00:00Good morning. Here I am in my homeland in Wales, and at 83 years of age, I did not expect to get this award. I really didn't.
00:11Anthony Hopkins paid tribute to Chadwick Boseman on Monday morning following his surprise Best Actor win at the Oscars on Sunday night.
00:18The late Boseman was perceived as the heavy favorite to win the coveted category during the ceremony for his performance in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.
00:25However, in the final moments of the 93rd Academy Awards, Boseman lost out to Hopkins for his role in The Father.
00:32Hopkins was not in attendance at the ceremony to accept the award, which led to an abrupt wrap-up for the show.
00:38On Monday morning, after waking up a two-time Oscar winner, Hopkins, who is currently in his native Wales, posted a brief Instagram video where he acknowledged his win and made a point of paying tribute to Boseman.
00:48I want to pay tribute to Chadwick Boseman, who was taken from us far too early. And again, thank you all very much.
01:00He continued noting,
01:01I really did not expect this, so I feel very privileged and honored.
01:05Hopkins wins spurred backlash on social media for a number of reasons, especially since the show's producers switched the Best Actor presentation to last,
01:13in place of the more traditional Best Picture announcement to wrap up the show, which many presumed would be a lead-up to an emotional win for Boseman.
01:21Boseman, who died last August after being diagnosed with colon cancer four years prior, is the first black actor to be posthumously nominated for an Academy Award.
01:30Had he won, it would have marked the third time in history for an actor to do so, following Peter Finch and Heath Ledger.
01:36It would also have been Boseman's first and only Academy Award.
01:39For more on everything at this year's Academy Awards, head to THR.com.
01:44For The Hollywood Reporter News, I'm Neha Joy.
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