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No one stands on the Oscar stage and admits in their acceptance speech that they want to thank yoga and meditation.
But Sunday evening there were plenty of Oscar-winning actors, directors, filmmakers and singers who could easily say just that. Given the 45-second time limit and obligatory expressions of gratitude, it’s understandable why these celebrities don’t mention any yoga or meditative elements of physical practice on stage. Or, as many of us do, they don’t take the time to explain how quieting your thoughts helps you distinguish fiction from reality long enough. Isn’t it?
Here’s a look at what we know about some of the 2024 Oscar winners and how their meditation and yoga experiences specifically influenced their performances and lives. Let’s look at.
2024 Oscar Winners Who Practice Yoga or Meditation

Best Supporting Actress: DaVine Joy Randolph
Randolph’s portrayal of the “warm and witty cafeteria hostess” new york times explain her role in holdovers, yet another of the multifaceted character actor’s signature scene-stealing interpretations. Randolph’s only publicly known relationship with yoga reflects that.
In a recent talk show interview, she talked about a rather dramatic dim sum outing that ended with a robbery at a nearby store. Amid the chaos and screams, Randolph ran into the restaurant’s kitchen, grabbed a knife and performed a “yoga fire breath,” she said.
While she didn’t do any obvious breathing exercises during her acceptance speech Sunday night, she had the self-awareness and confidence that one tends to get from a yoga practice. She said, “For a long time, I always wanted to be different, but now I realize that I should be myself.”
Best Original Song: Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell
While there are countless yoga playlists filled with Billie Eilish songs, her own practice leans toward meditation. According to an interview with the then 20-year-old star, V Magazineafter suddenly becoming a celebrity, she went through a “very dark situation.”
“I couldn’t sleep,” she said. She started using her meditation app after suffering from “really, really incredibly horrifying nightmares.” “Whenever I needed to take a breath and stop thinking about the fear that was going on in my mind, I would listen to that meditation app,” she said. Eilish has explained many times that she later used those nightmares to create music videos that resonated with millions of people.
Her songwriter brother, O’Connell, has a unique approach to meditation.In an interview with vanity fairhe explained that he also struggles with difficult emotions and finds having podcasts and music driving in the background “very meditative.”
Best Director: Christopher Nolan
Clearly, there is an expanded understanding of consciousness by the Creator. inception, dark knight, and oppenheimer. Themes of personal responsibility, empathy, and epistemic fallibility are surprisingly consistent with certain practices of self-awareness. We suspect he may be meditating.

Best Actress: Emma Stone
It’s not uncommon for tabloids to feature photos of celebrities, including Stone, walking into studios carrying yoga mats. However, when Stone talks about her own practice, she focuses on her meditation.
“My life has completely changed,” she said in an interview. USA Today Ten years ago. “I’m pretty addicted to it. Once or twice a day, I meditate. It’s been the best thing for my mind.”
She recently revealed in an interview with NPR that her first panic attack occurred when she was just 7 years old. When her interviewer asked if she turned to her acting to escape herself and her insecurities, Stone brilliantly explained that it was quite the opposite. “All my big emotions are productive,” she said.
Stone went on to liken acting to meditation, explaining that both require one to focus on the present, rather than ruminating about the past or being distracted by fear of what’s to come. As Stone explained, while meditating, you are “living in your experience, living in your body.”
She demonstrated that in her acceptance speech for her next role. poor thing“This is really overwhelming,” she admitted to the world, trying to compose herself as best she could despite her dress malfunctioning. Stone went on to say that she had been panicking about this moment for several days before the ceremony. Director Yorgos Lanthimos calmed her down by simply saying, “Please calm her down.” He must be meditating too.
Best Live-Action Short: Wes Anderson
It’s unclear whether Anderson, the filmmaker, is meditating or practicing on the mat, but this is an adaptation of a Roald Dahl film. The Amazing Story of Henry Sugar In fact, in a complicated way, it is entirely about meditation. Disillusioned with magic, the protagonist is drawn to yoga and its meditative aspects. There’s more to this story, but Anderson certainly appreciates and wants to convey that meditation brings each of us what we need, but not necessarily what we want.
That’s not the only connection between Anderson and yoga. According to the film’s article, before the first film, he regularly hung out at an eclectic coffee shop in Dallas, where he met yoga instructor Kumar Palana, who he described as “one of Ed Sullivan’s It was like a variety show.” Los Angeles Times. Anderson later played the role of Paraná’s character in several films such as: royal tanenbaum family and Rushmore.
Best Animated Work Award: Hayao Miyazaki
Miyajiki, a famous Japanese film director and animator, is known not only for being a perfectionist, but also for his focus on depicting the quiet beauty of everyday moments and obscure places.
Reviews of Miyazaki’s current and past work note that his films tend to involve an abandonment of ego and an ability to create a mystical reality that lies beyond the visibility of reality. Perhaps most associated with meditation is the intentional stillness that director Miyazaki built into his scenes, which he calls the Japanese word “ma” and describes it as “emptiness.” There is. The effect is a moment of stillness and silence, allowing the characters as well as the audience to take in the beauty of the world that may go unnoticed.
And it should not be overlooked that this is somewhat autobiographical boy and heron It has itself been likened to a “meditation of sadness.” rolling stone.
Best Screenplay: Cord Jefferson
Honorable mention goes to writer/director Jefferson, who credited his therapist in his Oscar acceptance speech. american fiction. Jefferson previously said in an interview: new york times He says he has tried meditation, although not consistently. Understood. It is not easy. We’re eager to witness what kind of artistry he’ll create if meditation becomes a regular habit for him.

