As an avid movie buff, I am always sitting in front of my television on Oscar Sunday. I’ve been there through Matthew McConaughey’s “three things speech,” the infamous “Moonlight”/”La La Land” misread, “Parasite’s” groundbreaking win and sadly, through Anne Hathaway and James Franco’s horrendous hosting gig. Whether it be the good, the bad or the ugly at the Oscars, I’ve seen it. So when I coerced my roommates into an Oscar party last Sunday, I figured I would be the only one actually engaged in the ceremony. But then, by some miracle, the 94th Academy Awards provided us some of the most entertaining content we’ve seen since John Travolta hilariously mispronounced Idina Menzel’s name.
It would be a crime against Oscar recap articles if I didn’t acknowledge the slap seen around the world. When Chris Rock came on stage to present the award for best documentary picture, the world-renowned comedian joked that Jada Pinkett-Smith, who has publicly addressed her alopecia, looked like a bald Demi Moore in “G.I. Jane.” Pinkett-Smith’s husband, Will Smith, was seen laughing on screen at first, but then walked on stage and slapped Rock across the face. He returned to his seat and yelled to Rock, “Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth,” which was muted on American stations.
My friends and I rewinded the broadcast three times to see if this was a scripted act, but viewers in Australia and Japan confirmed that it wasn’t as they posted the uncensored version of the altercation online. We all ran to social media as the conversation about the slap moved online. This incident took the true essence of the night away from the big winners, especially best documentary fan-favorite Questlove’s “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised).”
I was surprised Smith wasn’t asked to leave the ceremony, especially because he was sitting less than five feet from the stage. But as the predicted best actor winner, it would have been nearly impossible to ask him to leave. As of now, the academy is considering what the repercussions of a public assault on live television should be, and they have condemned Smith’s actions. As predicted, Smith won his first Oscar for his performance as Richard Williams in “King Richard.” In his acceptance speech, Smith apologized to the academy and the Williams family, as well as many others, except for Rock. Smith noted that “Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father, just like they said about Richard Williams. But love will make you do crazy things.” As per what we saw on Oscar Sunday, we know this to be true.
The Oscars have been hostless since Jimmy Kimmel hosted in 2018. Honestly, when Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes were announced as the trio to reintroduce the coveted gig, I was disappointed. As much as I admire these powerhouse women, they were not the combination I wanted on my television for three hours. But once again, this year’s awards surprised me and had my friends and I audibly laughing. The only blip that the hostesses did face was Regina Hall objectifying several conventionally attractive actors. She brought them on stage for “a COVID test” that she would conduct “with her tongue,” which left my viewing party and I wondering how the joke would have played out with a male host and female participants.
The line of the night went to Schumer, who resurfaced after Smith and Rock’s debacle to diffuse the situation by saying, “I’ve been getting out of that Spider-Man costume, did I miss anything? There’s like, a different vibe in here.” She was the ideal person to acknowledge how Smith and Rock had overshadowed the triumphs of the ceremony. These women reminded us of why hosting the Oscars has become a beloved tradition: we need people to guide us through the night, to recognize the uncomfortable, to celebrate the worthy winners and to keep smiles on our faces.
This year’s awards were monumental for several groups. Ariana DeBose was the second Latina woman to win the award for best supporting actress, 60 years after Rita Morena won for the same role of Anita in “West Side Story.” DeBose gave an emotional speech about the power of finding your identity through the arts, which was sadly overshadowed by the infamous slap. “CODA” had historic wins, including Troy Kotsur securing the best supporting actor title, making him the first deaf man to win an Academy Award. He gave a powerful acceptance speech as he told the story of his deaf father’s accident, leaving him unable to sign. “CODA” also went on to win best adapted screenplay, as well as the prized possession of the night, best picture.
These groundbreaking accomplishments for underrepresented communities were beautifully emotional, but they were also tragically outshined by the altercation that audiences could not get out of their heads. There have been plenty of snubs in Oscar history, but last night’s refocusing on Smith and Rock was by far the most brutal.
Due to the chaos of the night, there were plenty of awkward moments that haven’t been properly addressed. During the “in memoriam” segment, in lieu of the typical melancholy instrumental symphony, the pictures of the passed titans of the industry rolled over an up-beat choral dance party. This felt uncomfortably inappropriate for the tone of the segment, especially as the academy omitted several monumental stars like Bob Saget and Ed Asner. The Oscars also tend to be a politically outspoken event, historically known for stars wearing pins like #MeToo and AIDS support ribbons, but they had surprisingly little to say about Ukraine. Although stars like Benedict Cumberbatch and Jason Momoa did bare blue and yellow pins and pocket squares to show their respect, the academy itself only included a short moment of silence for the turmoil in the country. Each award recipient had something general and vague to say about the state of the world, about the tragedy and indifference we face and so on and so forth. But for the most part, for such a prominent soapbox in our culture, the Oscars could have done more. There was a gaping hole in the ceremony that apparently could only be filled with an award-winning actor slapping a world-famous comedian.
Overall, the 94th Academy Awards provided the best of what it intends to: boundary-pushing jokes, well-deserved honorees and plenty of moments that will keep us talking until the next year’s ceremony rolls around.
