LOTR Cleans Up At The Oscars

Tuesday, August 1, 2006 - 07:21

'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' won a record number of Oscars at last night's ceremony, equalling the 11 awards won by the epic 'Ben Hur' and 'Titanic'.

Amongst others, the adaptation of Tolkein's classic bagged the coveted award for Best Picture and Best Director. Peter Jackson was overwhelmed by the win, saying, "I am so honoured and touched and relieved that the Academy has seen past the trolls and the wizards and the hobbits in recognising fantasy this year".

The other main categories at the 76th Academy Awards held few surprises. As predicted, Charlize Theron won Best Actress for her role as real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos in 'Monster', while Sean Penn won Best Actor for his role in 'Mystic River'.

Penn's co-star Tim Robbins was named Best Supporting Actor, and hot favourite Renee Zellweger took home Best Supporting Actress for her role as farmhand Ruby in 'Cold Mountain'.

Annie Lennox was one of the few British winners on the night, winning an award for her song 'Into The West' on the soundtrack to 'Return of the King'.

The huge success of LOTR, however, left more than a few films in its wake. Though she missed out on Best Director " and had she won, she would have been the first woman director to do so " Sofia Coppola won Best Original Screenplay for 'Lost In Translation'.

The full list of winners is as follows:

Best Picture
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Director
Peter Jackson for 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'

Best Actor
Sean Penn

Best Actress
Charlize Theron

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Tim Robbins

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Renee Zellweger

Best Animated Feature Film
Finding Nemo

Best Original Screenplay
Lost In Translation

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Music (score)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Music (song)
'Into the West' - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King