Billie Eilish and her brother FINNEAS won the Oscar for Best Original Song at Sunday’s Academy Awards. “No Time to Die,” from the James Bond film of the same name, had already brought the duo a Grammy and a Golden Globe.
“Oh my God! Oh my Gosh. This is so unbelievable!” Billie laughed.
After thanking everyone they worked with on the song, FINNEAS said thank you to “our parents, who have always been our biggest inspirations and our heroes.” He added, “We love you as parents and we love you as real people too!”
Questlove became overwhelmed with emotion as he accepted the 2022 Oscar for Best Documentary during the 94th Academy Award ceremony held Sunday night at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
While accepting the award for his Summer of Soul documentary based on the 1969 Harlem Cultural Film Festival, he said, “It’s not lost on me that the festival should have been something that my beautiful mother, my dad, should have taken me to when I was five years old,” before getting choked up and adding, “This is such a stunning moment for me right now. This is not about me. This is about marginalized people in Harlem that needed to heal from pain.”
“Just know in 2022, this is not just a 1969 story about marginalized people in Harlem,” he starts before admittedly getting overwhelmed.
Pulling himself together he continued, “I’ll thank everyone proper when I get off stage… I’m so happy right now, I could cry. Thank you.”
Things became a little tense when Chris Rock made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith while presenting the Oscar for Best Documentary. It earned him a slap and a cursing out from Will Smith — all live on air.
Chris first joked that Javier Bardem cannot win the Best Actor Oscar if his wife, Penelope Cruz, misses out on Best Actress. “If she loses, he can’t win,” Rock stated. “He is praying that Will Smithwins, like, ‘Please, lord!'”
Chris then turned his attention on Pinkett Smith and remarked, “Jada. Love ya. G.I. Jane 2, can’t wait to see it!” The joke didn’t land with the Smiths; the camera cut to Jada rolling her eyes in what appeared to be disgust.
Rock tried defending his joke, saying, “That was a nice one” but quickly said “uh oh” as Will stormed the stage. The King Richard actor slapped Rock and, after walking off the stage, shouted “Keep my wife’s name out of your f****** mouth” at him twice. The audio broadcast was cut before any profanities were said on air.
Rock appeared rattled by the unexpected altercation, which he dubbed, “The greatest night in the history of television.” He also flubbed while announcing the category’s winner, saying “We are here to give a documentary out,” meaning to say “give an Oscar out for Best Documentary.”
Billie Eilish and FINNEAS took the Oscar stage Sunday night to perform their nominated song “No Time to Die,” from the James Bond film of the same name.
With FINNEAS at the piano, Billie began the performance seated on a stool, wearing a voluminous black outfit and black hair. Angular laser lights flanked her as she sang and eventually stood up to finish the haunting song. An orchestra backed the pair up for their performance.
The duo was introduced by Oscar-winner Rami Malek, who played the villain in No Time to Die.
Billie and FINNEAS have already won a Grammy and a Golden Globe for the song.
The first live performance of Encanto‘s “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” was “Savage” — thanks to an appearance by none other than Megan Thee Stallion.
The performance was introduced by Encanto star John Leguizamo, who complained that he wasn’t invited to perform even though, as he correctly pointed out, “I AM Bruno, what’s up with that?”
After the Encanto cast members started the number, delivering the first verse, Megan appeared in a knockout gold number, rapping a verse about the song — declaring it the new “Let It Go” — as well as the Oscars, the guests in the audience and the evening’s three female hosts.
The song continued with guest performers Becky G and Luis Fonsi, who delivered a new verse with Oscar-specific lyrics, with Fonsi singing, “Shout out to Lin-Manuel!” That’s Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote the song.
Parents everywhere who have had quite enough of the original version of “Bruno” are probably crossing their fingers that this new version gets released ASAP.
Reba McEntire took the Oscar stage for the second time in her career Sunday night, to perform “Somehow You Do,” the Oscar-nominated song from the film Four Good Days.
