Behind the Scenes the Vanity Fair Oscar Party with LeBron James, Billie Eilish and Steven Spielberg

Flavor Flav, Jon Batiste, Daymond John and Billie Eilish share a moment at Vanity Fair’s Oscar party in Beverly Hills on March 10, 2024. STEFANIE KEENAN/VF24/WIREIMAGE

On Oscar night, details matter. Who are you wearing? What are you nominated for? Who won? Just don’t expect everyone to know the answers.

“What movie won?” Rick Hilton asked as he and wife Kathy Hilton assumed position at the end of a glamorous queue to get into Vanity Fair’s 30th anniversary Oscar party in Beverly Hills on Sunday after 10 p.m. They asked their son, Kathy says, but no clue. Fortunately, a gentleman standing directly in front of the couple had the answer. “It was Oppenheimer,” he said, not mentioning the awkwardness of Al Pacino’s best picture reveal. Some details can be saved for Monday morning. Plus, there are more rapid-fire questions to field.

“Oh, Jimmy Kimmel. I like him,” Rick said, smiling, in a totally relatable moment because who doesn’t love Jimmy Kimmel? And who doesn’t love Vanity Fair’s annual Academy Awards party? It may have taken some hits in previous years due to hosting too many suits or too many influencers, or facing too steep of competition because of invites sent out by party pairs Beyoncé and Jay-Z or Madonna and Guy Oseary. But the truth is, in 2024, there’s still no beating Vanity Fair for attracting the highest number of A-list stars under one roof at one time outside the Dolby Theatre. Maybe it was the milestone, but it appeared that the list sacrificed a number of TikTokers in favor of returning to its roots by packing in as many actors, auteurs, models, studio executives and moguls.

Oh, and sports stars, lead by superstar LeBron James, who made the rounds with Rich Paul, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, and Lakers teammate Anthony Davis. Tennis legends Roger Federer and Serena Williams attended, as did Russell Wilson and wife Ciara, and Odell Beckham Jr. with rumoured love interest Kim Kardashian, whose Calabasas clan was fully represented by mother Kris Jenner and sisters Kendall and Kylie.

LeBron James and crew. STEFANIE KEENAN/VF24/WIREIMAGEReturn to the Hiltons. When The Hollywood Reporter arrived, a couple dozen stars were already lined up on the luxurious 125-foot red carpet. Lizzo was behind the Hiltons, wearing a new haircut for spring (“the bob is bobbing,” she claimed), when Sandra Hüller arrived, accompanied by her agency, UTA’s Houston Costa. The Anatomy of a Fall best actress nominee wasn’t in the zone long before Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo grabbed her hand and drew her close to a stanchion. “I’m stealing Sandra,” she said as she invited her to an on-camera talk.

Just then, Steven Spielberg snuck behind the photographers and whispered to Kristie Macosko Krieger, “No photos for me, please.” The filmmaker received a lot of screen time during the show, but he changed his mind after he entered the unique Basil Walter and Will Cooper-designed edifice. He posed with Celine Song while clutching an In-N-Out burger, met VF’s editor-in-chief Radhika Jones, and ran into daughter Jessica Capshaw. Similarly, the Vanity Fair party is usually a mind-bending experience since there are boldfaced names everywhere you turn.

Chris Hemsworth and Matt Damon sat in one corner of the bar, among Endeavor’s Patrick Whitesell, Emily Blunt, and John Krasinski. Melissa McCarthy huddled with two-time Oscar winner Finneas, while NBA star Russell Westbrook casually went by. Beck sat across from Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann.

Around the corner, Federer and his wife resisted an unusual approach from an unnamed TV celebrity. John Waters spoke with Jodie Foster, J.J. Abrams socialised with his agency, CAA’s Maha Dakhil, and Bill Maher smoked a cigar. Julia Fox brushed shoulders with Oppenheimer producer Emma Thomas, who was clutching her Oscar below her waist. Maggie Rogers almost tripped on the train of Camila Mendes’ dress. Catherine O’Hara and her husband waited in queue for the picture booth (“It’s our annual tradition,” she explained), while the Haim sisters hurried to the dance floor, only to be stopped by Allison Williams’ group embrace. A few songs later, Jon Hamm busted a movie to Mariah Carey’s “Fantasy” remix, which featured the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard.

Maude Apatow, Sydney Sweeney, Billie Eilish and Camila Cabello. KEVIN MAZUR/VF24/WIREIMAGEThen along came Kylie Minogue. “It’s been a big week,” she told THR after being applauded for surprising the homosexual community by joining Madonna on stage at Kia Forum for The Celebration Tour. But, because details are important, Minogue went on to explain why she’s had such a great few days. She not only sang a duet with Madge, but she also accepted a global icon award at the Brit Awards in London and stopped in Las Vegas for one gig at Voltaire at the Venetian. “It’s been a lot,” she stated. “The energy in Las Vegas was incredible.” They were the best crowd. And I’ll be back for two more dates this week.

Speaking of excellent audiences, Billie Eilish, who became the youngest person to win two Oscars, was surrounded by people everywhere she walked. At one point, it was Babyface and Jeffrey Wright, then Sydney Sweeney, Camila Cabello, and Maude Apatow, and finally Ramy Youssef. By the end of the night, an unidentified female love interest was clutching Eilish’s hand as they made their way through the celebration. Sunday was a special night for couples. Reneé Rapp was seen overhead introducing her new(ish) girlfriend Towa Bird, Barry Keoghan and Sabrina Carpenter remained close throughout the night and looked every bit the lovestruck couple, Cabello was spotted leaving with Cinderella costar Nicholas Galitzine, and married couple Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel had a black-tie Hollywood date night.

WME co-chairmen Richard Weitz and Christian Muirhead were overheard accepting congratulations from rival agency competitors (gasp!) after winning the most Oscars of any talent agency thanks to Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas, Emma Stone, Robert Downey Jr., Jonathan Glazer, Eilish and her brother, and a few others.

Elsa Pataky, Luciana Damon, Matt Damon and Chris Hemsworth. STEFANIE KEENAN/VF24/WIREIMAGE

Also dishing out compliments, Grammy nominated Gracie Abrams gushed to Simu Liu, “Nice moves tonight, that was epic” in reference to Ryan Gosling’s show-stealing performance of “I’m Just Ken” in which he played a part. Meghann Fahy got in on the action, saying hello to Florence Pugh and more. “You look so fucking hot. I want to be you when I grow up!”

One more: One well-placed source offered details on how they see the current Oscar party landscape shaking out in Vanity Fair‘s favor. “People complain that they miss when the party used to be intimate, like it was at Morton’s back in the day, but look around, there’s no room where you will see LeBron James, Sergey Brin, Jeff Bezos, Sam Altman and Steven Spielberg. The world has gotten bigger.”

The Beverly Hills sidewalks are still the same size and are the finest spot to be after midnight, when the crush of revellers is making their way to their automobiles and off to Bey and Jay’s Gold Party or up the hills to Madge and Guy’s celebration. Because details count, this year’s Vanity Fair featured a new item in addition to the usual accoutrements, such as In-N-Out burgers, a “Departures Lounge” with an ISDIN beauty bag, Gnarwhal Coffee & Donuts, and an Uber concierge desk. The chief vehicle attendant raised a little loudhailer to better announce whose car had just arrived. Billie Eilish, your automobile is ready. “Billie Eilish, your car is ready.” And out she went, trailed by an entourage, as she was designed to do.