OSCARS
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Jimmy Kimmel returned as Oscars host for the third time on Sunday (March 12) at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. With discourse around Will Smith’s onstage slap of 2022 Oscars host Chris Rock (prior to winning best actor) being one of the biggest stories of last year, it was predictable but perhaps inevitable that Kimmel would wedge a joke about it into the 95th annual Academy Awards.
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In his opening monologue, 2023 Oscars host Kimmel made jokes about Rihanna’s nine-month-old pooping backstage during rehearsals, Elvis Presley still being alive and, of course, The Slap. “Most importantly – we want me to feel safe. We have strict policies in place. If anyone in this theater commits an act of violence at any point during this show, you will be awarded the Oscar for best actor and permitted to give a 19-minute-long speech,” Kimmel said. Separately, Kimmel also jested that with five Irish actors nominated at the 2023 Oscars, “The odds of a fight on stage just went way up.”
Later in the show, Kimmel returned to the topic before the award for best documentary feature was given out. “You may recall this is where we had that little skirmish last year. Hopefully this time it goes off without a hitch – or at least without Hitch,” he said, referencing the 2005 Will Smith film. “Please put your hands together and then keep them to yourself.”
Nick Cannon’s brood of children got a shoutout during the show. Mentioning that Avatar: The Way of Water cost Disney two billion, he quipped, “Just to break even, all Nick Cannon’s kid had to see Avatar four times.”
“This is my favorite duo of the year: Steven Spielberg and Seth Rogen. What a pair,” Kimmel said of The Fabelmans duo. “The Joe and Hunter Biden of Hollywood. Seth, what are you on right now, be honest. Nothing? Mushrooms, right?” Noting that Spielberg has never done a drug in his life, Kimmel joked, “You mean to tell me you were sober when you made a movie about an alien who eats Reese’s Pieces all day and can’t remember how to phone home?”
The 95th Academy Awards took over the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday (March 12), airing live on ABC. Jimmy Kimmel returned as Oscars host this year, marking the third time the late-night show host helmed the Academy Awards.
Some of music’s biggest stars were present and accounted for, including Lady Gaga and Rihanna (both nominated in the best original song category) and Janelle Monáe and Halle Bailey. The pop queens — both of whom have headlined the Super Bowl Halftime Show — are performers during the 2023 Oscars broadcast.
Lenny Kravitz – who performs the In Memoriam segment during the 2023 telecast – also walked the carpet, in addition to Talking Heads frontman David Byrne, who was nominated alongside Ryan Lott and Mitski in the best original song category for “This Is A Life” from Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Everything Everywhere All At Once, which earned 11 nods, is the most-nominated film this year. “All of our mothers are sometimes overlooked, and it was time to show that all of our moms are superheroes,” said best actress nominee Michelle Yeoh on the champagne carpet ahead of the show.
Baz Luhrmann’s biopic on 20th century icon Elvis Presley, Elvis, was nominated for eight Oscars, including best picture; it also earned a best actor nomination for Austin Butler, who portrayed the King of Rock & Roll. “It feels like a dream come true,” said Butler of the nomination during the pre-show. “That’s like choosing your favorite kid – I can’t choose one,” Butler said when asked to name a favorite song from Presley.
Austin Butler
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Austin Butler at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Halle Bailey
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Halle Bailey at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
David Byrne & Mala Gaonkar
Image Credit: Lexie Moreland
David Byrne and Mala Gaonkar at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Valentina Paloma Pinault, Salma Hayek, Pedro Pascal & Javiera Balmaceda
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Valentina Paloma Pinault, Salma Hayek, Pedro Pascal and Javiera Balmaceda at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Lady Gaga
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Lady Gaga at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Cara Delevingne
Image Credit: Michael Buckner
Cara Delevingne at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Troy Kotsur & Questlove
Image Credit: Michael Buckner
Troy Kotsur and Questlove at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Laverne Cox
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Laverne Cox at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Vanessa Hudgens
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Vanessa Hudgens at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
Lenny Kravitz
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Lenny Kravitz at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Zoe Saldana
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Zoe Saldana at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Allison Williams
Image Credit: Lexie Moreland
Allison Williams at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Harry Shum Jr.
