Last year was a great year for entertainment by and for people age 50 and older, the people we affectionately call “grownups.”
Nearly half of the actors who won Emmys in September were over 50, and nine of the Oscar-nominated performers were grownups — including The Brutalist’s Adrien Brody, who won the Movies for Grownups award for best actor just weeks before winning the Academy Award in the same category.
This year’s Oscar nominees won’t be revealed until Jan. 22 (and the winners on March 15), but you can get a preview of all the films in the awards conversation right here.
Be sure to watch the Movies for Grownups with AARP ceremony hosted by Alan Cumming, 61, on PBS’ Great Performances on Feb. 22.
And the winners are …
Best Picture
Focus Features/Courtesy Everett Collection
Hamnet
Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao brings one of Shakespeare’s lesser-known tragedies — the death of his son, Hamnet — to the screen, focusing on the relationship between the Bard (Paul Mescal) and his wife, Agnes (Jessie Buckley). This moving and haunting drama touches on love and grief, connecting the playwright’s loss to one of his most famous plays: Hamlet.
Best Director
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Guillermo del Toro, 61, Frankenstein
There’s no one else who could tackle a new adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Gothic novel quite like del Toro, for whom the project was a lifelong dream. With visuals both sumptuous and terrifying, del Toro’s take on the classic monster tale gives more insight into the lonely creature (played by Jacob Elordi) brought to life by a possibly mad scientist, Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac).
Best Actor
Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection
George Clooney, 64, Jay Kelly
Clooney shines in this dramatic comedy as the title character, an A-list movie star who is seemingly on top of the world. But the actor is hardly typecast; he brings a richness and depth to his character’s poignant reflections on his personal life and public persona as he takes stock of his successes and failures.
Best Actress
Searchlight Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection
Laura Dern, 59, Is This Thing On?
As her soon-to-be ex-husband, Alex (cowriter Will Arnett, 55), embarks on a new hobby in stand-up comedy following their amicable split, Dern’s Tess must navigate the awkward aftermath of their breakup (including being a subject in Alex’s material) in this contemporary, grownup spin on the rom-com from cowriter and director Bradley Cooper, 51.
Video: Video: Fan Favorites Turn Out for Movies for Grownups Awards
Michael Kovac/Getty Images for AARP
