Will Smith beats Chris Rock at the Oscars 1:58
(CNN) — CODA won Best Picture, but this historic breakthrough for the Apple TV+ streaming service at the Oscars was overshadowed by spontaneous action when Will Smith starred in a viral moment long remembered and made famous one will speak for years to come. .
The Will Smith Controversy
The most memorable exchange on the movie industry’s biggest night wasn’t the kind that anyone expected or wanted. Before winning his Oscar for “King Richard,” Smith appeared upset at a joke Chris Rock had told about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, then took to the stage and appeared to punch him in the face. Rock seemed genuinely stunned when Smith returned to his seat and yelled words at Rock, which were silenced on the show.
The incident between Will Smith and Chris Rock at the 2022 Academy Awards. (Photo: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
Will Smith wiped away tears during his acceptance speech and mentioned that the character he played, Richard Williams, was protective of his family and then, without specifically mentioning Rock or what happened, said, “I’d like to say thank you apologize to the Academy. I want to apologize .” to all my fellow candidates.” And he added, “Love will make you do crazy things.”
Jada Pinkett Smith talks about her alopecia 0:51
Duel for the best film
The duel for the prize for the best picture between two nominees from favorite streaming services lasted all night. Sian Heder won Best Adapted Screenplay for “CODA,” but Jane Campion, director of “The Power of the Dog,” the first woman to be twice nominated for best director, later became the third woman to win that award. (Heder was passed over in this vote.)
“CODA” won the award for the best film.
Based on the results of other accolades leading up to the Oscars, this was already seen as a landmark year for streaming services, which, led by Netflix, have consistently undermined industry resistance to seeing them as direct competitors with major studio releases.
Despite all their hard work, Netflix didn’t pull through, however, as voters opted for Apple’s most uplifting story, about the hearing son of deaf parents. Including this year’s contenders The Power of the Dog and Don’t Look Up, seven Netflix films have been nominated for Best Picture, but none have won so far.
The global pandemic, which forced the entire entertainment industry to embrace streaming for a while, helped accelerate the spread of streaming, and last year’s winner, “Nomadland,” came from a competing platform, Hulu.
Acting Awards
Jessica Chastain won her first Oscar for The Eyes of Tammy Faye as Tammy Faye Bakker alongside Will Smith. The film was also recognized for her makeup and hairstyle.
Jessica Chastain won her first Oscar for The Eyes of Tammy Faye.
In his speech, Chastain spoke of the “discriminatory and intolerant legislation sweeping our country” against the LGBTQ+ community and cited Bakker’s compassion for these groups, which is shown in the film.
With a third of the Oscars awarded before the live broadcast officially began, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences risked viewers attending the 94th Academy Awards both for entertainment and to find out who won what.
Looking for a shortening of the Oscars
The academy that awards the awards has implemented a controversial plan to award awards in eight categories before the main broadcast and then insert those selections into the show. Despite this decision, the broadcast still lasted more than three and a half hours.
The other big winner of the night was the sci-fi epic Dune. The Warner Bros. film, which dominated the technical categories, received six Academy Awards for sound, film editing, production design, cinematography, visual effects and Hans Zimmer’s musical score. It was the prolific songwriter’s second win of a dozen nominations, the first for The Lion King in 1995. (CNN and Warner Bros. are part of WarnerMedia).
“Dune”
The televised show underscored the emphasis on bringing more entertainment to the show, which began with Beyoncé performing the nominated song from “King Richard” outside of the venue before hosts Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes walked in, the jokes made charges against some of the nominees (“House of Gucci” was called “House of Random Accents” or “House of Random Accents”) and against the Florida bill known as “Don’t Say Gay,” which promised: “We gonna have a gay night.” Sykes then pranked Texas about its voter registration laws.
Triumph of ‘Charm’
Disney’s Charm won Best Animated Feature. Though the film did reasonably well in theaters, it (and its music) seemed to garner special attention after debuting on the studio’s streaming service, Disney+, a symbol of a year that’s being celebrated as a coming-out party for the streaming prices was viewed.
“Charm”
The supporting actress and actor made up perhaps the least exciting selections of the night but were among the most emotional, with Ariana DeBose and Troy Kotsur winning for Steven Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story and CODA, respectively. Kotsur is the second deaf actor to be honored, after co-star Marlee Matlin, who was recognized for 1987’s Children of a Lesser God.
After thanking Spielberg and her co-star Rita Moreno (who originally played the role), DeBose opened up about being a queer Afro-Latina woman, quoting from the film and telling those who might be wondering how they might chime in: “Actually, there’s a place for us.”.
Steven Spielberg, Rita Moreno and Ariana DeBose arriving at the Oscars.
Questlove tearfully accepted an Oscar for his documentary Summer of Soul, and Japan’s Drive My Car won Best International Film. This three-hour drama was also nominated for Best Picture.
Kenneth Branagh, an eight-time nominee in multiple categories, received his first Oscar for writing, directing and producing “Belfast,” a deeply personal look at his homeland.
Such was the ceremony
Although the Grammy and Tony Awards use a similar format for some awards, many Academy members have complained about the perceived disdain towards these nominees. However, there was a heightened sense of urgency to streamline the presentation after the Oscars fell to record viewership levels last year, as did many major awards shows.
The change saved little time, which was used for lavish musical numbers, including a colorful rendition of the song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from “Encanto”, comedy plays like Throwing Schumer off the Rafters Disguised as Spider-Man, and shows the “fan favorites” unscientifically voted for via Twitter.
The show also included its share of nostalgia, including a tribute to the 60th anniversary of the James Bond films, cast meetings for White Men Can’t Jump, Juno and Pulp Fiction, and a 50th anniversary celebration . The Godfather, which brought standing ovations to director Francis Ford Coppola along with actors Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.
The latest Bond film No Time To Die won best song for Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell, one of the few awards given to a blockbuster as the industry becomes increasingly divided between popular and prestige.