Image Credit: Lexie Moreland
Harry Shum Jr. at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Janelle Monáe
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Janelle Monáe at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Sofia Carson
Image Credit: Michael Buckner
Sofia Carson at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Florence Pugh
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Florence Pugh at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Mindy Kaling
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Mindy Kaling at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Fan Bingbing
Image Credit: Michael Buckner
Fan Bingbing at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Khaby Lame
Image Credit: Michael Buckner
Khaby Lame at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Sandra Oh
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Sandra Oh at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Angela Bassett
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Angela Bassett at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Questlove
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Questlove at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Stephanie Hsu
Image Credit: Michael Buckner
Stephanie Hsu at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Elizabeth Olsen
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Elizabeth Olsen at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Jamie Lee Curtis
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Jamie Lee Curtis at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Gustave De Waele, Lukas Dhont & Eden Dambrine
Image Credit: Michael Buckner
Gustave De Waele, Lukas Dhont, and Eden Dambrine at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Jay Ellis
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Jay Ellis at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Ashley Graham
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Ashley Graham at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
James Hong
Image Credit: Lexie Moreland
James Hong at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Winnie Harlow
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Winnie Harlow at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Deanne Bray & Troy Kotsur
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores
Deanne Bray and Troy Kotsur at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles.
The 95th Academy Awards take place on Sunday (March 12) at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and air live on ABC, with Jimmy Kimmel returning as Oscars host for the third time.
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Everything Everywhere All At Once, which earned 11 nods, is the most-nominated film this year. One of those 11 nominations is for best original song (David Byrne, Ryan Lott and Mitski’s “This Is A Life”). They’re competing against Lady Gaga and BloodPop for “Hold My Hand” (Top Gun: Maverick), Tems, Rihanna, Ryan Coogler and Ludwig Goransson for “Lift Me Up (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Diane Warren for “Applause” (Tell It Like a Woman) and M.M. Keeravaani and Chandrabose for “Naatu Naatu” (RRR). This is Warren’s 14th nomination, with no wins so far. Gaga previously won this category for co-writing “Shallow” from A Star Is Born.
Baz Luhrmann’s biopic on 20th century icon Elvis Presley, Elvis, was nominated for eight Oscars, including best picture; it also earned a best actor nomination for Austin Butler, who portrayed the King of Rock & Roll.
Check out the complete winners list below, updating live throughout the show.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Angela Bassett in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”Hong Chau in “The Whale”Kerry Condon in “The Banshees of Inisherin”Jamie Lee Curtis in “Everything Everywhere All at Once”Stephanie Hsu in “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
Best Costume Design
“Babylon” Mary Zophres“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” Ruth Carter“Elvis” Catherine Martin“Everything Everywhere All at Once” Shirley Kurata“Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris” Jenny Beavan
Best Sound
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Viktor Prášil, Frank Kruse, Markus Stemler, Lars Ginzel and Stefan Korte“Avatar: The Way of Water” Julian Howarth, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Dick Bernstein, Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers and Michael Hedges“The Batman” Stuart Wilson, William Files, Douglas Murray and Andy Nelson“Elvis” David Lee, Wayne Pashley, Andy Nelson and Michael Keller“Top Gun: Maverick” Mark Weingarten, James H. Mather, Al Nelson, Chris Burdon and Mark Taylor
Best Original Score
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Volker Bertelmann“Babylon” Justin Hurwitz“The Banshees of Inisherin” Carter Burwell“Everything Everywhere All at Once” Son Lux“The Fabelmans” John Williams
Best Adapted Screenplay
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Screenplay by Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson & Ian Stokell“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” Written by Rian Johnson“Living” Written by Kazuo Ishiguro“Top Gun: Maverick” Screenplay by Ehren Kruger and Eric Warren Singer and Christopher McQuarrie; Story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks“Women Talking” Screenplay by Sarah Polley
Best Original Screenplay
“The Banshees of Inisherin” Written by Martin McDonagh“Everything Everywhere All at Once” Written by Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert“The Fabelmans” Written by Steven Spielberg & Tony Kushner“Tár” Written by Todd Field“Triangle of Sadness” Written by Ruben Östlund
Best Live-Action Short Film
“An Irish Goodbye” Tom Berkeley and Ross White“Ivalu” Anders Walter and Rebecca Pruzan“Le Pupille” Alice Rohrwacher and Alfonso Cuarón“Night Ride” Eirik Tveiten and Gaute Lid Larssen“The Red Suitcase” Cyrus Neshvad
