Showing off her 11-year-old's ingenuity through social media, the 'Women Talking' director and Oscar winner offers fans a look at her convincing 'you must return it' letter.
- Apr 3, 2023
AceShowbiz - Sarah Polley has been left shocked by her daughter's crafty April Fool's prank. Less than a month after taking home the Best Adapted Screenplay trophy from 2023 Oscars, the "Women Talking" director offered a look at the practical joke pulled by her 11-year-old through her social media platforms.
On Saturday, April 1, the 44-year-old filmmaker posted on both Instagram and Twitter a photo capturing a printed paper signed by Academy President David Rubin. Through the snap, it could be seen that the letter began by informing her, "Dear Sarah Polley, we say this to you with the deepest regrets: the Oscar you received was given by mistake- you must return it."
"We are giving you one more week to enjoy its presence in your home, but after that period of time you must mail it back to LA, where we will give it to the rightful best adapted screenplay: All Quiet on the Western Front," the letter went on to read. "We are sorry for your loss, but it is only fair that the play with the real best adapted screenplay gets the Oscar."
"In hindsight, we should have told you when we realized it, on the night on which the Oscar was given, but you must understand that we did not want another 'Year of the Moonlight.' and we also did not want it to get all over your local news, as the citizens of Toronto would probably be quite irritated, and we do not want this news getting out," it continued as referring to the 2017 "La La Land"/"Moonlight" blunder.
Fortunately, Sarah discovered that the letter was not sent by the Academy. Instead, it was created by her 11-year-old daughter. Alongside the photo of the fake letter, the actress-turned-filmmaker explained in the caption, "My eleven-year-old swung low for April Fools Day this year. #AprilFoolsDay."
Sarah's post on Instagram was quickly flooded with responses from fellow celebrities. Arielle Kebbel wrote in the comment section, "Brutal. But also, genius." America Ferrera chimed in, "Hahahaha!!! Genius. Mean genius." Director/screenwriter Gina Prince-Bythewood also praised, "This is a future comedy writer." Director Sian Heder, on the other hand, jokingly said, "My kids need lessons from your kids."
Also embracing the April Fool's prank was "All Quiet on the Western Front" director Edward Berger, who responded to Sarah's Twitter post by writing back, "Dear Sarah, to save on mailing costs as I live overseas the Academy has asked me to provide you with my address so you can ship the Oscar directly. I will follow up shortly. Ok with you? All best, Edward."
The interaction between the two filmmakers did not stop there. Sarah later replied to Edward by tweeting, "My kid says to tell you that it's already packaged and on its way." In return, Edward pointed out, "Thank you. Tracking number please. Would hate for it to get lost."