Reba sang the song, written by 13-time nominee Diane Warren, while wearing a black gown with huge jeweled detail in the front. Her hair was up and she wore a pair of simple earrings. In the audience, Warren applauded Reba wildly.
Her previous Oscar performance came in 1991: She sang the song “I’m Checkin’ Out,” from the Meryl Streep film film Postcards from the Edge.
Monday just happens to be Reba’s birthday, so no matter if the song wins or loses, it’s safe to say she’ll be celebrating tonight.
On a more somber note, immediately following Reba’s performance, the Oscars held a moment of silence for Ukraine.
On Sunday’s Academy Awards, Latin superstar Sebastián Yatra performed the nominated song from the animated film Encanto, “Dos Oruguitas,” or “Two Little Caterpillars.”
As he sang on a stage decorated like the lush Colombian setting of Encanto, Yatra wore a suit embroidered with butterflies, which of course, is what happens to caterpillars. The song, like all the tunes from Encanto, was penned by Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Directly after the performance, Encanto was announced as the winner for Best Animated Feature Film.
If “Dos Oruguitas” wins the Oscar for Best Original Song, Miranda will be an EGOT, having won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony.
Ariana DeBose won the 2022 Oscar for Best Supporting Actress during the 94th Academy Awards ceremony held Sunday night at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
This is the first Oscar for DeBose, who won for her role as Anita in West Side Story.
DeBose kept her acceptance speech short and sweet, declaring that the film’s director Steven Spielberg is “stuck with [her] now,” and giving a shout out to Rita Moreno, the actress who won an Oscar for the same role 60 years prior.
She closed out her speech with an inspirational message to the queer community.
“Lastly, imagine this little girl in the back seat of a white Ford Focus. Look into her eyes, you see a queer, an openly queer woman of color, an Afro-Latina who found her strength in life through art and that’s what I believe we’re here to celebrate,” she proclaimed.
“So to anybody who has ever questioned your identity, ever, ever, ever, or you find yourself living in the gray spaces, I promise you this. There is indeed a place for us. Thank you to the Academy and thank you all,” DeBose concluded.
Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes and Regina Hall kicked off the Academy Awards with a bang on Sunday night by joking that the Oscars decided to hire three women to helm the night “because it’s cheaper than hiring one man.”
The jokes continued rolling with the cameras panning to J.K. Simmons as the three joked how COVID-19 has aged Timothée Chalamet. Hall quickly interjected she’d “still smash” the 67-year-old actor. The trio also teased Samuel L. Jackson for not being a seasoned actor, telling him his resume is missing a rom-com and musical.
When discussing the infamous snubs of the night, Sykes praised Lady Gaga and Jared Leto‘s work in “House of Random Accents” — a reference to critics taking issue with the varying accents used in House of Gucci.
Another snub, which the hosts agreed “Black Twitter’s gonna love,” was Space Jam 2 — saying they should have earned a nod for special effects “for the hair line they gave LeBron James.”
Other jokes targeted Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, with the ladies repeatedly shouting the word. They also cracked that the Golden Globes would be included in the “in memoriam” tribute this year.
The ladies finished by introducing themselves, but when it came to Hall, she quipped, “And I’m still single.”
Beyoncé had the honor of opening the 94th Academy Awards Sunday night by performing her nominated song from King Richard, “Be Alive,” co-written by her and Dixson.
Introduced by Venus and Serena Williams, whose father inspired the film King Richard, Beyoncé performed from the Williams sisters’ childhood tennis court in Compton — which Beyoncé acknowledged by putting in a “California Love”-inspired chant of “the city of Compton” in the intro of the song.
Beyoncé, wearing a tennis ball-yellow/green gown, gloves and matching jewels, with one bare leg decorated with a jeweled garter, sang while surrounded by dozens of dancers and musicians, all dressed in similar monochrome looks.
The musicians played matching tennis ball-colored violins and pianos, and the entire court was painted to match as well. The intricately choreographed performance was photographed from above and every angle.
If “Be Alive” wins the Best Original Song Oscar, Queen Bey and Dixson will each get a trophy.
