By: Quinn Hathaway

National/World Editor

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo opened the ceremony with a trio of Wicked-related songs. Grande first performed Over the Rainbow from the Wizard of Oz, followed by Erivo’s singing Home from The Wiz. The duo culminated their performance with a rendition of Defying Gravity, highlighting Erivo’s impressive range and the pair’s chemistry. Conan O’Brien took the floor after, hosting the show for his first time.

Anora, edited, co-produced, and directed by Sean Baker, won a total of five awards. Baker himself received four of the five. The R-rated, romantic comedy took home the coveted Best Picture award,  Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Film Editing. The fifth award went to Mikey Madison for Best Actress. Baker tied Walt Disney’s record of winning four Oscars in a single ceremony. While Disney received four different awards for four different films, Baker took his own unique twist with all four awards going to the same movie.

Wicked and The Brutalist both received ten nominations. Wicked ended up taking home two and The Brutalist snagged three. Wicked won Best Production Design and Best Costume Design, notably losing Best Actress for Erivo and Best Supporting Actress for Grande. The Brutalist won Best Actor for Adrian Brody, Best Cinematography, and Best Original Score. Both films were nominated for Best Picture. 

Emilia Pérez ultimately won two Oscars, although the comedy received 13 nominations, the most for any film of the night. Emilia Pérez won Best Supporting Actress for Zoe Saldaña as well as Best Original Song for El Mal. One nomination in particular made history, as Karla Sofía Gascón was the first transgender woman nominated for an Oscar.

The night was full of firsts, including Paul Tazewell being the first Black man to win an award for the costume work displayed in Wicked. Flow won Best Animated Picture and made history as the first Latvian film to win an Academy Award. The films I’m Still Here and In the Shadow of the Cypress brought recognition to Brazilian and Iranian filmmakers, while No Other Land represented Palestinian and Israeli work.

The 2024 Oscars awarded a number of impressive works from the year and highlighted diversity in the choices. Wicked certainly made its impact, with numerous nominations and Erivo and Grande’s opening performance. The slew of movies set to debut in 2025 has large footsteps to fill, and film fans are already looking forward to next year’s Academy Awards.
(Sources: CBS, CNBC, People)