Best Animated Short Film
“The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse” Charlie Mackesy and Matthew Freud“The Flying Sailor” Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby“Ice Merchants” João Gonzalez and Bruno Caetano“My Year of Dicks” Sara Gunnarsdóttir and Pamela Ribon“An Ostrich Told Me the World Is Fake and I Think I Believe It” Lachlan Pendragon
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Brendan Gleeson in “The Banshees of Inisherin”Brian Tyree Henry in “Causeway”Judd Hirsch in “The Fabelmans”Barry Keoghan in “The Banshees of Inisherin”Ke Huy Quan in “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
Best Animated Film
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” Guillermo del Toro, Mark Gustafson, Gary Ungar and Alex Bulkley“Marcel the Shell with Shoes On” Dean Fleischer Camp, Elisabeth Holm, Andrew Goldman, Caroline Kaplan and Paul Mezey“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” Joel Crawford and Mark Swift“The Sea Beast” Chris Williams and Jed Schlanger“Turning Red” Domee Shi and Lindsey Collins
Best Original Song
“Applause” from “Tell It like a Woman”; Music and Lyric by Diane Warren“Hold My Hand” from “Top Gun: Maverick”; Music and Lyric by Lady Gaga and BloodPop“Lift Me Up” from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”; Music by Tems, Rihanna, Ryan Coogler and Ludwig Goransson; Lyric by Tems and Ryan Coogler“Naatu Naatu” from “RRR”; Music by M.M. Keeravaani; Lyric by Chandrabose“This Is A Life” from “Everything Everywhere All at Once”; Music by Ryan Lott, David Byrne and Mitski; Lyric by Ryan Lott and David Byrne
Best International Feature Film
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Germany“Argentina, 1985” Argentina“Close” Belgium“EO” Poland“The Quiet Girl” Ireland
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Heike Merker and Linda Eisenhamerová“The Batman” Naomi Donne, Mike Marino and Mike Fontaine“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” Camille Friend and Joel Harlow“Elvis” Mark Coulier, Jason Baird and Aldo Signoretti“The Whale” Adrien Morot, Judy Chin and Anne Marie Bradley
Best Production Design
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Production Design: Christian M. Goldbeck; Set Decoration: Ernestine Hipper“Avatar: The Way of Water” Production Design: Dylan Cole and Ben Procter; Set Decoration: Vanessa Cole“Babylon” Production Design: Florencia Martin; Set Decoration: Anthony Carlino“Elvis” Production Design: Catherine Martin and Karen Murphy; Set Decoration: Bev Dunn“The Fabelmans” Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Karen O’Hara
Best Cinematography
“All Quiet on the Western Front” James Friend“Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths” Darius Khondji“Elvis” Mandy Walker“Empire of Light” Roger Deakins“Tár” Florian Hoffmeister
Best Visual Effects
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Frank Petzold, Viktor Müller, Markus Frank and Kamil Jafar“Avatar: The Way of Water” Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon and Daniel Barrett“The Batman” Dan Lemmon, Russell Earl, Anders Langlands and Dominic Tuohy“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” Geoffrey Baumann, Craig Hammack, R. Christopher White and Dan Sudick“Top Gun: Maverick” Ryan Tudhope, Seth Hill, Bryan Litson and Scott R. Fisher
Best Film Editing
“The Banshees of Inisherin” Mikkel E.G. Nielsen“Elvis” Matt Villa and Jonathan Redmond“Everything Everywhere All at Once” Paul Rogers“Tár” Monika Willi“Top Gun: Maverick” Eddie Hamilton
Best Documentary Feature
“All That Breathes” Shaunak Sen, Aman Mann and Teddy Leifer“All the Beauty and the Bloodshed” Laura Poitras, Howard Gertler, John Lyons, Nan Goldin and Yoni Golijov“Fire of Love” Sara Dosa, Shane Boris and Ina Fichman“A House Made of Splinters” Simon Lereng Wilmont and Monica Hellström“Navalny” Daniel Roher, Odessa Rae, Diane Becker, Melanie Miller and Shane Boris
Best Documentary Short Subject
“The Elephant Whisperers” Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga“Haulout” Evgenia Arbugaeva and Maxim Arbugaev“How Do You Measure a Year?” Jay Rosenblatt“The Martha Mitchell Effect” Anne Alvergue and Beth Levison“Stranger at the Gate” Joshua Seftel and Conall Jones
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Austin Butler in “Elvis”Colin Farrell in “The Banshees of Inisherin”Brendan Fraser in “The Whale”Paul Mescal in “Aftersun”Bill Nighy in “Living”
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Cate Blanchett in “Tár”Ana de Armas in “Blonde”Andrea Riseborough in “To Leslie”Michelle Williams in “The Fabelmans”Michelle Yeoh in “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
Best Directing
“The Banshees of Inisherin” Martin McDonagh“Everything Everywhere All at Once” Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert“The Fabelmans” Steven Spielberg“Tár” Todd Field“Triangle of Sadness” Ruben Östlund
Best Picture
“All Quiet on the Western Front” Malte Grunert, Producer“Avatar: The Way of Water” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers“The Banshees of Inisherin” Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin and Martin McDonagh, Producers“Elvis” Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin, Gail Berman, Patrick McCormick and Schuyler Weiss, Producers“Everything Everywhere All at Once” Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert and Jonathan Wang, Producers“The Fabelmans” Kristie Macosko Krieger, Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner, Producers“Tá”r Todd Field, Alexandra Milchan and Scott Lambert, Producers“Top Gun: Maverick” Tom Cruise, Christopher McQuarrie, David Ellison and Jerry Bruckheimer, Producers“Triangle of Sadness” Erik Hemmendorff and Philippe Bober, Producers“Women Talking” Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner and Frances McDormand, Producers
Lady Gaga will perform “Hold My Hand” on the 2023 Oscars on Sunday (March 12) after all.
