The 75th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) took place on March 23, 2003, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. During the ceremony, AMPAS presented Academy Awards (commonly referred to as Oscars) in 24 categories honoring films released in 2002. The ceremony, televised in the United States by ABC, was produced by Gilbert Cates and was directed by Louis J. Horvitz. Actor Steve Martin hosted for the second time, having previously presided over the 73rd ceremony held in 2001. Three weeks earlier in a ceremony at Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California held on March 1, the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement were presented by host Kate Hudson.

Chicago won six awards, including Best Picture. Other winners included The Pianist with three awards, Frida and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers with two, and 8 Mile, Adaptation, Bowling for Columbine, The ChubbChubbs!, The Hours, Nowhere in Africa, Road to Perdition, Spirited Away, Talk to Her, This Charming Man, and Twin Towers with one. The telecast garnered about 33 million viewers in the United States, making it the least-watched and lowest-rated televised Oscar ceremony to that point.

Winners and nominees

The nominees for the 75th Academy Awards were announced on February 11, 2003, at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, California, by Frank Pierson, president of the Academy, and Academy Award winning-actress Marisa Tomei. Chicago received the most nominations with thirteen; Gangs of New York came in second with ten.

The winners were announced during the awards ceremony on March 23, 2003. Chicago became the first musical film to win Best Picture since 1968's Oliver! At age 29, Adrien Brody was the youngest person to win Best Actor. With her 13th nomination, Meryl Streep became the most nominated actor in Oscar history. Meanwhile, Best Actor nominee Jack Nicholson earned his 12th nomination, extending his record as the most nominated male performer. Julianne Moore was the ninth performer to earn two acting nominations in the same year. "Lose Yourself" from 8 Mile became the first hip hop song to win the Best Original Song award.

Awards

Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface, and indicated with a double dagger ().

Chicago – Martin Richards, producerGangs of New York – Alberto Grimaldi and Harvey Weinstein, producers The Hours – Scott Rudin and Robert Fox, producers The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – Barrie M. Osborne, Fran Walsh, and Peter Jackson, producers The Pianist – Roman Polanski, Robert Benmussa, and Alain Sarde, producers | valign="top" |

Roman Polanski – The Pianist Rob Marshall – Chicago Martin Scorsese – Gangs of New York Stephen Daldry – The Hours Pedro Almodóvar – Talk to Her Adrien Brody – The Pianist as Władysław Szpilman Nicolas Cage – Adaptation as Charlie Kaufman / Donald Kaufman Michael Caine – The Quiet American as Thomas Fowler Daniel Day-Lewis – Gangs of New York as Bill "The Butcher" Cutting Jack Nicholson – About Schmidt as Warren R. Schmidt Nicole Kidman – The Hours as Virginia Woolf Salma Hayek – Frida as Frida Kahlo Diane Lane – Unfaithful as Constance "Connie" Sumner Julianne Moore – Far from Heaven as Cathleen "Cathy" Whitaker Renée Zellweger – Chicago as Roxie Hart Chris Cooper – Adaptation as John Laroche Ed Harris – The Hours as Richard "Richie" Brown Paul Newman – Road to Perdition as John Rooney John C. Reilly – Chicago as Amos Hart Christopher Walken – Catch Me If You Can as Frank Abagnale Sr. Catherine Zeta-Jones – Chicago as Velma Kelly Kathy Bates – About Schmidt as Roberta Hertzel Julianne Moore – The Hours as Laura McGrath Brown Queen Latifah – Chicago as Matron "Mama" Morton Meryl Streep – Adaptation as Susan Orlean Talk to Her – Pedro Almodóvar Far from Heaven – Todd Haynes Gangs of New York – Screenplay by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian, and Kenneth Lonergan; Story by Jay Cocks My Big Fat Greek Wedding – Nia Vardalos Y Tu Mamá También – Carlos Cuarón and Alfonso Cuarón The Pianist – Ronald Harwood (based on the book by Władysław Szpilman) About a Boy – Peter Hedges, Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz (based on the book by Nick Hornby) Adaptation – Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman (based on the book The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean) Chicago – Bill Condon (based on the play by Maurine Dallas Watkins) The Hours – David Hare (based on the novel by Michael Cunningham) Spirited Away – Hayao Miyazaki Ice Age – Chris Wedge Lilo & Stitch – Chris Sanders Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron – Jeffrey Katzenberg Treasure Planet – Ron Clements Nowhere in Africa (Germany) in German – Caroline Link The Crime of Father Amaro (Mexico) in Spanish – Carlos Carrera Hero (China) in Mandarin – Zhang Yimou The Man Without a Past (Finland) in Finnish – Aki Kaurismäki Zus & Zo (Netherlands) in Dutch – Paula van der Oest Bowling for Columbine – Michael Moore and Michael Donovan Daughter from Danang – Gail Dolgin and Vicente Franco Prisoner of Paradise – Malcolm Clarke and Stuart Sender Spellbound – Jeffrey Blitz and Sean Welch Winged Migration – Jacques Perrin Twin Towers – Bill Guttentag and Robert David Port The Collector of Bedford Street – Alice Elliott Mighty Times: The Legacy of Rosa Parks – Robert Hudson and Bobby Houston Why Can't We Be a Family Again? – Roger Weisberg and Murray Nossel This Charming Man – Martin Strange-Hansen and Mie Andreasen Fait D'Hiver – Dirk Beliën and Anja Daelemans I'll Wait for the Next One... (J'Attendrai Le Suivant...) – Philippe Orreindy and Thomas Gaudin Inja (Dog) – Steven Pasvolsky and Joe Weatherstone Johnny Flynton – Lexi Alexander and Alexander Buono The ChubbChubbs! – Eric Armstrong Das Rad – Chris Stenner and Heidi Wittlinger The Cathedral – Tomek Baginski Mike's New Car – Pete Docter and Roger L. Gould Mt. Head – Kōji Yamamura Frida – Elliot Goldenthal Catch Me If You Can – John Williams Far from Heaven – Elmer Bernstein The Hours – Philip Glass Road to Perdition – Thomas Newman "Lose Yourself" from 8 Mile – Music by Eminem, Jeff Bass, and Luis Resto; Lyrics by Eminem "Burn It Blue" from Frida – Music by Elliot Goldenthal; Lyrics by Julie Taymor "Father and Daughter" from The Wild Thornberrys Movie – Music and Lyrics by Paul Simon "The Hands That Built America" from Gangs of New York – Music and Lyrics by Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen "I Move On" from Chicago – Music by John Kander; Lyrics by Fred Ebb Chicago – Michael Minkler, Dominick Tavella, and David Lee Gangs of New York – Tom Fleischman, Eugene Gearty and Ivan Sharrock The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges and Hammond Peek Road to Perdition – Scott Millan, Bob Beemer and John Patrick Pritchett Spider-Man – Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell and Ed Novick The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – Ethan Van der Ryn and Michael Hopkins Minority Report – Gary Rydstrom and Richard Hymns Road to Perdition – Scott A. Hecker Chicago – Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim Frida – Art Direction: Felipe Fernández del Paso; Set Decoration: Hania Robledo Gangs of New York – Art Direction: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – Art Direction: Grant Major; Set Decoration: Dan Hennah and Alan Lee Road to Perdition – Art Direction: Dennis Gassner; Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh Road to Perdition – Conrad Hall (posthumous award) Chicago – Dion Beebe Far from Heaven – Edward Lachman Gangs of New York – Michael Ballhaus The Pianist – Paweł Edelman Frida – John Jackson and Beatrice De Alba The Time Machine – John M. Elliott Jr. and Barbara Lorenz Chicago – Colleen Atwood Frida – Julie Weiss Gangs of New York – Sandy Powell The Hours – Ann Roth The Pianist – Anna B. Sheppard Chicago – Martin Walsh Gangs of New York – Thelma Schoonmaker The Hours – Peter Boyle The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – Michael J. Horton The Pianist – Hervé de Luze The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook, and Alex Funke Spider-Man – John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara and John Frazier Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones – Rob Coleman, Pablo Helman, John Knoll and Ben Snow

