While people sitting at home watching the Oscars might’ve had enough excitement for one evening, celebs, seat-fillers and reporters alike were out till the wee hours partying in the wake of what was one of the most talked-about years in the awards show’s history for all the reasons you probably already heard this morning. It made for a late night of star-mingling, cake-eating and Champagne-popping scenes across Hollywood. A few of The Times’ intrepid reporters followed the craziness from the awards show watch parties to the coveted, invite-only afterparties around town.

Will Smith holds court at Vanity Fair Party after “the slap”

“Where were you when it happened?”

That was the question of the evening at this year’s Vanity Fair Oscar party. Were you one of the stunned audience members in the theater where Will Smith came onstage and suddenly slapped Chris Rock? Or were you watching at home, confused as to whether the entire interaction had actually been a poorly executed bit?

It was an entry point for discussion about the violent incident, leading even the Hollywood elite to take sides about which performer had been in the right. Timothée Chalamet and Trevor Noah were discussing the events outside on the smoking patio, not smoking. Sterling K. Brown, Marlon Wayans and Lena Waithe were having an animated discussion about it a few feet from the bar. So were Ziwe and Emily Ratajkowski, huddled on a patio bench.

That is until around half past midnight, when Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, actually walked into the party. Rock had yet to make an appearance, and at such a late hour, it seemed unlikely the couple would either. But just as the event was starting to empty out, Smith walked in, triumphantly clutching his best actor prize. He was flanked by a bodyguard and what seemed like at least 10 other entourage members, surrounding him and Pinkett Smith at all times. They moved in unison like a swarm of bees: Entering the bash, dancing to a few songs, posing for photos, and then taking an extremely leisurely jaunt toward the exit.

Smith did his best to celebrate, even though he was in and out of the Beverly Hills shindig in maybe 30 minutes. On the dance floor, he rapped along to his hits “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It,” “Miami” and “Summertime” while keeping a firm grip on his golden statuette. Zendaya complimented Pinkett Smith’s dress, which was a different one than she’d been wearing during the telecast earlier in the night. At least half a dozen partygoers requested to take a selfie with Smith, and he obliged. Others held their cellphones high in the air, hopeful their aim would be good enough to catch a shot. Smith did take a few photos with famous people, like Chalamet, who cheerfully slapped him on the back as they posed together. The “King Richard” star also stopped “This Is Us’” Brown to ask someone to grab a shot of the two of them, which surprised the television star: “You want a picture with me?” he asked with a grin, before Smith wrapped his arm around Brown’s shoulder.

Meanwhile, his kids — Jaden, Willow and Trey — were otherwise occupied. Willow was on a mission to introduce herself to some of her favorite stars: Jacob Elordi, whom she immediately walked up to because she said she loved “Euphoria,” and then “Queer Eye” star Karamo Brown. Trey was mixed in among the entourage and Jaden was proudly defending his father as he circulated, telling Chalamet: “That’s how you respect a woman.”

The two offspring stayed behind as their parents made a swift exit. Before getting into a white SUV — which he was driving himself on the chauffeur-heavy night—Smith took off his jacket and lifted his Oscar in the air once more. His team clapped and flashbulbs went off. From a platform above, Jaden pointed at his father and shouted: “I love you! You did it! That’s what real N—s do!”

(Amy Kaufman)

Jane Campion basks in the power of the director at Governors Ball

Jane Campion danced onstage while getting her Oscar for best director engraved at the Governors Ball following the 94th Academy Awards — her white hair flying, hands waving, hips shimmying. A crowd gathered around her, taking pictures and videos. The “Power of the Dog” director was clearly in her element, and filled with joy at her historic win.

“I’m really, really grateful for all the support,” she said after exiting the stage clutching her golden statuette, adding that women were making great strides when it came to high-level recognition of their work in Hollywood. “I mean, it’s going on and on now, we’re gonna win a lot of big prizes.”

One pressing question of the night was whether Hollywood insiders would express dismay about a handful of technical awards being handed out in the hour before the official telecast began, but Campion didn’t seem to mind.