Variety first reported the surprise reversal. Oscars executive producer and showrunner Glenn Weiss stated that Gaga would not be performing during a press meeting with the Oscars creative team on March 8. He implied that the Oscars team and Gaga had mutually decided to pass because of the demands of her co-starring role in the Joker: Folie à Deux, which is currently shooting.
“We have a great relationship with Lady Gaga and her camp,” he said at the time. “She is in the middle of shooting a movie right now. Here, we are honoring the movie industry and what it takes to make a movie after a bunch of back and forth… It didn’t feel like she can get a performance to the caliber that we’re used to with her and that she is used to. So, she is not going to perform on the show,” Weiss said.
With Gaga now on the bill, all five of this year’s best original song nominees will be performed on the show. The other performers are Rihanna (“Lift Me Up” from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Sofia Carson and Diane Warren (“Applause” from Tell It Like a Woman), Stephanie Hsu, David Byrne and Son Lux (“This Is a Life” from Everything Everywhere All at Once) and Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava (“Naatu Naatu” from RRR).
This will be the first Oscar telecast in three years to include performances of all five nominated songs.
Two years ago, all five songs were performed, but on a pre-show. That move was seen as disrespectful by many in the music community. Last year, Van Morrison declined to perform “Down to Joy” from Belfast, so only four of the nominated songs were performed on the telecast.
This will be Gaga’s fourth performance on the Oscars. In 2015, she performed a medley of four songs from The Sound of Music to honor that film on its 50th anniversary. In a memorable Oscar moment, Julie Andrews came out at the end of Gaga’s performance and the two stars embraced.
In 2016, Gaga sang the nominated song “Til It Happens to You” from The Hunting Ground. In 2019, she and Bradley Cooper sang “Shallow” from A Star Is Born, which went on to win the award. The staging of “Shallow” was memorable, with Gaga and Cooper stepping up from their front-row seats to take the stage.
“Hold My Hand,” which Gaga co-wrote with BloodPop, has thus far peaked at No. 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 (in June). The song may reach a new peak following the Oscars. Both of Gaga’s previous Oscar-nominated songs reached new peaks following the telecast. “Shallow” shot from No. 21 to No. 1 on the Hot 100 the week following the Oscars. It had previously peaked at No. 5. “Til It Happens to You” had failed to make the Hot 100 when it was first released, but entered the chart at No. 95 following the Oscars.
The most dramatic example of a televised performance reigniting a Gaga song came after she headlined the Super Bowl halftime show in In February 2017. “Million Reasons” re-entered the Hot 100 at a new peak, No. 4, following her performance. The song had previously peaked at No. 52.
It was a coup for the Oscars to book Rihanna and Gaga, two of the hottest singers on the planet, on the same show. But then, when Oscar calls, even the biggest stars usually say yes. Beyoncé opened last year’s show with a memorable performance of “Be Alive” from King Richard. Such other superstars as Adele, U2, Lady Gaga, The Weeknd, Sam Smith, Justin Timberlake, Sting, Elton John and Billie Eilish with Finneas have performed nominated songs on the Oscars in the past decade.
Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the 95th Oscars will be held Sunday (March 12) at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood, and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide.
Ahead of the 2023 Academy Awards, Saturday Night Live hilariously mocked the red carpet segment of the Oscars pre-show during the iconic sketch comedy show’s cold open on March 11.
The eight-minute skit opened with SNL‘s Marcello Hernandez and Heidi Gardner portraying Access Hollywood hosts Mario Lopez and “Maria Menounos or Kit Hoover” interviewing a wide range of celebrities on the red carpet ahead of the Oscars in Hollywood.
“We are so excited to have been standing outside the Dolby Theatre for almost 153 hours,” Hernandez’s Lopez said. “But it’s all worth it to ask Angela Bassett if she really did the thing.”
After referencing Will Smith‘s infamous slap of Chris Rock during last year’s Oscars, the hosts welcomed the ceremony’s new head of security, former heavyweight boxing champ Mike Tyson (played by Kenan Thompson).
“This year, to make sure nothing crazy happens, the Academy hired a new head of security: notoriously calm and sane person, Mike Tyson,” Gardner’s host said.
