As the unrivalled biggest cultural event of the year, the Oscars was once a guaranteed chance to catch sight of Hollywood’s best and brightest. 

With LA’s esteemed Dolby Theatre holding a capacity of just 3,300, stars and directors alike have been victim to fierce competition for tickets – widely renowned to be the ‘toughest’ to get in town. 

But as stars graced the carpet for the 97th annual ceremony on Sunday night – with big winners including Adrien Brody, Mikey Madison and Zoe Saldana – some of the film industry’s biggest faces appeared to be missing. 

Hollywood veterans, many of whom were once considered the quintessential ‘faces’ of the Academy Awards, were not spotted on the red carpet, during the ceremony, nor at the legendary Vanity Fair afterparty. 

In fact, many, such as Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Aniston, have not attended for many years, with Jolie even admitting she ‘dips in and out of’ awards season these days. 

And despite being the talk of the moment following her stand-out role in Babygirl, legendary actress Nicole Kidman was nowhere to be seen. 

Tom Cruise, despite attending a pre-Oscars lunch in 2023, appears not to have attended the main ceremony since 2012, while Leonardo DiCaprio and Reese Witherspoon themselves have not attended for several years. 

It appears A-listers may have ‘fatigue’ with the intensity of the shows after being in the spotlight many years, with the Oscars increasingly being seen as an ‘optional’ spot in the calendar – especially if the actor in question hasn’t been nominated or isn’t presenting.  

As the Oscars returned for 2025, many of Hollywood’s biggest stars appeared to be absent. Pictured: Gwyneth Paltrow when she last attended in 2015

Some Hollywood stars have not attended in many years and many expected faces no longer grace the red carpet. Jennifer Aniston pictured in 2017

Meanwhile the increasing presence of influencers on the red carpet to attract publicity may have led some to feel it’s not quite as highbrow as it once was. 

Speaking to FEMAIL, PR and branding expert Hayley Knight said: ‘Many established actors who have been doing this for years, prefer to keep a lower profile, and now only attend if it is relevant to their career and have a direct association with a film that’s nominated. 

‘They have awards show fatigue, and with the decline in TV ratings, they may not see award ceremonies as a ‘must attend’ anymore.’

Hayley added that many A-listers are opting for more ‘intimate’ events instead where they feel more comfortable and within their own circles instead of the entire ceremony. 

Leonardo Di Caprio, for example, attended the Chanel and Charles Finch pre-Oscar dinner at the Polo Lounge, an intimate gathering held on the eve of the awards – despite not attending the full ceremony since 2020.

Hayley continued: ‘In recent years, the Academy has actively sought to engage younger audiences by inviting key social media influencers to the main ceremony. 

‘For example, in 2024 social media stars such as Amelia Dimoldenberg, creator of the YouTube series Chicken Shop Date attended. Attracting these influencers is designed to bridge the gap between traditional and contemporary Hollywood, and partnerships with brands such as TikTok are efforts to appeal to a younger audience. 

‘However, this may have isolated bigger, older stars, and prevented them from attending. But this evolution represents the Academy’s commitment to remaining relevant in a rapidly changing landscape.’

Reese Witherspoon, who previously spoke out about the inequality of the event, has not attended since 2021

She’s the talk of the moment following standout roles in Babygirl and Netflix’s Perfect Couple, but Nicole Kidman wasn’t seen. Pictured in 2023

Tom Cruise, despite attending a pre-Oscars lunch in 2023, appears not to have attended the main ceremony since 2012

In addition to a growing trend against attendance, this year many celebrities have personal reasons not to attend – especially if they’ve been snubbed before. 

Angelina Jolie, for example, has so far this year attended the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards – but has declined to attend the Oscars since 2014, when she was joined by her ex-husband Brad Pitt. 

She was reportedly ‘devastated’ over her Oscars snub for her lead role in Maria as insiders claimed Hollywood sided with her ex-husband Brad Pitt – who also skipped the 2025 ceremony.

