The audience shall forever cherish the 94th academy awards, surprisingly not for the performances but rather for a stunning moment: Actor Will Smith strode onto the stage of the Dolby Theater and hit comedian Chris Rock, who made a joke about his wife. However, moments after the punching session ended, Will Smith won an Oscar for the best actor and apologized to the academy.
Apart from the confrontation that upended the entire show, the Oscars were also marked by celebrations of art and cinema. The Oscars were marked by a variety of ‘the firsts.’ Ariana DeBose became the first woman of colour to win an Oscar for her supporting role in the film West Side Story.
To add, Troy Kotsur became the first-ever deaf man to win an Oscar for his supporting role in the film CODA. Another significant feat was made by the team of Dune, the film that stole the show by winning six academy awards in a single night. In an unusual event, Apple TV+ became the first streaming platform to win an Oscar.
Moreover, Dune continued its reign in technical categories as Greig Fraser pulled in cinematography once the live event actually began. It then beat out some of the biggest films of the year — including Spider-Man, Shang-Chi, and Free Guy, which were all only nominated in that category for visual effects.
Furthermore, the best director honour went to Jane Campion, whose subversive western, “The Power of the Dog” was the most nominated movie of the night. Jessica Chastain (“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”)won for best actress.