When asked about the Academy Awards’ new security measures, Thompson’s Tyson replied, “This year, all the nominees have been given tasers, all the seat fillers have been given guns and Jimmy Kimmel has been given a flamethrower.”
Next up on the red carpet was legendary actress Jamie Lee Curtis (portrayed by SNL‘s Chloe Fineman), who praised Ariana DeBose‘s show-opening musical medley at the 2023 BAFTA Awards.
“What Ariana DeBose did at the BAFTAs was fun. It was by far the best live rap performance I’ve seen all year. It was incredible,” Fineman’s Curtis said.
DeBose received backlash on social media after performing an original rap in honor of the female nominees at the Feb. 19 awards show in London. During the rap number, the West Side Story star named-checked famous actresses like Bassett, Curtis, and Viola Davis.
The 95th annual Academy Awards takes place at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater on Sunday (March 12). The show, hosted by Kimmel, airs at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on ABC.
Watch SNL‘s “Oscars Red Carpet Cold Open” skit below. For those without cable, the broadcast streams on Peacock, which you can sign up for at the link here. Having a Peacock account also gives fans access to previous SNL episodes as well.
Since 1934, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has handed out an Oscar for best original song, and many of those now-iconic tunes have more than lived up to that golden title. It’s impossible to think of The Wizard of Oz without hearing “Over the Rainbow”; Dirty Dancing without singing “(I’ve Had) The Time of my Life”; or Pinocchio without humming “When You Wish Upon a Star.”
With musical heavy-hitters like Rihanna, David Byrne, Mitski and previous Oscar-winner Lady Gaga all in the running for best original song in 2023, whoever wins will be in awfully good company. (And, who knows? Maybe this will be the year that long-time nominee Diane Warren finally gets her flowers.)
Whether it’s Billie Eilish becoming James Bond musical royalty in 2021 with “No Time to Die,” Eminem putting hip-hop on the Oscar map in 2002 with “Lose Yourself,” Bruce Springsteen bringing us all to tears in 1993 with the “Streets of Philadelphia,” Isaac Hayes making Oscar history as the first African-American to win the best original song category in 1971 for “Theme from Shaft” or Irving Berlin creating a perennial holiday classic in 1942 with “White Christmas,” these Academy Award winners have spanned generations — and made for one incredible, albeit wildly eclectic, soundtrack.
In no particular order, here are the 15 greatest Oscar-winning songs of all-time. And if you don’t see your personal favorite listed here, well, no disrespect is intended. Unless, of course, that song landed on our list of the 15 worst Oscar-winning songs of all time. In that case, well, sorry.
“Over the Rainbow,” Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg from The Wizard of Oz
Image Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection
As timeless as they come. The legendary Judy Garland singing the splendid “Over the Rainbow” in The Wizard of Oz is pretty much the gold standard of movie magic.
“Lose Yourself,” Eminem from 8 Mile
Eminem’s amped-up anthem made Oscar history back in 2002, becoming the first-ever hip-hop track to win an Academy Award for best original song. While other hip-hop artists have been able to take home Oscars since, none of them have paid homage to both mom’s spaghetti and Mekhi Pfifer. Listen here.
“Falling Slowly,” Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová from Once
Basically every song from Once is Oscar-worthy (yep, even “Broken Hearted Hoover Fixer Sucker Guy”), but “Falling Slowly” is the one that made everyone fall madly in love with the duo and their little movie (and eventually, Broadway show) that could. Listen here.
“Take My Breath Away,” Giorgio Moroder and Tom Whitlock from Top Gun
Image Credit: ©Paramount / courtesy Everett Collection
This soaring, synth-y ballad not only took Berlin all the way to the top of the Billboard Hot 100, but to the dizzying heights of having performed a song that won an Academy Award (for songwriters Giorgio Moroder and Tom Whitlock).
“Theme from Shaft,” Isaac Hayes from Shaft
The grooviest, funkiest and all-around coolest best original song winner not only made the Shaft soundtrack an essential record, but it made Oscar history when Isaac Hayes became the first African-American to win in this category. Don’t like it? Shut your mouth. Listen here.
“White Christmas,” Irving Berlin from Holiday Inn
There are two best original song Oscar winners that became bona fide Christmastime essentials: “White Christmas” from 1942’s Holiday Inn and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” from 1949’s Neptune’s Daughter. However, only one of these classics managed to remain an unproblematic fave. Listen here.
“Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” Burt Bacharach and Hal David from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
The incomparable Burt Bacharach earned five Oscar nominations and won twice in this category over the course of his career. Has there ever been a better song to get you out of a funk than this one? We’d be hard-pressed to find it. Listen here.
