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''Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri'' is a 2017 crime drama film written, directed, and co-produced by
Martin McDonagh Martin Faranan McDonagh (; born 26 March 1970) is a British-Irish playwright, screenwriter, producer, and director. Born and brought up in London, he is the son of Irish parents. He is known as one of the most acclaimed modern playwrights whose ...
and starring Frances McDormand as a Missouri woman who rents three roadside billboards to draw attention to her daughter's unsolved rape and murder.
Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor and playwright. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...
,
Sam Rockwell Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as ''Lawn Dogs'' (1997 ...
, John Hawkes, Peter Dinklage, Abbie Cornish, Lucas Hedges,
Željko Ivanek Željko Ivanek (né Šimić-Ivanek; ; ; born August 15, 1957) is an American actor, known for his role as Ray Fiske on '' Damages'', for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award. Ivanek is also known for his role of Ed Danvers on '' Homicide: Life on ...
, and Caleb Landry Jones appear in supporting roles. The film was theatrically released in the United States in November 2017 and in the United Kingdom in January 2018 by Fox Searchlight Pictures, and it grossed $160 million at the worldwide box office. Critical reception for the film was highly positive, with particular acclaim given to McDonagh's screenplay and direction, as well as the performances of McDormand, Rockwell, and Harrelson. McDormand and Rockwell each won the
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
,
Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...
, SAG Award, BAFTA Award, and Critics' Choice Award for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor, respectively, and Harrelson received Oscar, SAG, and BAFTA nominations. McDonagh won the
Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...
and BAFTA Award for his screenplay, and the film won the
Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...
and BAFTA Award for Best Picture.


Plot

In the fictional town of Ebbing, Missouri, Mildred Hayes is grieving over the rape and murder of her teenage daughter, Angela, seven months earlier. Angry over the lack of progress in the investigation, she rents three disused billboards near her home and posts on them: "", "", "". They attract attention, so Bill Willoughby, the local chief of police, visits Mildred, but is unable to persuade her to take them down, even by revealing he has terminal
pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a mass. These cancerous cells have the ability to invade other parts of the body. A number of types of pancr ...
. He renews his efforts to solve the case, but does not get anywhere. Many townspeople are upset by the billboards, including Jason Dixon, a racist, alcoholic police officer, who unsuccessfully tries to intimidate Red Welby, who rented Mildred the billboards, into taking them down. Mildred's dentist is sympathetic to Willoughby and menaces her during an appointment, so she drills a hole in his thumbnail. Willoughby brings her in for questioning and winds up coughing up blood into her face. He has her released and is hospitalized, though he soon checks himself out against medical advice. The billboards have further strained Mildred's relationship with her son, Robbie, and she remembers that her last interaction with Angela was an argument. Her abusive ex-cop ex-husband Charlie confronts her about the billboards and ends up revealing that, shortly before Angela's murder, he had turned down her request to come live with him. At his mother's suggestion, Dixon arrests Mildred's friend Denise on trivial drug possession charges to put pressure on Mildred. Willoughby spends an idyllic day with his wife, Anne, and their two daughters, and then takes his own life to spare his family from watching him die slowly. Dixon reacts to the news by assaulting Welby and throwing him out a second-story window. This is witnessed by Abercrombie, Willoughby's replacement, who fires Dixon. Before his death, Willoughby wrote several letters, including one to Mildred. Anne delivers it, interrupting an unknown man who was menacing Mildred at work. In the letter, Willoughby tells Mildred that she was not a factor in his suicide and reveals he secretly paid to keep the billboards up another month. After the billboards are destroyed by
arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wate ...
, Mildred retaliates by tossing Molotov cocktails at the police station, which she believes to be unoccupied for the night. Unfortunately, Dixon is inside reading Willoughby's letter to him, which advises him to let go of hate and embrace love if he wants to be a detective someday, but, remaining calm, he escapes with Angela's case file. James, an acquaintance of Mildred, happens by and extinguishes Dixon's burning clothes before providing Mildred with an alibi. Dixon is put in the same hospital room as Welby, to whom he apologizes. Jerome, who was part of the team that put up the billboards, brings Mildred a set of copies and helps her, Robbie, James, and Denise restore the signs. Discharged from the hospital, Dixon overhears the man who menaced Mildred bragging in a bar about raping a girl in the same manner as Angela. He notes the number on the man's Idaho license plate and then scratches the man's face to get a DNA sample, passively accepting the resulting beating. Meanwhile, Mildred is on a date with James to thank him. Charlie enters with his 19-year-old girlfriend Penelope and apologizes for burning the billboards when he was drunk. Unnerved that she retaliated against the wrong target, Mildred wants to go home, saying she and James can go out another time, but he tells her that he does not want to, as he sensed she was embarrassed to be seen with him. Abercrombie informs Dixon that the DNA sample is not a match and the man was overseas on military duty at the time of Angela's death. Dixon gives Mildred the disappointing news and, believing the man to be guilty of some other rape, the pair plan a trip to Idaho to kill him. As they set out, Mildred confesses that she set the police station on fire, which Dixon had already assumed. They both express uncertainty about their mission, and Mildred says they can decide what to do along the way.


