Oscars 2024: The best, the worst and the wildest moments

We were also perplexed by a John Cena almost naked and with Ryan Gosling serving up a musical full of hot pink energy. The 96th edition of Oscar gave us memorable and regrettable moments, long-awaited victories (Robert Downey Jr.! Wes Anderson! Christopher Nolan!) and a somewhat predictable round of victories for the phenomenon Oppenheimer. We also witnessed truly “what the hell was that” moments, musical choices that made us question what they were thinking, and more than a few jaw-dropping situations. Here are the 10 best, worst and wildest moments from Oscars 2024.

BEST: Jimmy Kimmel Recognizes Who Keeps Hollywood Running

Jimmy Kimmel opened the ceremony with a monologue that one would expect from Jimmy Kimmel – half sarcastic (with jokes about Robert Downey Jr.’s past with drugs), half affectionate (praising the overlooked director Greta Gerwig) and kind of uncomfortable (describing Zone of Interest as a “romantic comedy” for Germans – just no!). Then came a lovely moment. After acknowledging how Hollywood overcame actor and screenwriter strikes, he shined a spotlight, literally, on the people who work behind the camera: the film crews. “This strange town of ours, as pretentious and superficial as it may be, is, at heart, a union town,” he said. So he brought in truck drivers, lighting crew, sound crew, camera crew, electricians, and camera and production assistants: “All the people who refused to cross the picket line.” —KG

BEST: Da’Vine Joy Randolph wows as Best Supporting Actress

Nominated for the first time, Da’Vine Joy Randolph conquered the awards circuit thanks to his role in The Rejectedhaving won a Golden Globeone Critics Choice Awardone Screen Actors Guild Awardone BAFTA and now, an Oscar. Randolph became emotional as she recalled how her mother encouraged her to pursue theater and recalled how an early mentor encouraged her. “When I was the only black girl in that class, you saw me and told me I was enough,” Randolph said. “When I said you didn’t see me, you said, ‘Okay. Let’s make our own way.'” She finished by giving her PR a wave. “And I know you guys said not to say anything about PR, but you don’t have a PR guy like mine!” —KR

WORST: Don Julio’s “gift” merchandise

What should be a celebration of the performance of Colman Domingo in Rustin from the Netflix turned into complete merchandise, complete with an embarrassing tequila toast with the comedian Guillermo Rodriguez. As audience members raised their glasses, Rodriguez called the Oscar-nominated actor “Colman Flamingo.” He made a bad mistake, he made a rude mistake. To make matters worse, the skit was followed by an advertisement for Don Julio with fireworks, dancing and a DJ. No. Just, no. —KR

WILDEST: John Cena announces the award for Best Costume… without any clothes

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of a moment between David Niven It is Elizabeth Taylor, Jimmy Kimmel and John Cena jokingly agreed to act out a skit — which ended with Cena naked on stage. “Psst, Jimmy,” the actor said from the back of the stage. “I changed my mind, I don’t want to be part of the scene anymore.” Kimmel then convinced Cena to go on stage with only the Best Costume Design nominees card covering his private parts. “I can’t open the card,” Cena complained. The moment was awkward, uncomfortable and kind of funny. “The male body is not a joke,” Cena said. “Mine is,” Kimmel joked. —KG

BEST: Cord Jefferson’s Heartfelt Speech to Hollywood About Movie Costs

During his acceptance speech for the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, the filmmaker American FictionCord Jefferson asked Hollywood investors to reevaluate how they invest their money. “I understand this is a risk-averse industry,” he said. “$200 million movies are also a risk. Instead of making one $200 million movie, try making 10 $20 million movies. Or 50 $4 million movies. Next Martin Scorsese it’s out there. The next Greta is out there. The next Christopher Nolan is out there.” For reference, the ScreenRant reports: Fast & Furious cost 340 million dollars; The Flash was 300 million dollars, and Mission Impossible – Reckoning: Part One cost 290 million. American Fiction cost “significantly less than 10 million”, according to the ScreenDaily. —KG

