After The “Godzilla Minus One” Director Struggled To Deliver His Oscar Acceptance Speech In English, The Academy Played Him Off Just As He Started To Pay Tribute To A Producer Who Recently Died

The dreaded play-off music kicked in just as Takashi Yamazaki started to pay poignant tribute to the movie’s producer, who died in December, with one furious viewer tweeting, “They put in the effort to translate their speech for you, and you play them off???”

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Oscar winners RDJ, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Emma Stone, and Cillian Murphy posing with their awards at the 2024 ceremony

And Godzilla’s visual effects team couldn’t have been more excited when presenters Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito announced that they had won, with Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, Masaki Takahashi, and Tatsuji Nojima each taking to the stage with a small Godzilla toy in hand as they accepted the award.

Masaki Takahashi, Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, and Tatsuji Nojima accept the Best Visual Effects Oscar

But movie fans were left outraged when the Japanese team had their moving speech interrupted by the Oscars’ famous orchestral play-off music as they struggled to translate what they wanted to say into English.

Masaki Takahashi, Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, and Tatsuji Nojima accept the Best Visual Effects Oscar from Arnold Schwarzenegger
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The movie was written and directed by Takashi, who also led the visual effects, so he was the one to deliver the speech to the star-studded audience.

Takashi Yamazaki posing and smililng with a Godzilla toy on the Oscars red carpet

As a framed photo of Shuji was held up onstage, Takashi said, “I want to tell our producer Shuji Abe, who we lost too soon, we did it!” over the noise from the orchestra — leaving viewers at home horrified.

A framed photo of Shuji Abe held onstage at the Oscars

“so fucked up that they tried to play the godzilla vfx team off,” another user agreed. “like he did not have to make that speech in English and reference beloved American pop culture icon rocky balboa but he did. for you. the academy. because you love that shit.”

so fucked up that they tried to play the godzilla vfx team off like he did not have to make that speech in English and reference beloved American pop culture icon rocky balboa but he did. for you. the academy. because you love that shit

— paul muaddib mccartney (@MATTCHIOS) March 11, 2024
Twitter: @MATTCHIOS

While somebody else referenced the inappropriate timing of the music, writing, “I don't like how they started to play the godzilla crew off when they were talking about the producer who passed.”

And another annoyed viewer concluded, “Don’t fucking play the Godzilla guys off. It’s hard to speak a different fucking language quickly.”

Thankfully, the team didn’t appear to let the interruption of their speech ruin their night, with the foursome beaming with pride as they posed with both their Godzillas and their Oscars backstage.

Masaki Takahashi, Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, and Tatsuji Nojima smile and pose with Oscars and Godzilla toys

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