Cast

* Frances McDormand as Mildred Hayes *
Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor and playwright. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...
as Bill Willoughby, Ebbing's police chief *
Sam Rockwell Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as ''Lawn Dogs'' (1997 ...
as Jason Dixon, a police officer in Ebbing * John Hawkes as Charlie Hayes, Mildred's abusive ex-husband * Peter Dinklage as James, an Ebbing resident who has a crush on Mildred * Abbie Cornish as Anne Willoughby, Bill's wife * Lucas Hedges as Robbie Hayes, Mildred and Charlie's teenage son *
Željko Ivanek Željko Ivanek (né Šimić-Ivanek; ; ; born August 15, 1957) is an American actor, known for his role as Ray Fiske on '' Damages'', for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award. Ivanek is also known for his role of Ed Danvers on '' Homicide: Life on ...
as Cedric Connolly, Ebbing Police's desk sergeant * Caleb Landry Jones as Red Welby, who handles sales at Ebbing Advertising Company * Clarke Peters as Abercrombie, Chief Willoughby's replacement * Samara Weaving as Penelope, Charlie's much-younger girlfriend * Kerry Condon as Pamela, the office manager at Ebbing Advertising Company * Darrell Britt-Gibson as Jerome, who puts up billboards for Ebbing Advertising Company * Kathryn Newton as Angela Hayes, Mildred and Charlie's deceased teenage daughter, who is seen in a flashback *
Brendan Sexton III Brendan Eugene Sexton III (born February 21, 1980) is an American actor. Life and career Born in Staten Island, New York, Sexton made his film debut in Todd Solondz's ''Welcome to the Dollhouse'' playing the troubled bully Brandon McCarthy, for ...
as Crop-Haired Guy, an Idaho resident who harasses Mildred and attacks Dixon * Riya May Atwood as Polly Willoughby, Bill and Anne's daughter * Selah Atwood as Jane Willoughby, Bill and Anne's daughter *
Amanda Warren Amanda Warren (born July 17, 1982) is an American actress. She is known for her role as Lucy Warburton on the HBO drama series '' The Leftovers'' and as Betty on the AppleTV+ comedy series '' Dickinson''. Early life Amanda Warren was born on J ...
as Denise, Mildred's boss and friend * Malaya Drew as Gabriella Forrester, a local television news reporter * Sandy Martin as Momma Dixon, Jason Dixon's mother *
Christopher Berry Christopher Shane Berry is an American character actor best known for his roles in ''12 Years a Slave'' (2013), '' The Walking Dead'' (2015) and '' Spider-Man: Homecoming'' (2017). Early life and career Christopher Berry was born in San Antonio, ...
as Tony, bartender at the Town Pump Tavern * Gregory Nassif St. John as Bill's Doctor * Jerry Winsett as Geoffrey, a dentist in whose thumbnail Mildred drills a hole * Allyssa Barley as Girl, who Mildred knees in the crotch * William J. Harrison as Boy, who Mildred knees in the crotch * Michael Aaron Milligan as Pal of Crop-Haired Guy * Nick Searcy as Father Montgomery (uncredited)