Honorary Award To Peter O'Toole, whose remarkable talents have provided cinema history with some of its most memorable characters.

Films with multiple nominations and awards

+ Films with multiple nominations Nominations Film 13 Chicago 10 Gangs of New York 9 The Hours 7 The Pianist 6 Frida Road to Perdition The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4 Adaptation Far from Heaven 2 Talk to Her About Schmidt Catch Me If You Can Spider-Man

+ Films with multiple awards Awards Film 6 Chicago 3 The Pianist 2 Frida The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Presenters and performers The following individuals presented awards or performed musical numbers.

Presenters Name(s)RoleNeil RossAnnouncers for the 75th Annual Academy AwardsPresenter of the award for Best Animated Feature FilmPresenter of the award for Best Visual EffectsPresenter of the award for Best Supporting ActorPresenter of the award for Best Art DirectionIntroducer of the performance of Best Original Song nominee "I Move On"Mickey MousePresentations of the award for Best Animated Short FilmPresenter of the award for Best Live Action Short FilmPresenter of the award for Best Costume DesignPresenter of the film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers on the Best Picture segmentIntroducer of the performance of Best Original Song nominee "Father and Daughter"Presenter of the award for Best MakeupPresenter of the award for Best Supporting ActressPresenter of the film Gangs of New York on the Best Picture segmentPresenter of the segment of the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement and the Gordon E. Sawyer AwardPresenter of the award for Best Original ScorePresenter of the montage highlighting past Academy Award telecast musical numbersIntroducer of the performance of Best Original Song nominee "Burn it Blue"Presenter of the award for Best Foreign Language FilmPresenter of the awards for Best Sound and Best Sound EditingPresenter of the award for Best Documentary FeaturePresenter of the award for Best Documentary Short SubjectPresenter of the award for Best CinematographyPresenter of the montage interviewing previous acting Oscar winnersIntroducer of the performance of Best Original Song nominee "The Hands That Built America"Presenter of the award for Best Film EditingPresenter of the "In Memoriam" tributePresenter of the film The Hours on the Best Picture segmentPresenter of the award for Best Original SongPresenter of the film The Pianist on the Best Picture segmentPresenter of the Academy Honorary Award to Peter O'ToolePresenter of the award for Best ActorPresenter of the award for Best ActressPresenter of the Oscar Family Album segmentRemarks by the AMPAS President Presenter of the film Chicago on the Best Picture segmentPresenter of the award for Best Adapted ScreenplayPresenter of the award for Best Original ScreenplayPresenter of the award for Best DirectorMichael DouglasPresenters of the award for Best Picture

Performers Name(s)RolePerformedMusical Conductor and ArrangerOrchestralCatherine Zeta-JonesPerformers"I Move On" from ChicagoPerformer"Father and Daughter" from The Wild Thornberrys MovieCaetano VelosoPerformers"Burn It Blue" from Frida Performers"The Hands That Built America" from Gangs of New York

Ceremony information