The annual Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon ran nearly three hours on February 2 at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles.

The Oscar Nominees Luncheon is a chance for all honorees to lunch and take a class picture as a memento of the February 22 ceremony.

Nominees including Clint Eastwood and Bradley Cooper (American Sniper), Oprah Winfrey (Selma), Reese Witherspoon (Wild) and Steve Carell (Foxcatcher) attended the afternoon event at the Beverly Hilton.

Show producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron told the room that acceptance speeches are a key part of the Oscar ceremony, which is broadcast to 1 billion people in 225 countries.

Oscar host Neil Patrick Harris flew in from New York to lunch with the nominees, and gave a special hug to actress nominee Rosamund Pike – despite the fact that she killed him brutally in Gone Girl.

Neil PatrickHarris attempted to hypnotize the crowd by repeating: “We’re going to spend Oscar night together where everything will be hilarious.”

During the gathering for a group photo, Oscar watchers noted which nominees received the most applause when their name was called.

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