Production


Development

While traveling through the
Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
around 1998,
Martin McDonagh Martin Faranan McDonagh (; born 26 March 1970) is a British-Irish playwright, screenwriter, producer, and director. Born and brought up in London, he is the son of Irish parents. He is known as one of the most acclaimed modern playwrights whose ...
came across a couple of accusatory billboards that alleged a woman named Kathy Page had been murdered by her husband Steve Page in Vidor, Texas, and highlighted the incompetence of the police in solving the case. McDonagh described the billboards, which he presumed had been put up by the victim's mother, as "raging and painful and tragic" and was deeply affected by them, saying the image "stayed in my mind ..kept gnawing at me". This incident, combined with his desire to create strong female characters, inspired McDonagh to write the story for ''Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri''. He said it took him about ten years to decide "it was a mother who had taken these things out. It all became fiction ..based on a couple of actual billboards".


Casting

The character of Mildred was written with Frances McDormand in mind, and the character of Dixon was written specially for Sam Rockwell. McDormand initially felt she was older than the character as it was written and suggested Mildred be Angela's grandmother, rather than her mother, but McDonagh disagreed, feeling it would change the story too much, and eventually McDormand's husband Joel Coen persuaded her to take the part regardless.
John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Go ...
served as an inspiration for McDormand in her portrayal of Mildred, and Rockwell, wanting to make his character "the exact opposite" of Mildred, took inspiration from
Lee Marvin Lee Marvin (born Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.; February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and premature white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Alt ...
, Wayne's co-star in ''
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance ''The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance'' () is a 1962 American Western film directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne and James Stewart. The screenplay by James Warner Bellah and Willis Goldbeck was adapted from a 1953 short story written by ...
''.


Filming

Principal photography began on May 2, 2016, in
Sylva, North Carolina Sylva is an incorporated town located in central Jackson County, in the Plott Balsam Mountains of Western North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 2,588. It is the county seat, taking over the ...
, and ran for 33 days. Allison Outdoor Advertising of Sylva built the billboards, which were put in a pasture near
Black Mountain, North Carolina Black Mountain is a town in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 7,848 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town is named for the old train stop at the Black Mountain Dep ...
, 60 miles east of Sylva. When not filming, the billboards were usually covered because people in the area found them upsetting. David Penix of
Arden, North Carolina Arden is an unincorporated community located in southern Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Arden is considered to be approximately the area between Skyland and Fletcher near the Henderson County line. Arden's ZIP code is 28704. ...
, subsequently bought the billboards and used the wood for a roof in Douglas Lake, Tennessee, though the messages are no longer legible. Town Pump Tavern in Black Mountain, which had been featured in '' The World Made Straight'' (2015), was closed for three days while filming took place inside. A pool table and booths were added, but the bar's actual sign appears in the film.