“Moon River,” Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer from Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Image Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection
Audrey Hepburn plucking her guitar and crooning out of her New York City window made its mark on cinema in 1961, and various covers (from Andy Williams to Frank Ocean) have kept it a pop culture staple over the years. Still, nothing beats the dreamy version seen in the film.
“Jai Ho,” A. R. Rahman and Guizar from Slumdog Millionaire
Before Marvel movies were keeping people planted firmly in their seats as the credits rolled, Slumdog Millionaire had audiences dancing in the aisles to this Indian pop crowd-pleaser. (It’s also the only Oscar-winning song to date to get its very own treatment by The Pussycat Dolls.) Listen here.
“The Way You Look Tonight,” Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields from Swing Time
If anyone could make audiences feel like they were floating on air during the Great Depression, it was Fred Astaire. One of the most romantic songs ever written, if you haven’t heard one of its many iterations on the big screen, you’ve most certainly heard it at a wedding or two hundred. Listen here.
“(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life,” by Franke Previte, John DeNicola & Donald Markowitz from Dirty Dancing
Image Credit: ©Vestron Pictures/courtesy Everett Collection
Nobody puts Baby in a corner. In fact, Baby stars in one of the most satisfying movie finales ever set to ’80s pop perfection.
“Last Dance,” Paul Jabara from Thank God It’s Friday
Sure, it’s from the worst movie on this list by a mile, but this disco staple — performed by dancefloor queen Donna Summer — has been telling party-going night owls to call it an evening since 1978. Listen here.
“When You Wish Upon a Star,” Leigh Harline and Ned Washington from Pinocchio
Disney is no stranger to winning in this category, but it’s hard to top the OG recipient: “When You Wish Upon a Star.” Perhaps the song still most associated with the movie studio to this day, this Jiminy Cricket (Cliff Edwards) tune has been packing a big punch since 1940. Listen here.
“Streets of Philadelphia,” Bruce Springsteen from Philadelphia
Neil Young’s “Philadelphia” (which was also nominated that year) may actually pack the bigger emotional wallop in the 1993 drama, but you can’t argue with the power of The Boss and the aching sense of hope lost in this powerful ballad. Listen here.
“Shallow,” Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando & Andrew Wyatt from A Star Is Born
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo
When you think of “Shallow” and its big night at the 2019 Oscars, it’s all but impossible not to conjure up sexy, smoldering thoughts of that swoon-worthy live performance by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper. Their chemistry truly sent us all off the deep end.
For every time the Oscars gets something so very right (i.e. Parasite winning best picture in 2019), the Academy Awards can also get other things so very wrong (remember when Crash triumphed over Brokeback Mountain or how they were so transparently skewed they generated the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite?).
The best original song category is no stranger to some regrettable follies. After all, this is a category that has nominated living legend Diane Warren 14 times and sent her home empty handed every single time. (“I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” “Because You Loved Me,” and “‘Til It Happens To You” sure seemed like locks at the time, and then, nadda.) It’s also the same category that controversially nominated a track from an obscure Christian flick back in 2014, only to have to revoke it later.
Of course, some of the most egregious Oscar moments have come from giving an Academy Award to confounding song selections. From forgettable Disney ditties to treacly disaster flick ballads (the only thing worse than perishing in The Towering Inferno or The Poseidon Adventure was the music accompanying them), there have been more than a few times when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) showed that they can be utterly tone deaf. (Apologies in advance to talented icons Phil Collins, Barbra Streisand, Elton John and repeat offender Randy Newman.)
In no particular order, these are one critic’s picks for the 15 worst Oscar-winning songs of all-time. Hey, you can’t get them all right.
“Writing’s on the Wall,” Jimmy Napes and Sam Smith from Spectre
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo
Putting aside the fact that this is one of the more lackluster James Bond songs (we dare you to try and hum this one from memory), what was even more bleak was having it triumph over Lady Gaga’s “Til It Happens to You,” a harrowing ode to survivors of sexual assault, from The Hunting Ground.
“You’ll Be in My Heart,” Phil Collins from Tarzan
A forgettable song from a forgettable movie, Phil Collins’ snoozer inexplicably beat out both Aimee Mann’s haunting “Save Me” and Trey Parker and Marc Shaiman’s hilarious “Blame Canada.” It’s the Crash of best original song winners: its victory remains baffling as ever. Listen here.
“The Morning After,” Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn from The Poseidon Adventure
Talk about a disaster: this waterlogged ballad bested Michael Jackson’s far superior “Ben.” Listen here.
“You Must Love Me,” Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice from Evita
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo
Must we? Because, honestly, Madonna has had infinitely better and more deserving songs from movies, including the Oscar-winning Stephen Sondheim composition “Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)” from Dick Tracy. Worst of all, this drowsy ballad unreasonably won over the toe-tapping perfection that is “That Thing You Do!”
