Warren Beatty said the huge mistake at the Academy Awards ceremony in announcing the best picture winner was not the fault of him or his co-presenter Faye Dunaway.
News of the mistake, announcing "La La Land" as the winner of the best picture Oscar instead of the actual recipient "Moonlight" was already making international headlines when Beatty arrived at the Governors Ball with his former "Bonnie and Clyde" costar.
Like a prosecutor clinging to an incriminating document, Beatty was still holding the envelope handed to him by the show's producers as proof of they were innocent, according to The Daily Beast.
"People thought I was being dramatic but I wasn't," Beatty told London's Daily Mail about the card, which actually listed the winner for best actress, Emma Stone of "La La Land. "There was something wrong. I showed it to Faye and she said 'La La Land.'"
According to the Daily Mail, Beatty's wife Annette Bening called him and tried to convince him to leave the ball, but the Academy Award-winning actor declined. The actor's representatives attempted to get the Academy to call a news conference to clear Beatty and Dunaway of any fault in the mix up.
TMZ wrote that Beatty's attempt to use the envelope as evidence of his innocence "fell a tad short."
"Warren hobnobbed with a slew of stars, envelope in hand, showing everyone the envelope he was given was for best actress," TMZ wrote. "Thing is ... had he looked, it would have been apparent from the get-go."
On his way to the Governors Ball, Beatty told a group of reporters backstage at the Dolby Theatre that he was still puzzled how the mistake was made, People magazine reported.
"I don't know anything … I don't think anyone knows," Beatty said. "I've asked and I haven't got an answer.
"I read the card that was in the envelope. I read it but I didn't say 'La La Land.' I thought, 'This is very strange because it says Best Actress on the card.' And I felt that maybe there was some sort of misprint. As planned, I gave it to Faye. And that's all I want to say on the subject."
Beatty and Dunaway were both nominated in 1968 for Oscars for their performances in "Bonnie and Clyde."
PriceWaterhouseCoopers issued a statement after the Academy Awards show taking responsibility for the mistake.
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