“I understand some people were worried about it,” she said. “But I actually thought they worked out quite well with the video.”

Also not worried was makeup artist Linda Dowds, who won the award for makeup and made a lovely speech during the untelevised event, thanking the many behind-the-scenes workers in Hollywood — the ones who sometimes never see this level of recognition but excel at their craft anyway.

“I just came into this with an open mind and an open heart, that was the most important thing,” she said. “We still got to walk the red carpet. We still got to go back and make a speech. People saw us.”

If the goal is drawing viewers back to the show, and the movies, said Dowds, then she is all for it.

Dowds and Campion were part of a sea of people crammed into a large, drafty Ray Dolby Ballroom after the show. Plush red carpets and red curtained walls set the scene for a party that felt very 2019, with not a mask in sight and decked-out attendees hugging, shaking hands, talking closely and eating hors’ d’oeuvres of crab on cornbread with caviar.

The cast and producers of best foreign language film “Drive My Car” all sat together at the same table, soaking in the scene, clearly feeling proud. “American people support our film,” said leading man Hidetoshi Nishijima. “And two years before ‘Parasite’ opened the door, so we feel very grateful.”

(Jessica Gelt)

Elton John missed the highlight of his own viewing party

The room at Elton John’s 30th annual Academy Awards viewing party fell silent as Will Smith crept onstage to accept his best actor award for his performance as Richard Williams in “King Richard.”

Minutes before, Smith’s now-infamous slap went largely unnoticed among the crowd, more preoccupied with cutting their nori-wrapped sea bass than watching the screens that hung around the room.

Now, however, all eyes fixated on the first-time Oscar-winning actor in the midst of his victory speech.

“Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family,” Smith said.

“F— me,”one partygoer said.

Smith’s moment of passion almost snuck by Elton John, who telecasted into the performance from his concert in Lincoln, Neb.

“I heard there was drama, when Will Smith punched Chris Rock,” said Elton John. “Did he knock him out?”

The pop legend had arranged tour dates prior to the postponement of the Oscars, so the legendary artist appeared via video call rather than in the flesh. In his place were co-hosts Lady Gaga, Billy Porter and Eric McCormack, along with John’s husband, David Furnish.

For the most part, the Smith-Rock drama, along with the rest of the Oscars, was background entertainment to the main event at Elton John’s Academy Awards watch party.

Oscar co-hosts Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer and Regina Hall kicked off the ceremony with jokes around gender-based pay-inequalities and LeBron James’ receding hairline, many of which were met with blank stares as dinner guests slowly filed into the room.

Hours before the start of the Oscars, guests paraded down Elton John’s red carpet, clogging foot traffic while snapping selfies in front of the step and repeat sign. Inside, they were greeted with a Belvedere vodka tower in the middle of the floor, covered with a transparent tent that blocked the wind but trapped in the heat.

Elegance was an understatement. Flowing dresses were paired with crisp tuxedos throughout the makeshift venue at West Hollywood Park.

“Oh, at some point we’ll watch the Oscars,” remarked Lady Gaga, seemingly aware of her audience’s preoccupation with mingling, networking and small talk.

Brandi Carlile headlined the post-awards performance, and her adoration for Sir Eltonwas on full display — even past her cover of “Rocket Man.” Before launching into her song “The Joke,” she told a story of how she first fell in love with the acclaimed artist, after reading about how John performed at the funeral of Ryan White, who died of AIDS in 1990 at 18 years old.

“Standing here all these years later, being given the truly solemn and unspeakably beautiful opportunity to support the Elton John AIDS foundation is something I can’t really describe to you because it’s shaped the way that I walk through the world as an artist,” Carlile said.

(Kenan Draughorne)

Academy Museum viewing party offers velvet rope vibes with local flair

The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ first-ever Oscars viewing party was a welcoming mixture of glamour and accessibility. According to Amy Homma, VP of education and public engagement, that is by design. “We really wanted this to feel like a local L.A. event,” she said, emphasizing that the less than year-old museum’s first-ever Oscar-night party was open to the public ($75 for museum members, $100 for non-members) and documented by young photographers from Las Fotos Project, a nonprofit working with teenage girls and gender-expressive youth. “We not only wanted to work with local L.A. folks but be the destination and place for L.A. individuals to come and celebrate the Oscars.”

