Warren Beatty has refused to comment in the wake of Sunday night's Oscar debacle, but his older sister Shirley MacLaine was more than willing to share her thoughts on the incident.
The legendary screen star was in the audience on Sunday after presenting the Oscar for Best Foreign language Film with Charlize Theron when Beatty, 79, and Faye Dunaway announced that La La Land had won Best Picture due to the accountant for the ceremony handing them the wrong envelope.
It is a moment that MacLaine said she is still trying to cope with days later.
'I think we’re all processing the horror of it. I’m still dealing with it,' MacLaine said in an interview with USA Today.
'I’m concerned with how [Beatty] must have felt, being so close to him. I’m three years older and I’m protective.We know how difficult it was for him, but it was also for me.'
Cameras captured the moment the Moonlight cast and crew learned of their win, and MacLaine could be seen in the background gasping, covering her mouth in shock and then clutching her chest.
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Hollywood horror:Shirley MacLaine opened about her brother Warren Beatty's Best Picture Oscar flub on Sunday, which she watched from the audience (above)
Cause for concern:MacLaine could be seen gasping, covering her mouth in shock and then clutching her chest (above) when the mix-up was announced
Moving forward:'I think we’re all processing the horror of it. I’m still dealing with it,' said MacLaine (Beatty above with Jimmy Kimmel explaining the flub)
MacLaine said that she has also been spending a lot of her time and energy trying to understand why this happened on Sunday.
'I’m basically a mystic. And I’m wondering what was that all about? And I am not sure yet. I have to think about it some more,' said MacLaine.
'The one thing you learned about what occurred at the Oscars is that every instant of life is important. And anything like that can happen to you, driving in a car, leading a seminar, working at your desk and presenting an award.'
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The 82-year-old MacLaine, who took home the Actress in a Leading Role Oscar in 1984 for her work in Terms of Endearment, said that as soon as Beatty got off the stage on Sunday she called his phone.
'He was backstage dealing with what he was going through. He didn’t answer his phone,' said MacLaine.
SHIRLEY & WARREN
Shirley was born in Richmond, Virginia in 1934 to IraBeaty andKathlyn MacLean, eventually taking her mother's maiden name when she moved out to Hollywood. Her mother was a drama teacher and her father held a variety of jobs. The two named their daughter after Shirley Temple, and three years later gave birth to a son Warren. Shirley found success while still in high school by landing a few Broadway roles, and got her big break when on of the stars of The Pajama Game broke her ankle, freeing up the role for Shirley, who went on to get signed by Paramount and make her debut in Alfred Hitchcock's The Trouble with Harry in 1955. Warren followed her out a few years later and after a string to television roles broke through with his role inElia Kazan's Splendor in the Grass in 1961.
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'And then I called the home and [Beatty's wife Annette Bening] answered and we talked. And that’s all I’m going to say.'
In the end, MacLaine said she was forced to go home soon after and skip the night's big parties because of the stress of the situation.
'It is an awe-inspiring when you are in front of all of those people you respect so much. Anyone who does the Oscars is nervous if they have a brain,' explained MacLaine, who added that she hopes the Academy will have her brother back next year to present the same award.
Beatty meanwhile is still waiting on a statement from the Oscars to explain everything that occurred in a detailed manner.
The time stamp on the picture of Emma Stone tweeted out by the bonehead accountant who handed off the incorrect envelope at the Academy Awards reveals that he posted the photo at the same time Beatty was on stage presenting Best Picture.
Brian Cullinan of PricewaterhouseCoopers shared an image of Stone after she won the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role which had a time stamp of 9:05pm on Sunday.
'Best Actress Emma Stone backstage!' he wrote to his followers, adding the hashtag 'PwC' - a firm no-no in the eyes of the Academy which 'highly discourages' taking photographs of stars backstage or posting on social media, a source who was also working at the event told DailyMail.com.
A look back at Sunday night's telecast reveals that the picture was posted on Twitter by Cullinan two minutes after Beatty and his Bonnie & Clyde co-star Faye Dunaway took the stage at the Dolby Theater at 9:03pm to present the last award of the night.
The two said a few brief words and then threw to the clip package featuring the nine nominees in the category.
Better times: MacLaine was all smiles and gave her brother a big wave as he came out on stage Sunday (above next to Charlize Theron)
Perspective: 'We know how difficult it was for him, but it was also for me,' said MacLaine (above with Beatty in 2012)
Ring ring:She said that she called Beatty backstage but he did not answer so she called his wife Annette Bening (above in 2009) from the audience and they talked for some time
At 9:05pm Beatty opened the envelope for Best Picture, with his first response after pulling out the card being to look inside for a second card and then appearing confused by what he was looking at.
He stalled for a bit and then showed the card to Faye Dunaway, who at 9:07pm declared La La Land the winner, an announcement that brought the producers and cast of the film to the stage, including Stone who entered from backstage where Cullinan had just taken her picture.
It was not until 9:10pm that Cullinan could be seen racing out from backstage to fix the situation however, and Moonlight was not revealed as the actual Best Picture winner until 9:13pm that night.