It’s no secret that the night of the Academy Awards is annually one of the focal points of any given year, at least in terms of pop culture if nothing else. On March 16, the 98th ceremony was no different. History-making winners were announced, big stars went home empty-handed and the stars we all know and love stunned (or didn’t) on the red carpet.
Conan O’Brien returned to host, and the comedian certainly got his fair share of laughs throughout the night. The elaborate set piece to open the ceremony included references to many of the Best Picture nominees as a digitally-inserted O’Brien ran through scenes from many of the nominated films, dressed up as the iconic Aunt Gladys from the 2025 film “Weapons” and being chased by a horde of pre-teen children, in a clear reference to the ending sequence of the film. But once he eventually made it to the stage, his opening monologue was riddled with his trademark wit and charm.
Among the many thrills of the night was perhaps the clearest change from last year’s ceremony, the introduction of an entirely new category—for the first time since the addition of the Best Animated Feature category in 2001. The Best Casting category finally gives the Academy the opportunity to highlight an entire part of every film’s production that has previously gone uncelebrated, and The brand-new award also went to a woman — longtime partner of director Paul Thomas Anderson, Cassandra Kulukundis, for her work on “One Battle After Another.”
Of the predicted record-breakers, a few came to fruition. Anderson did, in fact, win his first Oscar — actually going home with three awards. Not only did he win for his writing in the Best Adapted Screenplay” category, but he also took home the coveted Best Director and Best Picture awards for his film, “One Battle After Another.”
Autumn Durald Arkapaw also shattered a very important record. She made history as the fourth woman to be nominated for Best Cinematography, and also the first woman to win the Oscar in the category, for her breathtaking work on “Sinners.” Ejae and the cast of “K-Pop Demon Hunters” broke a record as well, with “Golden” becoming the first K-Pop song to win an Oscar for Best Original Song.
On the acting side of things, Micheal B. Jordan’s Best Actor win, also for “Sinners,” made him the first actor to be given the award for portraying two different characters—in his case, two twin brothers—in over 60 years.
Finally, as if that wasn’t enough, Jessie Buckly became the fourth woman in history to sweep every major award show in the Best Actress category, following her wins at the BAFTAs, Golden Globes, Actor Awards and Academy Awards, for her devastating work on Zhao’s “Hamnet.” She is also the first Irish woman to win Best Actress at the Oscars, only two years after Cillian Murphy historically became the first Irishman to win Best Actor in 2024.
Aside from all the historic moments, the ceremony was not without its fair share of controversy. Many celebrities, including actor and longtime activist Javier Bardem, wore their political ideals on their clothes in the form of pins. Bardem chose to reference himself with his stylish protest, wearing a large pin on his suit lapel saying “No a la Guerra”—Spanish for “No to the wars.” Bardem previously wore the same pin in 2003 to protest the Iraq war, and brought it out of retirement 23 years later to once again protest an unpopular war—President Donald Trump’s new assault on Iran. Bardem began his presentation of the Best International Feature Film by calling for the end of genocide in Gaza, and he was far from the only figure to use his time on the microphone to make a statement about more than film. Will Arnett, in his presentation for the Best Animated Feature category, publicly reminded the audience that the ceremony was celebrating human artists, not AI.
But eventually, the big moment arrived. The “big five” awards — Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Screenplay are usually held to the end of the hours-long ceremony, and this year was no exception. In a moment of excitement for many audience members, Ryan Coogler won his first Oscar for Original Screenplay for his work on “Sinners.” While Coogler was also nominated for Best Director, that award went to the aforementioned Anderson. Additionally, Buckley’s win for her portrayal of the wife of William Shakespeare in Zhao’s “Hamnet” was unsurprising, but still a triumph.
The Best Actor category in this year’s awards has become a hotly-debated topic in recent weeks. Timothée Chalamet’s performance as Marty Mouser in “Marty Supreme” was a fan favorite for weeks after the nominations were released, primarily bolstered by the film’s intensive press campaign. But Chalamet’s comments about Ballet and Opera have put him under intense public scrutiny, all but tanking his favor in the public eye and in the eye of his fellow artists (and Academy voters). That being said, the crowd was understandably overtaken by raucous applause when Jordan was announced as the category’s winner, for his portrayal of twin brothers Smoke and Stack in “Sinners.” It was the actor’s first Oscar nomination and win.
As always, this year’s Academy Awards were riddled with excitement, triumph and loss. The live performances — ”I Lied to You” from “Sinners” featuring icons like Buddy Guy and Misty Copeland, and “Golden” from “K-Pop Demon Hunters,” performed by the three writers and voices of the animated characters — blew the roof off the auditorium. The night was a jubilant return to Oscars we all know and love. After last year’s Academy Awards faced hardships because of the devastating Los Angeles fires, this year’s ceremony was a true celebration of a fantastic year of films.
Until next year!