With over 1,000 guests in attendance, the dress was a “creative black tie,” with many people taking this as their first opportunity post-COVID to dress to the nines. “Rita Moreno’s gown is here from when she won best supporting actress in 1962,” enthused Dave Karger, a host at Turner Classic Movies who also hosted the museum’s inaugural event. He feels that the nearly 100 years of Oscar history on display made for a singular Oscar party setting and puts the ceremony into context in real time as guests were able to peruse the museum’s 300,000 square feet of exhibits both before and during the live stream.

To see Ariana DeBose win best supporting actress for her groundbreaking turn as Anita in “West Side Story,” and in the same night view the dress worn by the actress who originated the film role is a special treat for film lovers like actor and museum member Miguel Pinzon. At a commercial break during one of the viewing screens set up in the Sidney Poitier lobby, he expressed that the event didn’t feel elitist or exclusionary and helped working industry members like himself to go “beyond who is going up to accept the awards.”

And reaction to the night’s biggest surprise (the Will Smith smack heard ‘round the world) seemed subdued. Many attendees seemed confused at first about what was going on, tittered about it for a bit, and then recovered. (Smith did much with his moving speech to move things forward.)

Whether viewing the ceremony from the state-of-the-art David Geffen theater, which really added a formal “Oscar ceremony vibe” or dancing away to the classic vinyl vibes by Dublab DJs Mamabear and Lady C pre-and post-show, the Academy Museum’s first foray into the Oscar event lineup was a refreshing mix of classic Hollywood history and a fun way for the movie enthusiast to feel part of a ceremony that can sometimes feel unapproachable.

(Christine Terrisse)

‘Drive My Car’ celebrates success with a cake-mobile at Katana

Over in West Hollywood at Japanese restaurant Katana at the historic Piazza del Sol building on Sunset Boulevard, revelers at the afterparty for Japan’s international feature winner “Drive My Car” packed the Italian-style moonlit veranda, sipping cocktails and noshing on robata-grilled meats and delicate petits fours as writer-director Ryusuke Hamaguchi & Co. made their way across town after visiting the Governors Ball.

The sprawling affair was a celebratory triumph for the art-house crowd hosted by Janus Films, WarnerMedia OneFifty, Sideshow and Cinetic. The indie film super team rose to the challenge of bringing the heady and critically acclaimed three-hour Haruki Murakami short story adaptation, about two forlorn souls connecting in a red Saab 900, to U.S. audiences.

Inside at dimly lit tables, filmmakers and industry veterans buzzed by candlelight over the film’s win and the night’s events, hotly debating the show’s other big winners and whether Will Smith’s “slap heard ‘round the world” had been deliberately staged by show producers to juice ratings.

But as Hamaguchi finally arrived around 11:30 p.m., ascending a set of stone stairs to enormous cheers and applause from the gathered partygoers, the evening’s controversies briefly melted away. All focus turned to the auteur from Japan as he entered his fete, with his Oscar statuette in hand and a big smile on his face, followed by his actors and collaborators.

Over plates of sushi and skewers inside an intimate VIP area, insiders congratulated Hamaguchi, his cast, including actors Hidetoshi Nishijima, Masaki Okada, Sonia Yuan, Reika Kirishima, Park Yoo-rim, Jin Dae-yeon and Ahn Hwi-tae and snapped pics around a custom centerpiece: a red Saab cake replica of the car from the film.

After cutting the cake, Hamaguchi said he was exhausted but happy to be celebrating with his actors and producers. He flashed back to his onstage acceptance speech in which the telecast’s producers tried to play him off early once he’d thanked his distributors but not his cast, only for him to wave off the warning. At the end of the long night, Hamaguchi only had a note for himself. “I should not have said ‘thank you’ so quickly,” he said with a smile.

(Jen Yamato)