Music

Carter Burwell Carter Benedict Burwell (born November 18, 1954) is an American film composer. He has consistently collaborated with the Coen brothers, having scored most of their films. Burwell has also scored three of Todd Haynes's films, three of Spike Jonz ...
's score for the film was nominated for Best Original Score at the
90th Academy Awards The 90th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2017, and took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was held on March 4, ...
. It was Burwell's third collaboration with McDonagh, as he had served as composer for McDonagh's first two feature films, ''
In Bruges ''In Bruges'' is a 2008 black comedy-drama crime film directed and written by Martin McDonagh in his feature-length debut and starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as two London-based Irish hitmen in hiding, with Ralph Fiennes as the ...
'' (2008) and ''
Seven Psychopaths ''Seven Psychopaths'' is a 2012 satirical black comedy crime drama film directed, written, and co-produced by Martin McDonagh and starring an ensemble cast featuring Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson, and Christopher Walken, with ...
'' (2012). The film also features songs by
ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The grou ...
,
Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...
,
The Felice Brothers The Felice Brothers are an American folk rock/country rock band from New York.Bumgardner, Ed, 8 November 2007'Music Notes: Felice Brothers are earthy, their music visceralRelish Now!''. History The Felice Brothers got their start as a band pl ...
, the
Four Tops The Four Tops are an American vocal quartet from Detroit who helped to define the city's Motown sound of the 1960s. The group's repertoire has included soul music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, doo-wop, jazz, and show tunes. Founded as the ...
, Monsters of Folk, and
Townes Van Zandt John Townes Van Zandt (March 7, 1944 – January 1, 1997) was an American singer-songwriter.
.


Track listing

All tracks composed by
Carter Burwell Carter Benedict Burwell (born November 18, 1954) is an American film composer. He has consistently collaborated with the Coen brothers, having scored most of their films. Burwell has also scored three of Todd Haynes's films, three of Spike Jonz ...
, unless otherwise noted.


Release

''Three Billboards'' premiered in competition at the
74th Venice International Film Festival The 74th annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 30 August to 9 September 2017. The jury president was announced as the actress Annette Bening on 5 July 2017. '' Downsizing'', directed by Alexander Payne, was selected to open ...
on September 4, 2017. It was also screened at the
Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...
, the
San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; es, Festival Internacional de San Sebastián, eu, Donostia Zinemaldia) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in ...
, the
BFI London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival founded in 1957 and held in the United Kingdom, running for two weeks in October with co-operation from the British Film Institute. It screens more than 300 films, documentaries and shor ...
, the
Zurich Film Festival Zurich Film Festival (ZFF) is an annual film festival that has been held in Zürich, Switzerland, since 2005. The festival's main focus is to promote emerging filmmakers from all over the world. In three competition categories only first, second ...
, and the
Mar del Plata International Film Festival The Mar del Plata International Film Festival ( es, Festival Internacional de Cine de Mar del Plata) is an international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina. It is the only competitive feature fes ...
, among many others. In the United States, the film received a
limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unit ...
by Fox Searchlight Pictures on November 10, 2017, in advance of its
wide release In the American motion picture industry, a wide release (short for nationwide release) is a film playing at the same time at cinemas in most markets across the country. This is in contrast to the formerly common practice of a roadshow theatrical r ...
on December 1. On February 27, 2018, it was released on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD, with ''
Six Shooter A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six ro ...
'', McDonagh's 2004 Academy Award-winning short film, included as a bonus.


Box office

The film grossed $54.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $105.7 million in other countries, for a worldwide box office total of $160.2 million. In its limited opening weekend, the film made $322,168 from four theaters, for a per-theater average of $80,542, the fourth-best of 2017. It made $1.1 million from 53 theaters its second weekend and $4.4 million from 614 its third, finishing 9th and 10th at the box office, respectively. The weekend following its four Golden Globe wins on January 7, 2018, the film was added to 712 theaters (for a total of 1,022) and grossed $2.3 million, an increase of 226% from the previous weekend's $706,188. Two weeks later, following the announcement of the film's seven Oscar nominations, it made $3.6 million, an increase of 87% over the previous week's $1.9 million, finishing 13th at the American box office. The weekend of March 9–11, following its two Oscar wins on March 4, the film made $705,000, down 45% from the previous weekend's $1.3 million.


