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Mar 16, 2026 5:03pm PT Misty Copeland on Her ‘Sinners’ Oscar Performance After Retirement and Hip Surgery: ‘It Was Such an Honor to Be on That Stage’ By Arushi Jacob Plus Icon Arushi Jacob Latest Javier Bardem Declares ‘No to War and Free Palestine’ at the Oscars, Earns Huge Round of Applause 22 hours ago Diane Keaton Honored During Oscars In Memoriam by ‘The Family Stone’ Star Rachel McAdams: ‘A Legend With No End’ 23 hours ago ‘Marty Supreme’ Star Kevin O’Leary Defends Timothée Chalamet Amid Ballet and Opera Controversy: ‘He Took a Bum Rap on That’ 1 day ago See All At the Oscars on Sunday night, ballet legend Misty Copeland put her pointe shoes back on for an ensemble performance of “I Lied to You.”The original song from “Sinners” is featured in one of, if not the most memorable scenes in the film. Miles Caton’s character, Sammie, sings and strums the guitar as the spirits of Black musicians and performers — past, present and future — weave through the juke joint. One of those performers is a ballerina dressed in a red leotard, whom many believe was a nod to Copeland, the first African American female principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre, and her inaugural leading role in “The Firebird.”Fiction became reality as Copeland took to the stage on Sunday — for the first time since reiting from the American Ballet Theatre in October 2025 — pirouetting in a fiery, feathery ensemble onto center stage during the segment’s closing notes.“To be a part of something like ‘Sinners,’ I was like ‘Yes! I’m going to somehow make this happen,’ even though I’m not dancing at the moment,” Copeland told Variety’s Marc Malkin on the Vanity Fair red carpet after the show. Shortly after her final bow at ABT, Copeland underwent hip surgery, telling NPR that after complaining about intense pain, her doctors found bone spurs in her left hip, along with a labral tear and a significant amount of cartilage loss. “I did like three steps, so it was fine,” Copeland quipped, explaining that she “put [her] pointe shoes on a couple days ago.” Related Stories Ana Navarro Goes Uncensored in Podcast Called 'Bleep!' Pete Hegseth Says 'The Sooner David Ellison Takes Over' CNN 'the Better' in Slamming Outlet's Report That Trump Administration 'Underestimated' Iran Attack's Impact on Strait of Hormuz View this post on Instagram “It was such an honor to be on the stage and share the stage with such incredible talent, and I’m so proud of Michael B. Jordan, who took home best actor,” Copeland added. While the timing of Copeland’s performance might seem pointed (pun intended) to those keeping up with the controversy surrounding Timothée Chalamet’s comments about ballet (and opera) being a dying art, “Sinners” composer Ludwig Göransson confirmed it was coincidental. “My partner Serena [Göransson, the executive music producer for “Sinners”] had been talking to her for a while,” Göransson, now a three-time Oscar winner, told Variety. “It was crazy how [the timing] played out,” he added. “It was a dream to get her onboard.” Along with Copeland, Serena Göransson reached out to performers from “all the Americas” to accompany “Sinners” breakout Miles Caton, blues legend Buddy Guy, Grammy winner Raphael Saadiq and actresses Jayme Lawson and Li Jun Li. The final line-up consisted of Shaboozey, Brittany Howard, Eric Gales, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Bobby Rush and Alice Smith. Before the Oscars, Copeland spoke out about Chalamet’s controversial remarks, noting that there was “a reason that the opera and ballet have been around for over 400 years.” Copeland went on to add that “[Chalamet] wouldn’t be an actor and have the opportunities he has as a movie star if it weren’t for opera and ballet and their relevance in that medium. So, all of these mediums have a space, and we shouldn’t be comparing them.” At the afterparty, Copeland elaborated further, but stopped short of giving Chalamet a message directly. “He knows,” Copeland told Variety. “He had the privilege of growing up and seeing it first-hand.” She continued: “To me, it’s really about educating people about the importance of it in our society. [Ballet] does play a huge role and impacts so many other art forms. It’s really about arts and dance education, and getting it to communities that wouldn’t otherwise have access and the opportunity to be exposed to it, to show that we do care about it and it is important.” Watch Copeland’s performance with the “Sinners” ensemble below: Jump to Comments ‘A Quiet Place 3’ Sets Cast With Emily Blunt and Cillian Murphy Returning, Plus Jack O’Connell and More Joining Sarah Michelle Gellar Speaks Out After Hulu Axes ‘Buffy’ Reboot and Blames It on One Executive Who’s ‘Not a Fan of the Original’: ‘Nobody Saw This Coming’ Netflix’s ‘Assassin’s Creed’ Series Adds Noomi Rapace, Ramzy Bedia, Sean Harris, Corrado Invernizzi to Cast WGA Begins Studio Talks at SAG-AFTRA Headquarters as Its Staff Pickets Outside ‘DreamQuil’ Review: A Satirical Sci-Fi Soap Opera That Doesn’t Fully Connect Adam Schiff to Hold Hearing on Hollywood Jobs With Noah Wyle and IATSE’s Matt Loeb JavaScript is required to load the comments. Loading comments...