J.J. Abrams’ favorite part of The Oscar Wilde Awards is that it’s “a stress-free party.” We have to agree: Drones flew overhead at the annual U.S.-Ireland Alliance ceremony, documenting the action on the green carpet and on the roof of his Bad Robot Production offices while Star Wars: The Force Awakens fans on the street screamed for the director to sign their memorabilia (he did). Star Trek cast members John Cho (Mr. Sulu) and Karl Urban (Dr. McCoy) slipped inside a side door followed by Star Wars heroine Daisy Ridley, who also stopped for fans. It was, basically, nerd heaven. Abrams’ partin’ shot before he also slipped into a side door to his party? A metaphorical answer to the “next project after Star Wars” question. “I feel like I just ate an incredibly huge and delicious meal,” he said, holding his stomach. “I can’t even think about food again at the moment. I will be hungry again very soon, but I can’t even fathom what it would be at the moment.”
Photograph Alberto Rodriguez/Getty Images for US-Ireland Alliance Oscar Wilde Awards
Inside the coolest offices in L.A., Oscar Wilde honorees included James Corden, Sarah Greene, Snow Patrol, Daisy Ridley, and Lenny Abrahamson. Corden was this year’s “honorary” Irishman (he’s English), and Ridley boasts Irish ancestry. Ridley brought her father to the party for what is going to be a busy weekend: She is recording a song with a “massive superstar” on Saturday before presenting an Oscar on Sunday, then she’s returning to the U.K. to stat filming Star Wars Episode VIII. She had only been to the U.S. once before being cast as Rey. “I never ever thought I’d feel at home here,” she said about Los Angeles. “I thought of L.A. as a huge, traffic-clogged city of movie-makers. What I found is a sometimes-base, a home away from home, and a few more people to add to the list of humans I already love.”
Photograph Alberto Rodriguez/Getty Images for US-Ireland Alliance Oscar Wilde Awards
Gary Lightbody stepped up to accept for Snow Patrol and also gave an L.A. shout-out, saying, “When someone from L.A. says ‘Do you want to go out for a beer?’ They mean it. When someone from Ireland says, ‘Do you want to go out for a beer?’ What they mean is, ‘Maybe I’ll be home tonight, I wouldn’t count on it.’”
Photograph Alberto Rodriguez/Getty Images for US-Ireland Alliance Oscar Wilde Awards
Attendees included Aisha Tyler, CAA’s Richard Lovett, Kevin Huvane, Steven Weber, Kate Capshaw, and Steven Spielberg, among others. Idris Elba listened to the short speeches with his back to the bar and a smile on his face. After the last comments were made, Elba, still smiling, expressed his interest in becoming an honorary Irishman, too.
Photograph Alberto Rodriguez/Getty Images for US-Ireland Alliance Oscar Wilde Awards Photograph Alberto Rodriguez/Getty Images for US-Ireland Alliance Oscar Wilde Awards