Reception

On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, the film has a
weighted average The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...
score of 88 out of 100, based on reviews from 50 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.
Owen Gleiberman Owen Gleiberman (born February 24, 1959) is an American film critic who has been chief film critic for '' Variety'' magazine since May 2016, a title he shares with . Previously, Gleiberman wrote for ''Entertainment Weekly'' from 1990 until 2014. ...
of ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' praised the film's performances, stating that "It's Mildred's glowering refusal to back down that defines her, and McDormand brilliantly spotlights the conflicted humanity beneath the stony façade", and calling Rockwell's performance a "revelation." Steve Pond, writing for ''
TheWrap ''TheWrap'' is an American online news website covering the business of entertainment and media via digital, print and live events. It was founded by journalist Sharon Waxman in 2009. Awards ''TheWrap'' has won awards for its journalism, incl ...
'', praised McDonagh's writing, calling it "very funny, very violent and surprisingly moving." Less flatteringly, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' columnist
Wesley Morris Wesley Morris (born 1975) is an American film critic and podcast host. He is currently critic-at-large for '' The New York Times'', as well as co-host, with Jenna Wortham, of the ''New York Times'' podcast ''Still Processing.'' Previously, Mor ...
likened McDonagh's portrayal of rural America "a set of postcards from a
Martian Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, has appeared as a setting in works of fiction since at least the mid-1600s. It became the most popular celestial object in fiction in the late 1800s as the Moon was evidently lifeless. At the time, the pr ...
lured to America by a cable news ticker and by rumors of how easily flattered and provoked we are."
Manohla Dargis Manohla June Dargis () is an American film critic. She is one of the chief film critics for ''The New York Times''. She is a five-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism. Career Before being a film critic for ''The New York Times'', ...
, also writing for ''The New York Times'', said in her review: " cDonagh'sjokes can be uninterestingly glib with tiny, bloodless pricks that are less about challenging the audience than about obscuring the material's clichés and overriding theatricality." In ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'',
Tim Parks Timothy Harold Parks (born 19 December 1954) is a British novelist, translator, author and professor of literature. Career He is the author of eighteen novels (notably ''Europa'', which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1997). His first ...
praised the film's "magnificently photographed images", but wrote that the plot contained "a thousand cheap coincidences", and concluded that the film is "empty of emotional intelligence" and "devoid of any remotely honest observation of the society it purports to serve." The film was controversial for its handling of racial themes, particularly surrounding the redemptive arc of Officer Dixon, whose alleged torturing of an African American prisoner before the events of the film is referred to several times. In ''
The Daily Beast ''The Daily Beast'' is an American news website focused on politics, media, and pop culture. It was founded in 2008. It has been characterized as a "high-end tabloid" by Noah Shachtman, the site's editor-in-chief from 2018 to 2021. In a 20 ...
'', blogger
Ira Madison III Ira Madison III (born July 28, 1986) is an American television writer and podcaster. He is the main host of the Crooked Media podcast ''Keep It!'' He is a former critic at ''The Daily Beast'', ''GQ Magazine'', and other publications. Early lif ...
described the treatment of Rockwell's character as "altogether offensive ..McDonagh's attempts to script the black experience in America are often fumbling and backward and full of outdated tropes." Alyssa Rosenberg noted in ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'' that " ixon'sredemption doesn't merely defang his previous venomous bigotry; it softens Mildred's character development."


