Conan O’Brien has done it again. For his second year in a row as host, he has brought the jokes and the laughter to the Academy Awards. He opened the ceremony with his “recreation” of Aunt Gladys in Weapons. He was chased by kids in the background of the nominated movies, and he also made sure to poke a little fun at Timothée Chalamet.
This opening couldn’t have been better. Moments later, Amy Madigan won Best Supporting Actress for her role as Aunt Gladys in Weapons. Sean Penn won Best Supporting Actor for his performance in One Battle After Another. Penn is known for skipping out on the Oscars due to their cowardice when it comes to bigger issues around the world. During his absence, he decided to visit Ukraine instead.
Later in the show, Michael B. Jordan won Best Actor for his role as Smoke/Stack in Sinners. I think Pedro Pascal was more excited than anyone else in that theatre. Following, Jessie Buckley won Best Actress for her role in Hamnet. She dedicated her award to “the beautiful chaos of a mother’s heart.”
We were blessed by a live performance of “I Lied to You” from Sinners. Performed by Sinners star, Miles Canton, alongside Shaboozey, Saadiq, Brittany Howard, and more. This performance included many types of dance styles. From ballet to hip-hop to African dance, the stage was filled with culture. Misty Copeland even came out of retirement to show off some ballet skills to Timothée.
Billy Crystal took the stage to honor the late Rob and Michele Reiner. He was joined on stage by his When Harry Met Sally costar, Meg Ryan. Along with them were Michael McKean and Christopher Guest from This is Spinal Tap, and Jerry O’Connell and Will Wheaton from Stand by Me. Fred Savage, Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, and Carol Kane from the all-time classic, The Princess Bride, were also there. Kiefer Sutherland, Demi Moore, and Kevin Pollak from A Few Good Men, Kathy Bates from Misery, and Annette Bening from The American President also joined them. Finally, The Sure Thing stars John Cusack and Daphne Zuniga paid their respects.
In perfect timing with Women’s History Month, history was made when Autumn Durald Arkapaw won Best Cinematography for her work on Sinners. She is now the first woman, first person of color, and first woman of color to win in this category. She decided to honor all the women in the room and had them stand. She praised them, saying she wouldn’t have gotten there without them. Who doesn’t love a good girl power moment during Women’s History Month?
With all the wins, they still had time to throw in some reunions for us. Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr shared the stage to give us a little reunion on the 14th anniversary of the first Avengers movie. This is just ahead of their new movie, Doomsday. As the self-proclaimed biggest Marvel fan ever, I screamed.
They presented Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay. Their bit was based on their anniversary, and how Downey didn’t get Evans anything. Before presenting the winner for Best Original Screenplay, Downey came out to gift Evans with Channing Tatum’s sparkly thong from Magic Mike.
The big reunion seemed to be the Bridemaids cast onstage to present the award for Best Original Score and Best Sound. Some viewers expressed some hate towards the bit. They think it went on for way too long and that the Academy should allow more speech time for winners rather than “unfunny bits.”
Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor, stars of Moulin Rouge!, also reunited to present the award for Best Picture. They announced One Battle After Another won for Best Picture. The cast took the stage with Teyana Taylor being the hype woman. Paul Thomas Anderson expressed love for the cast, especially Chase Infiniti, calling her his “American Girl” and saying that she is “the heart of this film.”
The 98th Academy Awards will be forever filled with the best films of recent years. Sinners, you will forever be in my heart. Miles Canton, Chase Infiniti, and Jesse Plemons, you were the biggest snubs this year, and I will stand on my grave with that. Fortunately, next year Conan O’Brien will be returning as host for the 99th Academy Awards.