Though the rest of the country might have been hungover from the Super Bowl, those members Hollywood elite nominated for Academy Awards this year got dressed up and headed over to the Beverly Hilton for the annual Oscar Nominees Luncheon on Monday afternoon. Of course, before they could settle in to eat, stars were forced to proceed across a red carpet and face questions from the (hungry) press — if they so dared — all of which resulted in the latest version of this particularly quirky group of celebrities saying the darndest things. Here, via those who were on the scene, are some highlights.
Jessica Chastain got dreamy about her Oscar dress:
"Most little girls dreamed about their wedding dresses, but I always dreamed about my Oscar dress." - Jessica Chastain #OscarLunch
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 4, 2013
But Jennifer Lawrence turned the fashion question into a laughing matter:
"I'm gonna wear sweatpants." Jennifer Lawrence jokes about what she's going to wear to The Oscars. #OscarLunch
— Anna Klassen (@AnnaJKlassen) February 4, 2013
And Quvenzhané Wallis wore one of her signature puppy purses:

Anne Hathaway name-dropped:
Anne Hathaway, on "rooms she can't get into": "I don't know how to say this without sounding so obnoxious, but..." 1/2
— Adam B. Vary (@adambvary) February 4, 2013
"...I've been hanging out with Steven Spielberg lately! So it doesn't feel like it." 2/2
— Adam B. Vary (@adambvary) February 4, 2013
And Amy Adams name-flirted:
"Sorry, you just interrupted my flirting with Bradley Cooper and Christoph Waltz." - Amy Adams #OscarLunch
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 4, 2013
Tommy Lee Jones maybe cracked a smile:

Ben Affleck, who won the top Directors Guild of America prize this weekend, was honest about the Oscars (and his snub):
Affleck says he will leave the problems with the director category up to the "Oscarologist" #OscarLunch
— Rebecca M Ford (@Beccamford) February 4, 2013
And Bradley Cooper was honest about his career:
"I know that I wasn't up here for Hangover." - Bradley Cooper on whether this is a game changer for him. #OscarLunch
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 4, 2013
Denzel Washington discussed about how his daughter doesn't like Kevin Spacey:
Denzel Washington says that after his previous #Oscars loss, his daughter wrote him: "You my Oscar anyway. Plus I don't like Kevin Space."
— Ryan Pearson (@ryanwrd) February 4, 2013
Jennifer Lawrence and Hugh Jackman schmoozed:

Washington wanted to meet Wallis, and then he did:

And the press got party favors — in case you ever wanted to eat Jackman's face:

And if you were wondering what the stars dined on once inside:

Finally, they took their class photo, just as if they were in elementary school:

Look at tiny Wallis front and center in purple underneath the towering Oscar statue.
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Esther Zuckerman



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