Accolades

At the
75th Golden Globe Awards The 75th Golden Globe Awards honored film and American television of 2017, and was broadcast live on January 7, 2018, from The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California beginning at 5:00 p.m. PST / 8:00 p.m. EST by NBC. This Golden ...
, ''Three Billboards'' won Best Motion Picture – Drama, Best Actress – Drama (McDormand), Best Supporting Actor (Rockwell), and
Best Screenplay Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation, ...
, and it was also nominated for Best Director and Best Original Score. The film was nominated in nine categories at the
71st British Academy Film Awards The 71st British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs, were held on 18 February 2018 at the Royal Albert Hall in London, honouring the best national and foreign films of 2017. Presented by the British Academy of Film and Telev ...
and won five awards: both
Best Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
and Outstanding British Film (making it and ''
The King's Speech ''The King's Speech'' is a 2010 British historical drama film directed by Tom Hooper and written by David Seidler. Colin Firth plays the future King George VI who, to cope with a stammer, sees Lionel Logue, an Australian speech and language ...
'' (2010) the only films to win both awards since the latter category was reintroduced in 1992), Best Leading Actress (McDormand), Best Supporting Actor (Rockwell), and Best Screenplay (Original). At the
24th Screen Actors Guild Awards The 24th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, honoring the best achievements in film and television performances for the year 2017, were presented on January 21, 2018 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was broadcast on ...
, the film was nominated for four awards and won three, including Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. It was nominated for six awards at the
23rd Critics' Choice Awards The 23rd Critics' Choice Awards were presented on January 11, 2018 at the Barker Hangar at the Santa Monica Airport, honoring the finest achievements of filmmaking and television programming in 2017. The ceremony was broadcast on The CW and hoste ...
and won three, including Best Acting Ensemble. At the
90th Academy Awards The 90th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2017, and took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was held on March 4, ...
, the film received seven nominations, including for
Best Picture This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
,
Best Actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress aw ...
(McDormand), Best Supporting Actor (both Rockwell and Harrelson), and
Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best Story. Beginning with the ...
, and McDormand and Rockwell took home their respective awards. The film was named one of the top 10 films of the year by the
American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...
. It won the top prize, the
People's Choice Award The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the general public and fans. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined using Gallup Polls until ...
, at the
2017 Toronto International Film Festival The 42nd annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from 7 to 17 September 2017. There were fourteen programmes, with the Vanguard and City to City programmes both being retired from previous years, with the total number of films down b ...
, and won the Audience Award at the 2017
San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; es, Festival Internacional de San Sebastián, eu, Donostia Zinemaldia) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in ...
.


