The 96th Academy Awards last Sunday drew in 19.5 million viewers, marking a four-year viewership high and a 4% increase from last year. From the “Godzilla” franchise’s first Oscar win to Ryan Gosling’s show-stopping performance, this year’s ceremony was filled with memorable moments and fun surprises. Here are a few of my favorite moments from the 2024 Oscars:
1. Jimmy Kimmel standing in solidarity with IATSE
At the end of Jimmy Kimmel’s opening monologue, he acknowledged last year’s SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes and addressed the ongoing International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees’ (IATSE) contract negotiations. Kimmel invited the behind-the-scenes Oscars staff on stage saying, “Before we celebrate ourselves, let’s have a very well-deserved round of applause for the people who work behind the scenes: the Teamsters, the truck drivers, the lighting crew, sound, camera, gaffers, grips.” Applauding the unsung heroes of the industry set a tone that was perfect for a night dedicated to celebrating cinematic accomplishments.
2. A new way of presenting the acting categories’ nominees
Typically, one or two presenters announce the nominees and winners for the four acting categories. This year, the creative team brought back a presenting format from the 2009 Oscars, where five former winners introduce the nominees and winner. The Oscars’ executive producer and showrunner, Raj Kapoor explained the reason for its revival saying, “We did a deep dive into Oscars history, and one of the best moments we loved… was past winners speaking to present nominees, and just that lovely connection and that human interaction.” The first category of the evening was for Best Supporting Actress. It was presented by Mary Steenburgen, Lupita Nyong’o, Jamie Lee Curtis, Rita Moreno and Regina King, all former Best Supporting Actress winners. The presenters gave a short speech about each of the nominees before announcing Da’Vine Joy Randolph as the winner for her role as Mary Lamb in “The Holdovers.” This presenting format was a unique way to praise and recognize each nominee individually and it would be refreshing to see this style used at future shows.
3. “Godzilla Minus One” winning Best Visual Effects
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus One” won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects, making it the first nomination and win for the “Godzilla” franchise in its seven-decade history. The film’s crew expressed their love for the franchise by wearing black shoes with heels resembling Godzilla’s hands and taking action figures of the Japanese monster with them on stage. During their acceptance speech, the crew paid tribute to the film’s producer, Shuji Abe who passed away last December. At the end of his speech, Yamazaki said, “On behalf of the cast and crew… I want to tell our producer: ‘We did it!’” This well-deserved win was a historic achievement for the franchise and helped showcase the crew’s dedication to the “Godzilla” legacy.
4. Ryan Gosling performing “I’m Just Ken”
Last but certainly not least is Ryan Gosling’s performance of “I’m Just Ken” from “Barbie.” Not only was this my favorite part from this year’s show, it is now my favorite Oscar moment of all time. With a 40-piece orchestra, 62 dancers and a Guns N’ Roses cameo, this performance was the highlight of this year’s Academy Awards. Since his performance was all about Ken, Gosling made sure to celebrate the leading ladies of “Barbie” — Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig and America Ferrera. Gosling told his choreographer, Mandy Moore, “I really need those ladies in the front, because I’m gonna go over to them. I want them to sing.” Not only did Gosling include his “Barbie” castmates in his performance, he also had a mini “La La Land” reunion with Emma Stone, encouraging her to sing a line from the song. Although “I’m Just Ken” did not win an Oscar, this performance won the Oscars.
These are only a few of the great segments from this year’s Academy Awards, and we can only hope that next year will deliver even more memorable moments!