'Avengers' dominates MTV awards as Larsen honors stunt doubles

Box office-busting "Avengers: Endgame" dominated the MTV Movie and TV Awards Monday, as "Captain Marvel" star Brie Larsen led tributes to real-life heroines by ceding the spotlight to her stunt doubles.

"Endgame," the second-highest grossing film of all time, picked up the best movie award, as well as best hero for Robert Downey Jr's Iron Man and best villain for Josh Brolin as Thanos.

Oscar-winner Larsen added to the superheroes' haul by picking up the best fight award, praising her stunt workers as the "living embodiment of Captain Marvel" as she brought them up on stage.

Joanna Bennett and Renae Moneymaker, who also trained Larsen for the first female-led Marvel Studios/Disney superhero film, said it was an "honor" to work on the film and "be a part of bringing such a strong female character to life."

A wide-ranging awards show also paid tribute to women beyond Hollywood such as trailblazing Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the subject of documentary "RBG", who won a new category for best real-life hero.

And in the evening's most poignant moment, victims of sexual abuse were honored by the producers of "Surviving R. Kelly," which won best documentary.

"Survivors walked through the fire and then stood again to tell this story," said Lifetime network executive Brie Miranda Bryant.

The docu-series has led Chicago prosecutors to publicly seek out potential victims of R&B star Kelly, who has pleaded not guilty to felony sex crime charges. 

Newcomer Noah Centineo was the night's biggest individual winner, scooping awards for breakthrough performance and best kiss alongside Lana Condor for Netflix teen romance film "To All The Boys I've Loved Before."

But it was a disappointing night for "Game of Thrones", which won best show but lost out in three other categories.

Captain Marvel actress Brie Larson accepts Best Fight award. 

The epic fantasy's final season was widely panned by critics and audiences.

The MTV Movie and TV Awards have been taking a sideways look at Hollywood since 1992, honoring films and their actors with "golden popcorn" statuettes.

The nominees are decided by producers and MTV executives, while the winners are chosen by the public, who vote online. 

This year it added off-beat new categories for "most meme-able moment" and "reality royalty."

It also gave non-competitive awards to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Jada Pinkett Smith.

For the second year running, the show was pre-recorded on Saturday in a cavernous hangar at Santa Monica Airport in southern California.

Here is the full list of winners:

BEST MOVIE: "Avengers: Endgame"

BEST SHOW: "Game of Thrones"

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A MOVIE: Lady Gaga - "A Star Is Born"

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A SHOW: Elisabeth Moss - "The Handmaid's Tale"

BEST HERO: Robert Downey Jr. - "Avengers: Endgame"

BEST VILLAIN: Josh Brolin - "Avengers: Endgame"

BEST KISS: Noah Centineo & Lana Condor - "To All the Boys I've Loved Before"

REALITY ROYALTY: "Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta"

BEST COMEDIC PERFORMANCE: Daniel Levy - "Schitt's Creek"

BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE: Noah Centineo - "To All the Boys I've Loved Before"

BEST FIGHT: Captain Marvel vs. Minn-Erva - "Captain Marvel"

BEST REAL-LIFE HERO: Ruth Bader Ginsburg - "RBG"

MOST FRIGHTENED PERFORMANCE: Sandra Bullock - "Bird Box"

BEST DOCUMENTARY: "Surviving R. Kelly"

BEST HOST: Nick Cannon - "Wild 'n Out"

MOST MEME-ABLE MOMENT: Colton Underwood jumps the fence - "The Bachelor"

BEST MUSICAL MOMENT: Shallow - "A Star Is Born"

Agence France-Presse