No, there was no slap in the face at this year’s Oscars – but the TVLine team still managed to pick out a dozen memorable moments from Hollywood’s biggest night.
In fact, even without the new “Did someone get slammed?” litmus test for controversy, Sunday’s telecast could be seen as fairly tame. Even the (real) donkey and the (fake) cocaine bear did well!
In the list below, we’ve distilled the three-plus-hour ceremony into 12 remarkable moments for better or worse. In many ways, the 95th Oscars was wonderfully emotional, with Ke Huy Quan’s tearful acceptance speech and Dolby Theater’s song “Happy Birthday” for James Martin among our favorite interludes. But the show also had its weak points. For example, what happened with this performance of Everything everywhere all at onceThe song “This Is a Life” nominated for the Oscars? It featured hot dog fingers, and it’s not the part that confused us.
ABC’s red carpet pre-show, meanwhile, had its own awkward moments, including a Q&A with Hugh Grant that couldn’t have ended soon enough. (We suspect he felt that too.)
Keep scrolling for our recap of the best and worst moments of the night, then rate Sunday’s Oscars broadcast in our poll.
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The worst: the Cringe carpet
Image credit: ABC screenshot
It’s harder than it looks to be a red carpet correspondent, but Hugh Grant showed poor Ashley Graham no mercy, responding to her pre-show softballs with absolutely enthusiastic no. (Watch the mega-awkward exchange here.) We suspect Graham could have prepared for the gig a little better, though: Later on ABC Countdown to the Oscarsshe stopped Pedro Pascal’s excitement at seeing Rihanna perform by telling him that Rihanna was not playing…when she most certainly was. Come on, producers at Graham’s Ear; help a girl.
As for Grant, he redeemed himself a bit during the Oscars TV broadcast, self-deprecatingly calling himself “basically a scrotum” compared to Andie MacDowell and her pretty complexion.
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BEST: Evacuate
Image credit: ABC screenshot
As host Jimmy Kimmel explained his protective details (if someone rushed the stage to slap him), he brought up fearsome “participants” such as Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan), The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) and…Spider-Dude, as the camera cut Andrew Garfield with a deservedly sheepish grin.
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BEST: Fulfilling the American Dream
Image credit: Courtesy of ABC
There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when Everything everywhere all at once‘s Ke Huy Quan won Best Supporting Actor and then used his platform to encourage others to never stop dreaming. “My journey started on a boat. I spent a year in a refugee camp – and somehow I ended up here, on the biggest stage in Hollywood,” he said. “They say stories like this only happen in movies. I can’t believe this is happening to me. This, This, is the American dream. And if you thought this moment couldn’t get any sweeter, there was Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom director Steven Spielberg looking like a proud dad. (Well done, short tour!)
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BEST: Oh Happy Day!
Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
How sweet it was when the producers of the Best Live Action Short winner An Irish goodbye wanted to sing “Happy Birthday” to star James Martin, who turned 31 on Oscar day?
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MOST WEIRD: The little Mermaidit’s the big moment
Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
We expected Sunday night’s broadcast to include plenty of flowery tributes to this year’s nominated films – and it did! What we were not attendant was a segment dedicated to the unveiling of the Little Mermaid live-action trailer, featuring an orchestral version of “Part of Your World” and an enthusiastic build-up from stars Halle Bailey and Melissa McCarthy. The trailer, which you can watch in full here, is delightful… but strange to feature a commercial in the middle of an Oscar, isn’t it?
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BEST: Angela Bassett gets her kudos
Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
The camera never pans out to Angela Bassett, but we knew exactly who Michael B. Jordan and Jonathan Majors were talking to when they offered their support to a certain audience member. “Hey, aunt,” Jordan said as he took the stage, referencing one of his most famous lines from Black Panther. “We love you,” Majors added, rallying elegantly around Bassett after losing the Best Supporting Actress award to Jamie Lee Curtis earlier in the evening. Those who MCU together, stay together.
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WORST: All pitches, all at once
Image credit: ABC screenshot
What was going on in the multiverse during this performance of Everything everywhere all at once“Is it a life?” The film’s David Byrne, Son Lux and Stephanie Hsu (who replaced original artist Mitski) sounded jarring for much of the trippy interlude. Hey, at least the hot dog fingers tipped over.
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BEST: Ass Business
Image credit: Courtesy of ABC
We love animals, so we smiled from ear to ear when Jimmy Kimmel brought Jenny from The Banshees of Inisherin on stage as an “emotional support donkey”. And have you ever seen Colin Farrell happier than when he met his four-legged co-star’s eyes? We say a prayer for Brendan Gleeson’s fingers, though. (Bounce: Not the real Jenny! But still a great moment.)
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BEST: ‘A Total Banger’
Image credit: Courtesy of ABC
Presenter Deepika Padukone promised “an irresistibly catchy chorus, electrifying beats and killer dance moves to match” when she introduced the film’s original song nominee “Naatu Naatu” RRR – and performers Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava delivered all that and then some. It was, indeed, “a total banger”, and one of the best performances of the night.
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BEST: The greatest soldier
Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Elizabeth Banks came so close to plant her face when she came out to present the visual effects award. And when she opened her mouth, we discovered that she was also suffering from acute laryngitis. The least the Cocaine Bear co-host could have done was read the teleprompter on her behalf!
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WORST: All wet
Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
As Avatar: The Way of the Water won their first gold medal of the night, the visual effects team had just finished their 45-second acceptance speech when the playoff music burst in. Just so Kimmel can engage in comedy with the audience? These guys wanted to thank their families!
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BEST: Hopelessly devoted to ONJ
Image credit: ABC screenshot
John Travolta’s tearful introduction to the In Memoriam segment, which began with a tribute to his late Fat costar and friend Olivia Newton-John, was one of the most poignant moments of the night.
