Hobbits ruled, Kelly Osbourne came out and Jack Black and Sarah Michelle Gellar showed off their pipes when the 2002 MTV Movie Awards were handed out Saturday night at the Shrine Auditorium. The event will be broadcast Thursday at 9 p.m. ET/PT, with MTV News’ pre-show coverage kicking off at 8:30 p.m.
Peter Jackson’s adaptation of “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” took home the night’s most prized pile of golden popcorn, nabbing Best Movie. However, Nicole Kidman walked away from the Shrine as the night’s big winner, grabbing trophies for Best Female Performance and Best Musical Sequence (an honor shared with co-star Ewan McGregor) for her work in “Moulin Rouge.”
“This means a lot because you guys really supported me through a really tough time,” Kidman said after her big night.
Will Smith grabbed the evening’s other top acting prize for his turn in “Ali.”
“This is the real deal,” Smith said of his Best Male Performance win. “Any time you win an award that the fans vote on, it’s really special.”
The ceremony also showered honors on Denzel Washington, Reese Witherspoon, Vin Diesel, Mandy Moore and bestowed the coveted Best Kiss award on Jason Biggs and Seann William Scott for the man-on-man action of “American Pie 2.”
Of course, the MTV Movie Awards is as much about honors as it is about Hollywood making a big, shiny spectacle of itself. Hosts Sarah Michelle Gellar and Jack Black set the tone early, turning in an opening song-and-dance number that hinted that the night would be an equal mix of Busby Berkeley and bling bling.
Eminem, however, kept it surprisingly low-key for his performance of “Without Me.” After Chris Rock introduced “the baddest rapper in the world,” Em let his skills – and his logo – do the talking, cranking out his hit in front of a backdrop of “e”s.
Fellow Detroit-area misfits the White Stripes got back into the over-the-top vibe, enlisting a cast of hundreds to help out on a medley of songs off of their latest LP, White Blood Cells.
But while Em boasted sales clout and the White Stripes packed a small army, Kelly Osbourne had the biggest buzz heading into her musical performance, her first before a live audience. The reality series princess-turned-popster had more than a few fans on the red carpet, and each looked forward to hearing her bring her recently released cover of Madonna’s “Papa Don’t Preach” to the stage.
“I’m crapping myself right now,” Kelly revealed prior to her performance. After an introduction from her father (“the prince of f–ing darkness,” Ozzy Osbourne) and with her mother Sharon and brother Jack (sporting a “f– MTV” tie) looking on, Kelly joined rockers Pure Rubbish and twisted and hopped her way across the stage, seemingly free of whatever nerves might have plagued her.
2002 MTV Movie Awards Winners:
- BEST MOVIE – “The Lord of the Rings – The Fellowship of the Ring”
- BEST MALE PERFORMANCE – Will Smith, “Ali”
- BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE – Nicole Kidman, “Moulin Rouge”
- BEST ONSCREEN TEAM – Vin Diesel & Paul Walker, “The Fast and the Furious”
- BEST COMEDIC PERFORMANCE – Reese Witherspoon, “Legally Blonde”
- BEST VILLAIN – Denzel Washington, “Training Day”
- BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE, MALE – Orlando Bloom, “The Lord of the Rings – The Fellowship of the Ring”
- BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE, FEMALE – Mandy Moore, “A Walk to Remember”
- BEST KISS – Jason Biggs & Seann William Scott, “American Pie 2”
- BEST ACTION SEQUENCE – The Attack Scene, “Pearl Harbor”
- BEST FIGHT – Chris Tucker & Jackie Chan versus the Hong Kong Gang, “Rush Hour 2”
- BEST MUSICAL SEQUENCE – Ewan McGregor & Nicole Kidman, “Moulin Rouge”
- BEST NEW FILMMAKER – Christopher Nolan, “Memento”