people to recognize.

My late, great producing partner, Don Simpson, who produced the original movie with me.

He would be so proud and probably enormously envious that he is missing all the action.

And, finally, to the "Top Gun" director, Tony Scott, a visual genius... [ Applause ] ...whose brilliance and imagination continues to inspire all of us.

Once again, it is a honor to be standing here tonight on behalf of all the talented people who worked on "Top Gun: Maverick."

I want to also shout out to my mom who lived to 104 who would be so proud of me standing here.

[ Cheers and applause ] And to my wife and daughter who always remind me to act like a grownup.

Thank you.

[ Laughter ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Congratulations to all of our winners.

We thank you for bringing all of us together to share in the grownup stories that you tell.

And please know that your work will inspire and encourage others to go on telling grownup stories with grownup sensibilities that enrich all of our culture and all our lives.

And thanks to all of you at home for supporting these fantastic films and engrossing TV shows.

You are the reason all of these artists do what they do.

Until we meet again, good night.

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