She had poured herself into the ‘personal’ role by learning to sing opera and even endured a grueling Hollywood press cycle to promote the Netflix film and ‘desperately wanted to get nominated’, according to PageSix. 

But having first become an Oscar winner 25 years ago, Angelina may be one of the many stars simply tired of the once bright lights of the Academy Awards. 

In February, she told Backstage she was ‘dipping in and out’ of Awards Season – a comment that will surely be seen as a snub of its own to the once 

She said: ‘I’m dipping in and out of it. I’ve always approached it that way. 

‘You just do a few [events], then you go home and don’t let it become too central in your life. Focus on the art. It’s very important not to take it all too seriously and let it consume your days or your work.’

Leonardo hasn’t attended the main ceremony since 2020 (pictured), though he has been spotted at more intimate events

2025 Oscar Winners: AT A GLANCE

Best Picture: Anora

Actress in a Leading Role: Mikey Madison — Anora

Actor in a Leading Role: Adrien Brody — The Brutalist

Actress in a Supporting Role: Zoe Saldaña — Emilia Pérez

Actor in a Supporting Role: Kieran Culkin — A Real Pain

Adrien Brody, Mikey Madison, Zoe Saldana and Kieran Culkin are seen left to right

Best Director: Sean Baker — Anora

Original Screenplay: Sean Baker — Anora

Achievement in Film Editing: Sean Baker — Anora

Adapted Screenplay: Conclave — Peter Straughan

International Feature Film: I’m Still Here (Brazil)

Documentary Feature Film: No Other Land

Achievement in Costume Design: Paul Tazewell — Wicked

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Though she previously expressed that she ‘loves the Oscars’ in a Times interview and is seeing a new wave of success with Babygirl and following her performance in Netflix’s The Couple, Nicole Kidman was also absent. 

Kidman did not get any Oscar love for her performance in Babygirl despite its roaring success, playing Romy Mathis, a married tech company CEO who begins an affair with a young intern (Harris Dickinson). 

Bradley Cooper – who has been nominated 12 times, but never won – also didn’t attend this year. 

In 2024, he was nominated three times for his film Maestro – for best picture, best actor, best original screenplay – and still went home empty handed. 

Speaking to Hamilton star Anthony Ramos in 2020, Cooper described awards season as being ‘completely devoid of artistic creation’ – and after his tribulations last year, was not seen at the 2025 ceremony. 

This year, power couple Zendaya and Tom Holland were also absent after the former was snubbed despite her performances in Dune: Part Two and Challengers last year. 

Tom meanwhile has been focusing on his theatre role in Romeo and Juliet rather than the big screen. 

Writing for The Ankler, Richard Rushfield said some have been tempted to ‘write off’ The Oscars as an ‘outdated irrelevancy’. 

These days, Angelina Jolie (pictured at the 2014 event) says she tends to ‘dip in and out of’ awards season

Brad Pitt poses in the press room at the Oscars on Sunday, April 25, 2021

In Saving Oscar: Go Big or You Will Go Home, he comes up with ‘big fixes’ to the problems holding the Academy back, including moving the date of the ceremony to earlier in the year and creating an ‘A-list’, where certain people attend every year. 

Problems with the current state of affairs include damage to Box Office success -though recent films such as Nosferatu, A Complete Unknown and Babygirl are making money – and a questioning of film’s primacy in culture. 

In reaction to Rushfield’s piece, Sasha Stone from Awards Daily said movies must be aimed at ‘normal people’ and not be ‘woke’ in order to bring people back to cinemas. 

As an example of this, she suggested 2024’s Twisters – starring Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones – would have been more successful with a kiss at the end. 

However, it’s not the first time the Oscars has seen an absence of famous faces. 

In 2015, a ‘whitewash’ scandal at the last Academy Awards saw a second straight year of all-white acting nominees, inflaming an industry-wide crisis.

The ceremony was subsequently boycotted by Will and Jada Pinkett Smith due to the lack of diversity. 

Spike Lee wrote on Instagram: ‘How is it possible for the 2nd consecutive year all 20 contenders under the actor category are white? 40 white actors in 2 years and no flava at all.’