WILDEST: The ‘Barbenheimer’ Feud Gets Personal

The debate Barbenheimer stopped on the Oscar stage! Oppenheimer received 13 nominations, while Barbie was behind with eight. Right before Emily Blunt It is Ryan Goslingco-stars in Fall Guyacknowledge the legacy of stunt performers, Blunt mentioned the disparity and how his film – Oppenheimer – had done “quite well” on the awards circuit. In response, Gosling needled Blunt for his film “piggybacking on the back of Barbie all summer.” Blunt then fired back, accusing Gosling of “Ken-splaining,” and hit home when he referred to Gosling as “Mr. ‘I Need to Paint My Abs to Be Nominated’.” Jeez! “This needs to stop,” said Gosling. “We have to stop this!” (But considering this was one of the few comic reliefs that worked on the night, we ask: for please don’t stop.) —KR

WORST: Academy misses chance to make Best Actress history

It was the surprise of the night: almost everyone expected Lily Gladstone won the Oscar for Best Actress for her role in Flower Moon Assassins. This would have made up for the film being snubbed in all other categories. Then Emma Stone he took. Shaken, the actress from Poor Creatures accepted her award as her Frankenstein-like character Bella Baxter and thanked her co-stars, director Yorgos Lanthimos and her three-year-old daughter. But as Stone joked about ripping her dress or losing her voice during her acceptance speech, it was hard not to think about what it would have meant to award Gladstone. She was not just the heart of Flower Moon Assassins — she would also have made history as the first indigenous woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress. It was a missed opportunity. —KR

BEST and WILDEST: Ryan Gosling’s “I’m Just Ken” Performance

“It doesn’t seem to matter what I do/I’m always second”, says the beginning of the lyrics of “I’m Just Ken”, Barbie song performed by Ryan Gosling. But at the Oscars, Ken/Gosling put on a paralyzing show. Billie Eilishsitting behind him, couldn’t contain herself as he sang the painful verses and turned the stage into a kaleidoscopic explosion of pink, splitting blocks of wood with karate chops, surrounded by dancing cowboys and Kens, spinning Barbie faces and… the guitarist of Armas e Rosas, slash! At one point, Gosling went to the front row and sang with his co-stars and even his “rival” in the season, Emma Stone. Even the cameraman held Gosling’s hand. For just a few minutes this Sunday night, Ken was in first place. —KG

WORST: 20 Days in Mariupol followed by “I’m Just Ken”

Blame the maestro (and we’re not talking about the movie Bradley Cooper). At the end of the filmmaker’s moving acceptance speech Mstyslav Chernov for the award for Best Documentary for 20 Days in Mariupol, a film about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the choice of the ending song was… unfortunate. Chernov spoke about the resilience of the Ukrainian people and the importance of showing injustices around the world through cinema — “because cinema forms memories, and memories form history,” he said. It was brilliant and exciting. Only for the orchestra to launch into an especially cinematic version of… “I’m Just Ken”. It was the most embarrassing musical moment of the night. —KG

BEST: ‘Oppenheimer’ Rocks the Block

Even though Oppenheimer was one of the biggest box office hits of the year, and even though it was the most nominated film at the Oscars on Sunday, a win – even a well-deserved one – was a pleasant surprise for viewers and the people who made the film. “I think anyone who makes movies knows that they kind of dream about this moment,” he said. Emma Thomasproducer of Oppenheimer, while accepting the Best Picture trophy. “I could deny it, but I’ve been dreaming of this moment for so long. But it seemed unlikely that it would actually happen.” Out of 13 nominations, Oppenheimer won seven, including Best Director (Christopher Nolan), Best Actor (Cillian Murphy) and Best Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr.) Some of them even walked with their trophies behind Thomas as she spoke. It was a victory for mega-productions that reveal new depths of the human experience — exactly the purpose of Hollywood’s existence. —KG