Best Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr.
You probably already know this story. Downey’s past struggles with addiction resulted in his arrest on drug charges in 1996 and ultimately spent time in prison. Since then, he has changed his trajectory and landed leading roles in box office-grossing superhero films such as: iron man, avengers, and Sherlock Holmes Before taking on a support role Oppenheimer.
What many people don’t know is that yoga, along with a 12-step program, martial arts, and therapy, is one of the practices that helped him turn his life around and stay sober. Downey has worked extensively with Vinny Marino, a Los Angeles-based yoga teacher who also previously struggled with addiction.
“You’re moving in the right direction and now you’re actually working on what people would call magic,” Downey explained in an interview. time. “Not really. It’s just that you’re not in the dark anymore, so you know how to do things a little better, right?”
This is an approach to self-awareness that seems to draw on existentialism and meditation in equal measure.After shooting Oppenheimer, Downey explained: vulture If a scene needed to be repeated, director Nolan would sometimes tell his actors to literally do nothing on the next take. It’s not an easy job for an actor. But Downey conceded.
“There was an ongoing dialogue between a master filmmaker and someone who was open to new experiences,” Downey explained. That is the beginner’s mind, the tenet of yoga that approaches any situation from a beginner’s perspective, seeing it as it is, and exploring what can be learned rather than dwelling on how things should be.
This approach may have also helped that Downey withstood host Jimmy Kimmel’s tirades about Downey’s former drug use earlier in the ceremony. The actor’s restrained demeanor during the assault may be the true definition of a superhero.
Best Actor: Cillian Murphy
We only hear vague references from Murphy to yoga as something that “middle-aged men” do. Murphy lends her voice to her Calm app, reciting “sleep stories” to help users unwind and relax. Props to the actor for facilitating the practice of others. Honorable mention.
Best Animated Short Film: Sean Ono Lennon
Peace promotion activities recognized The war is over! Inspired by the music of John and Yoko, The youngest son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono is commonly referred to as a “psychedelic musician.”
John Lennon has openly talked about his late father’s practice of Transcendental Meditation (TM) in interviews and social media posts over the years. “I don’t think of TM as a religious practice, but I’m sure some people do. But for me, it’s like a scientific way to calm the brain and make the frontal lobes more active. “It’s a thing,” he explained in an interview. “It’s really an exercise. We make a lot of decisions subconsciously that aren’t always good, so this helps increase your conscious thinking by about 10%.”
Lennon has posted on social media promoting the Lumenate app, which he describes as a “psychedelic meditation app.” Lennon is also known for sharing lessons learned from his personal meditations. Some of the comments are particularly self-conscious, others are a little outlandish, but they are all thoughtful and encourage us all to encourage others, even those whose perspectives we don’t understand, to be more… It reminds me that I should be able to understand.