He told Good Morning America: ‘So many different people from so many different places adding their ideas to this beautiful American gumbo.

‘At its best, Hollywood represents and creates the imagery for that beauty. But for my part, I think I have to protect and fight for the ideals that make our country – and make our Hollywood community – great.’

In 2016, Reese Witherspoon – also not present at the 2025 event – also joined in the attack on ‘white’ Oscars, writing on Facebook: ‘So disappointed that some of 2015’s best films, filmmakers and performances were not recognized.’

‘I really appreciated this article in TIME on the lack of racial and gender diversity in this year’s Oscar nominations.

She shared an article from TIME magazine, titled ‘The Oscar Nominees Prove The Academy Still Doesn’t Get It.’ 

‘Nothing can diminish the quality of their work, but these filmmakers deserve recognition,’ she said. 

Demi Moore was left crushed as Mikey Madison beat her to the coveted Best Actress award at the 2025 Oscars, on a night when Anora dominated with five wins including Best Picture 

Mikey, 25, won the Best Actress award for her role as a sex worker in the drama Anora

Meanwhile, bestselling author Stephen King called for the cancellation of the 2025 Oscars  amid the devastating Los Angeles wildfires. 

The American writer, known as the King of Horror, revealed that he was staunchly opposed to the Academy Awards continuing as usual after one of the most destructive natural disasters in history.

Out of respect for the thousands of heartbroken families that lost their homes and businesses or are displaced due to evacuation orders, the Portland native, 77, took to Bluesky to reveal he was ‘not voting in the Oscars this year.’

‘IMHO [in my humble opinion] they should cancel them. No glitz with Los Angeles on fire,’ the novelist, who has sold more than 400 million books worldwide, wrote on the platform, which he joined after recently deleting X.

His post received more than 45,100 likes in 24 hours and sparked debate among his fans, who were divided over whether the show should continue to go on. 

Big winners on Sunday night included Zoe Saldana, who took home the Best Supporting Actress award for her role in the controversial Emilia Perez, and Adrien Brody, who triumphed over Timothée Chalamet for the Best Actor award with his performance in the The Brutalist. Kieran Culkin kicked off the evening with a Best Supporting Actor win for A Real Pain.

Mikey Madison, who accepted the gong for Best Actress, portrays an escort in Anora, an independent film with a $6million budget for which Sean Baker won Best Director. She recognized the sex worker community in a touching acceptance speech. 

She said: ‘I also just want to, again, recognize and honor the sex worker community. I will. Yes. I will continue to support and be an ally. 

‘All of the incredible people, the women that I’ve had the privilege of meeting from that community has been one of the highlights of this incredible experience.’

Adrien Brody (left) bested Timothee Chalamet for the Best Actor gong for The Brutalist as Kieran Culkin (right) kicked off the night with a Best Supporting Actor win for A Real Pain

Another big winner included Zoe Saldana in the Best Supporting Actress category for the controversial Emilia Perez

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She concluded her speech by recognizing her fellow nominees including A-lister Demi. 

Mikey said: ‘I also just want to recognize the thoughtful, intelligent, beautiful, breathtaking work of my fellow nominees. I’m honored to be recognized alongside all of you. 

‘This is a dream come true, I’m probably going to wake up tomorrow. Thank you so much, Sean [Baker], I adore you. This is all because of you. Thank you.’

At the end of the night the film earned top prize Best Picture Award over The Brutalist, A Complete Unknown, Conclave, Dune: Part Two, Emilia Pérez, I’m Still Here, Nickel Boys, The Substance, and Wicked.

Anora’s writer and director also earned three awards including: Best Original Screenplay, Achievement in Film Editing, and the coveted Best Director.

Adrien Brody took home his second ever Best Actor award earlier in the night.

The 51-year-old actor  stopped the exit music from playing as he was recognized for his work in The Brutalist.

He beat out an impressive field including: Timothée Chalamet — A Complete Unknown, Colman Domingo — Sing Sing, Ralph Fiennes — Conclave, and Sebastian Stan — The Apprentice.