I thought last night’s Academy Awards festivities were one of the more enjoyable iterations of the Oscars in recent years. The big story of the night had to be Sean Baker, the force behind Anora, which cost $6 million to make, taking home 4 Oscars for directing, original screenplay, editing and ‘Best Picture.’
Presenting your 97th Oscars acting winners:
• Adrien Brody in ‘The Brutalist’ (Best Actor) • Mikey Madison in ‘Anora’ (Best Actress) • Kieran Culkin in ‘A Real Pain’ (Supporting Actor) • Zoe Saldana in ‘Emilia Pérez’ (Supporting Actress) Photo Credit: Matt Sayles pic.twitter.com/Y0PwHsJBPW — The Academy (@TheAcademy) March 3, 2025
Mikey Madison took home the trophy for ‘Best Actress’ for Anora. Adrien Brody won ‘Best Actor’ for The Brutalist (with an overly long acceptance speech). Zoe Saldaña (Emilia Pérez) and Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain) won for best supporting actress and actor. Personally, I was hoping for Hollywood veteran Demi Moore to win ‘Best Actress’ for her stunning turn in The Substance. Out costume designer Paul Tazewell became the first Black man to take home an Oscar for ‘Best Costume Design’ for his inspired work on WICKED.
“This is everything.”
Paul Tazewell made history by becoming the first Black man to win the Oscar for Best Costume Design.#Oscarshttps://t.co/nl9CxOviL4 pic.twitter.com/TcSHpEotcW
— ABC News (@ABC) March 3, 2025
A trio of “007: James Bond” songs seemed a good idea, but the vocals were lacking. And the tribute felt somewhat disheveled by ending with “Skyfall” instead of the oh-so-iconic “Diamonds Are Forever.” Conan O’Brien did well with hosting duties, and I loved that the ‘In Memoriam’ orchestral segment focused on those who passed in 2024 and not on a singer performing. For me, the absolute highlight of the evening was the opening featuring Ariana Grande singing “Somewhere Over The Rainbow,” a luminous Cynthia Erivo performing “Home” from The Wiz, and then the duo coming together for “Defying Gravity” from their mega-hit movie musical WICKED.
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