The 94th Academy Awards ceremony is being held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Hollywood’s biggest night has returned to its red-carpet format this year and is hosted by Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes. Denis Villeneuve’s Dune is the biggest winner this year, with six wins as of now. The film received 10 nominations, including one in Best Picture category. This year’s nominations saw Netflix’s The Power of the Dog leading with 12 nods.
Four of Dune's wins were announced before the ceremony began. The film won Best Original Score, Best Sound, Best Film Editing, Best Visual Effects, Best Production Design and Best Cinematography.
The Academy last month had announced changes to the annual award ceremony when it revealed that winners for eight categories will be presented off air during the 2022 Oscars, a move that received instant backlash from the artistic community and the public.
Ariana DeBose took home the best supporting actress Oscar for playing Anita in Steven Spielberg’s remake of the classic musical West Side Story. DeBose became the first openly queer woman of colour to win an acting Oscar. “Imagine this little girl in the back seat of a white Ford Focus. Look into her eyes, you see an openly queer woman of color and Latina who found her life and strength in art,” she in her acceptance speech. “That’s what I believe we are here to celebrate. 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,” Variety quoted her as saying.
Actor Troy Kotsur won the best supporting actor Oscar for his role in CODA. His win comes more than 35 years after his co-star Marlee Matlin won an Oscar for lead actress for Children of a Lesser God (1986). "It is amazing to be here. I cannot believe that I am here.Thank you to the Academy for recognising my work," an emotional Kotsur said through an interpreter of the American Sign Language in his acceptance speech.
