Unlike 2022, which featured the infamous slap moment, this year’s Oscars telecast went on without a hitch. No major drama. Not really any massive upsets. Instead, viewers got a chance to focus on what did happen, which is a bunch of deserving people won awards, and many of them gave memorable speeches.
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Obviously, we’re not going to recap the entire event, but there were some Oscars speeches that stood out among the very best of the night. There were those that were expected, but there were even a couple of surprise speeches that took us by surprise with how emotional and sweet they were.
Speaking of the latter, we have to talk about the filmmakers behind “An Irish Goodbye,” the winner of the Live-Action Short category. They started with their typical speech, but they wrapped up sooner so that they could spend the rest of their time inviting the entire auditorium to sing “Happy Birthday” to one of their own on stage. Then you have Edward Berger accepting the award for Best International Film for “All Quiet on the Western Front.” He took the time to call out the performance of lead Felix Kammerer, who was also on stage, and how it was the actor’s first film gig. Of course, we also should shout out Daniels, the directing duo who took home several awards last night, as each of their speeches was full of humor, humility, and heart.
As for the heavy hitters who took home awards, there was Guillermo del Toro, who won as director of his ‘Pinocchio,’ which took home Best Animated Feature. He took his time to make sure animation gets the respect it deserves.
“Animation is cinema. Animation is not a genre. And animation is ready to be taken to the next step. We’re all ready for it,” he said. “Please help us and keep animation in the conversation.”
As for the actors, you had truly emotional speeches from Jamie Lee Curtis and Brendan Fraser, with the latter appearing to be completely overwhelmed. However, what stood out most are the wins from Ke Huy Quan and Michelle Yeoh, both from “Everything Everywhere All at Once.”
“My journey began on a boat. I spent a year in a refugee camp. And somehow, I ended up here, on Hollywood’s biggest stage,” said Quan while accepting Best Supporting Actor. “They say stories like this only happen in the movies. I can’t believe it’s actually happening to me. This is the American dream!”
For Yeoh, this was especially historic, as it marks the first time an Asian actor has taken home Best Actress, and it’s only the second time a non-white woman has won the award.
“For all of the little boys and girls, who look like me, watching tonight, this is the beacon of hope and possibilities. This is proof to dream big and dreams do come true,” she said. “And ladies, don’t let anyone ever tell you that you’re past your prime.”
You can watch all of these speeches below: