LOS ANGELES — "Nomadland," director Chloé Zhao's small-boned movie about nomads in America, earned the best picture at a 93rd Academy Awards defined by the pandemic, as movies that premiered on streaming services ruled the ceremony — an in-person event mounted under coronavirus protocols.

In a year where the pandemic shuttered theaters and turned movie-goers into couch potatoes, 16 of the 23 statuettes went to projects that at the very least simultaneously premiered on streaming services, with "Nomadland," which was acquired by Hulu, representing the first best picture winner from that relatively new medium.

Frances McDormand also won for the film, three years after her Oscar for "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri." Anthony Hopkins, meanwhile, was named best actor for his role as a dementia-ridden man in "The Father," eclipsing the emotional moment that would have come had Chadwick Boseman been only the third actor to receive posthumous honors for "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom."

At 83, Hopkins becomes the oldest winner ever. His previous Oscar came almost 30 years ago, for "The Silence of the Lambs."

Unlike some past ceremonies that have seen one film dominate, this year's awards spread the wealth among multiple movies. "Nomadland" led the way with three awards, while five other films nabbed a pair.

Among the producers' several puzzling choices, the best picture was actually presented before the two top acting awards, breaking with years of precedent. — Courtesy CNN