“We May Never Love Like This Again,” Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn from The Towering Inferno
Kasha and Hirschhorn gave us yet another musical mishap from a ’70s disaster flick, toppling a better song; in this case, the self-titled, gut-busting theme to Blazing Saddles. Listen here.
“Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah,” Allie Wrubel and Ray Gilbert from Song of the South
Like Splash Mountain, it’s time to once and for all bid this song from this racist garbage adieu-dah. Listen here.
“You Light Up My Life,” Joseph Brooks from You Light Up My Life
While other wistful ballads have managed to stand the test of time, this one is about as corny as it gets. It’s best known as something you dread hearing in the dentist chair. Plus, it somehow beat a killer Bond song! (In this case, Carly Simon’s “Nobody Does it Better.”) Listen here.
“Can You Feel the Love Tonight,” Elton John and Tim Rice from The Lion King
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo
Disney had the best original song category in a chokehold for the ’90s (see: “Beauty and the Beast,” “A Whole New World,” “Colors of the Wind.”). But it was The Lion King that dominated in 1994, garnering three song nominations with “Circle of Life,” “Hakuna Matata” and the eventual winner, which was the weakest of the bunch, “Can You Feel the Love Tonight.” Not a bad song, but “Circle of Life” soars higher.
“The Shadow of Your Smile,” Johnny Mandel and Paul Francis Webster from The Sandpiper
Awarding this cocktail lounge ditty over “What’s New, Pussycat”? Whoa-ah-ohhhh-ah-no. Listen here.
“Sweet Leilani,” Harry Owens from Waikiki Wedding
Like being stuck in the luau from hell, this sappy island tune somehow bested the Gershwins’ legendary “They Can’t Take That Away From Me.” Listen here.
“I Need to Wake Up,” Melissa Etheridge from An Inconvenient Truth
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo
This song means well, it really does. But for a song that’s supposed to capture the urgency of the global warming crisis, it barely scratches the emotional surface of the rapidly melting iceberg. Sorry to put you in second place again, Al Gore, but this one belonged to “Listen” from Dreamgirls.
“Secret Love,” Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster from Calamity Jane
As painful as it is to put the incomparable Doris Day on a worst-of anything list, this saccharine ballad doesn’t quite hold a candle to the song it beat out: Dean Martin’s absolutely essential “That’s Amore.” Listen here.
“We Belong Together,” Randy Newman from Toy Story 3
There was no way Randy Newman was ever going to be able to top “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” in the Toy Story universe, but maybe the Academy felt bad for snubbing that one all the way back in 1995 and awarded this subpar entry instead. Listen here.
“If I Didn’t Have You,” Randy Newman from Monsters, Inc.
Sorry to do this to you twice, Randy! But Enya’s “May It Be” from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings is the one song to rule them all. Listen here.
“Evergreen (Love Theme From A Star Is Born),” Barbra Streisand and Paul Williams from A Star Is Born
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo
With all due respect to music/screen/stage legend Streisand, this song is no “Shallow,” and as far as 1976 is concerned, that year’s theme song was “Gonna Fly Now” from Rocky.
Lady Gaga is as real an artist, performer and person as they come. The only thing that’s fake about her? Her latest wax figure, which was recently unveiled as the newest addition to the Madame Tussauds Hollywood collection.
Little Monsters wanting to pose with Mother Monster were able to do the next best thing beginning March 8, when Gaga’s figure was first made available for viewing at the museum. Frozen forever in the middle of blowing an air kiss, the “Rain on Me” singer’s wax model is complete with perfectly recreated freckles, tattoos, makeup and hair color.
It’s a replica of Gaga’s glamorous look worn to the Oscars in 2019, where she won best original song for A Star Is Born‘s standout track “Shallow.” She wore an elegant black gown, matching opera gloves and a white and yellow diamond Tiffany necklace worth millions of dollars to the star-studded ceremony.
“Lady Gaga represents so many positive attributes in this world, and to have another wax figure added to Madame Tussauds is incredible,” said Tom Middleton, general manager at Madame Tussauds Hollywood, in a statement. “It made the most sense to have her Hollywood figure be inspired by the night she was nominated for Best Actress and took home the award for Best Original Song for ‘Shallow.‘”
Speaking of Gaga and the Oscars, it was recently revealed that the 13-time Grammy-winner won’t be performing at this year’s ceremony on Sunday (March 12) deespite being nominated again in the best original song category for “Hold My Hand,” her contribution to the Top Gun: Maverick soundtrack. In a press meeting via Zoom, the show’s executive producer Glenn Weiss explained that she’s been too busy filming a movie — presumably Joker: Folie à Deux, in which she’s starring as Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker — to pull together an Oscars-worthy showcase.