Impact

Signs inspired by the billboards in the film have been used in protests by numerous groups around the world. Both McDonagh and McDormand have responded positively to this, with McDonagh saying that "You couldn't ask for anything more than for an angry film to be adopted by protests," and McDormand saying she is "thrilled that activists all over the world have been inspired by the set decoration of the three billboards in Martin's film." * On February 3, 2018, a mural was erected outside
Bristol city centre Bristol City Centre is the commercial, cultural and business centre of Bristol, England. It is the area north of the New Cut of the River Avon, bounded by Clifton Wood and Clifton to the north-west, Kingsdown and Cotham to the north, and ...
in England depicting three billboards like those in the film, which read: "", "", "". It was installed by the groups People's Republic of Stokes Croft and Protect Our NHS in response to the alleged privatization of the
National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
(NHS) and the death of a 15-year-old girl that the coroner attributed to neglect caused by a lack of NHS resources and care. * On February 15, 2018, Justice4Grenfell, an advocacy group created in response to the
Grenfell Tower fire On 14 June 2017, a high-rise fire broke out in the 24-storey Grenfell Tower block of flats in North Kensington, West London, at 00:54 BST and burned for 60 hours. 72 people died, two later in hospital, with more than 70 injured and 223 esca ...
, hired three vans with electronic screens to protest perceived inaction in response to the fire the previous June. The vans were driven around
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
and displayed messages in the style of the billboards in the film: "", "", "". * On the night of February 15, 2018, the movement #OccupyJustice set up three billboards and a number of banners in
Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
to mark the four-month anniversary of the murder of journalist
Daphne Caruana Galizia Daphne Anne Caruana Galizia (; 26 August 1964 – 16 October 2017) was a Maltese writer, journalist, blogger and anti-corruption activist, who reported on political events in Malta. In particular, she focused on investigative journalism, repor ...
. The billboards bore the text: "", "", "". The authorities removed the billboards the following day, stating that they were illegal. The government was criticized for this move, and a day after their removal, activists laid down banners with similar text near
Auberge de Castille The Auberge de Castille ( mt, Berġa ta' Kastilja) is an auberge in Valletta, Malta. The auberge is located at Castile Place, close to Saint James Cavalier, the Malta Stock Exchange, and the Upper Barrakka Gardens. It sits at the highest poin ...
, the office of the Prime Minister. * In response to the
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting On February 14, 2018, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Miami suburban town of Parkland, Florida, murdering 17 people and injuring 17 others. Cruz, a former student at ...
that took place on February 14, 2018, in Parkland, Florida, activist group
Avaaz Avaaz is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization launched in January 2007 that promotes global activism on issues such as climate change, human rights, animal rights, corruption, poverty, and conflict. In 2012, ''The Guardian'' referred to Avaaz as ...
had three vans circle Florida senator
Marco Rubio Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Florida, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the ...
's offices displaying: "", "", "". * On February 22, 2018, the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations, protesting the inaction of the UN in response to the Syrian Civil War, set up three billboards outside the United Nations building in New York that read: "", "", "". * Shortly before the
90th Academy Awards The 90th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2017, and took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was held on March 4, ...
ceremony (on or around March 1, 2018), conservative street artist Sabo set up three billboards in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
, stating: "", "", "" * On
International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wo ...
2018 (March 8), three billboards were put in downtown
Pristina Pristina, ; sr, / (, ) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city's municipal boundaries in District of Pristina, Pristina District form the largest urban center in Kosovo. After Tirana, Pristina has the second largest population o ...
,
Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a international recognition of Kosovo, partiall ...
, to protest the death of two women as a result of domestic violence. * On March 24, 2018, signs inspired by ''Three Billboards'' appeared at
March for Our Lives March for Our Lives (MFOL) was a student-led demonstration in support of gun control legislation. It took place in Washington, D.C., on March 24, 2018, with over 880 sibling events throughout the United States and around the world, and wa ...
gun safety rallies across the U.S. and around the world. * In January 2019, Chinese artist Wu Qiong and a gay policeman launched a public protest campaign in which bright-red trucks bearing slogans denouncing homosexual "
conversion therapy Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change an individual's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms. In contrast to evidence-based medicine and clin ...
" were paraded through several major cities in China, including
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...
,
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
, and
Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and t ...
.
Wang Qishan Wang Qishan (; ; born 19 July 1948) is a Chinese politician, and the current Vice President of the People's Republic of China. Wang is one of the leading figures behind China's foreign affairs, along with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Ke ...
, China's vice-president, said he understood supporters of U.S. president
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
, in part, through watching the film.


Notes


References


External links

* * * * * * {{Navboxes , title = Awards for ''Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri'' , list = {{AACTA International Award for Best Film {{BAFTA Best Film {{BAFTA Best British Film {{Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast, Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Acting Ensemble {{Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast {{Golden Eagle Award for Best Foreign Language Film {{Golden Globe Award Best Motion Picture Drama {{London Film Critics Circle Award for Film of the Year {{Mainichi Film Award for Foreign Film Best One Award {{Nikkan Sports Film Award for Best Foreign Film {{Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble {{Satellite Award Best Motion Picture {{Saturn Award for Best Thriller Film {{ScreenActorsGuildAward CastMotionPicture 2011–2020 {{TIFF People's Choice Award {{Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble 2017 films American black comedy films American independent films BAFTA winners (films) Best British Film BAFTA Award winners Best Drama Picture Golden Globe winners Best Film BAFTA Award winners British black comedy films 2010s English-language films Film4 Productions films Films directed by Martin McDonagh Films featuring a Best Actress Academy Award-winning performance Films featuring a Best Drama Actress Golden Globe-winning performance Films featuring a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award-winning performance Films featuring a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe winning performance Films produced by Graham Broadbent Films scored by Carter Burwell Films set in Missouri Films shot in North Carolina Films whose writer won the Best Original Screenplay BAFTA Award Fox Searchlight Pictures films Films about grieving American comedy-drama films Tragicomedy films Golden Eagle Award (Russia) for Best Foreign Language Film winners Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award winners 2010s American films 2010s British films