“We actually invited all five nominees,” Weiss said on the call. “We have great relationships with Lady Gaga and her camp. After a bunch of back and forth, it didn’t feel like she can get a performance to the caliber that we’re used to with her and that she is used to. … So, she is not going to perform on the show.”
See a close-up photo of Lady Gaga’s new wax figure below:
Courtesy of Madame Tussauds Hollywood
The 2023 Academy Awards are just days away, and songs by some of today’s biggest artists are up for the best original song Oscar.
Lady Gaga is nominated for “Hold My Hand” (Top Gun: Maverick) and Rihanna is up for “Lift Me Up (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever). This is Rihanna’s first and Gaga’s fourth Oscar nomination, and Gaga previously won for co-writing “Shallow” from A Star Is Born. Diane Warren also received her 14th Oscar nom for “Applause” (Tell It Like a Woman). David Byrne, Sox Lux founder Ryan Lott and Mitski are also Oscar nominees in the best original song category thanks to “This Is A Life” from Everything Everywhere All At Once, which is the most-nominated film this year with 11 nods.
Ahead of the Oscars, we at Billboard want to know which song you think should win the trophy. Let us know by voting in our poll below.
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Last year, all four of the actors who won Oscars – Will Smith and Jessica Chastain in the lead categories, and Troy Kotsur and Ariana DeBose in the supporting races — had won in those same categories at the Screen Actors Guild Awards one month earlier. Their Oscar coronations were not quite foregone conclusions, but nearly so.
It’s very different this year. Only one of the actors who won at the SAG Awards on Feb. 26 seems certain of also winning an Oscar on Sunday, March 12. That’s Ke Huy Quan for his supporting role in Everything Everywhere All at Once.
Michelle Yeoh, who won the SAG Award for her leading role in that same film, is probably the front-runner to also win the Oscar, but Cate Blanchett can’t be counted out for her acclaimed performance in Tár. Blanchett has already won two Oscars, which may work against her here.
Brendan Fraser, who won at the SAG Awards for his lead performance in The Whale, is a serious contender for the Oscar, but Austin Butler (for Elvis) and Colin Farrell (for The Banshees of Inisherin) could just as easily take it. This one is too close to call.
So is the race for best supporting actress. Jamie Lee Curtis won at the SAG Awards for her supporting turn in Everything Everywhere All at Once, and gave a great, self-deprecating speech, referring to herself a “nepo baby.” (Curtis is the daughter of Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, two of the top Hollywood stars of their era.) She could easily also win the Oscar – in the same category where her mom was nominated (and lost) for her unforgettable performance in Psycho.
But many will want to see the Oscar go to Angela Bassett for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, particularly after two other Black actresses — Viola Davis (for The Woman King) and Danielle Deadwyler (for Till) — were passed over for Oscar nods for best actress. This race, too, is too close to call.
How closely have the SAG Awards winners aligned with the Oscar winners in the four acting categories? Pretty closely, but not well enough for SAG winners to get overly confident.
Since the SAG Awards began in 1995 (honoring films released in 1994), all four SAG winners went on to win Oscars nine times. Three of the four went on to win Oscars 11 times. Let’s pause here: The SAG winners aligned with the Oscar winners in at least three of the four categories 20 times in the past 28 years – an impressive rate of agreement.
That leaves eight years where the agreement was less impressive. Just two of the four SAG winners went on to win Oscars six times. Just one of the four went on to win the Oscar twice. Those two years where the two voting bodies were far apart were 2001 and 2002, where they agreed only on Halle Berry in Monster’s Ball (2001) and Catherine Zeta-Jones in Chicago (2002).
The rate of agreement between the two shows has increased over time. In the SAG Awards’ first 14 years, they agreed on all four winners just twice. In the last 14 years, they have agreed seven times.
Benicio Del Toro (Traffic) and Kate Winslet (The Reader) were winners at both shows, but in different categories. Del Toro won the SAG Award for outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role, but he went on to win the Oscar for best supporting actor. It worked the other way around for Winslet, who won the SAG Award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role, but went on to win the Oscar for best actress. (Since they both won at both shows, we counted them as in agreement.)
The SAG Awards have had one tie in a Big Four acting category. In 1997, Kim Basinger (L.A. Confidential) tied for outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role with Gloria Stuart (Titanic). Basinger went on to win the Oscar. (Since at least one of the SAG winners went on to win at the Oscars, we counted that as being in agreement too.)
The SAG Awards have presented two of their marquee film acting awards posthumously, to Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight and Chadwick Boseman in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Only Ledger went on to win the Oscar.