The Academy’s 97th Oscars on March 2nd, caused some uproar among the viewers of the many movies being honored on Hollywood’s biggest night. The Oscars celebrate work in cinema and is where movies of the year are honored and recognized in many different categories. The most popular categories include, Best Picture, Best Actor/Actress, Best Supporting Actor/Actress, along with many other honorable categories. This past year had some of the most memorable movies including: Wicked starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, Emilia Pérez starring Karla Sofia Gascón and Zoe Saldaña, and Anora starring Mikey Madison and Yuriy Borisov. Although all of these movies were deserving of their awards, many viewers disagreed with the amount and lack of awards these movies won. 

The first category that received the most backlash was for Best Picture, which was given to Anora. Anora swept the floor during the Oscars by receiving five honors: Best Actress, Best Directing, Best Film Editing, Best Writing, and most controversial, Best Picture. Anora’s controversial win surrounds the idea of the movie, which upset some of the viewers, especially when it was up against movies like Wicked which had a deeper meaning and connection amoungests its viewers.

Similarly, Emilia Pérez also did very well at the Oscars, by “holding the record for the most Oscar nominations for a non-English language film” (Today). Although the movie was seen as a great representation of the Transgender community, social media posts from the lead actress, Karla Sofia Gascón which were racist and Islamophobic, led to many of its viewers looking down upon the actress, and therefore looking down upon the movie as a whole (abc). Even though she apologized to her fans and the movie community, many felt as though her apology was not sufficient and therefore was upset it was still nominated for so many categories. Other critics said that the movie was a “‘step backwards for Trans representation”’ as the movie recycled Trans stereotypes and the same tropes from older films (abc). Even after these criticisms, Emilia Pérez was still successful and won two Oscars.

There was no doubt that Wicked, the recent Broadway musical turned movie, would be a huge competitor at all of the award shows these past months. Yet, many viewers were upset that it did not win any major categories, due to the fact that the movie “is now the highest-grossing film adaptation of a Broadway musical worldwide after surpassing $634 million in global ticket sales over the Christmas holiday weekend” (nbc). Cynthia Erivo, starring as Elphaba, was nominated for Best Leading Actress, but was beat out by Mikey Madison in Anora. Many viewers were upset that she did not win, because she would have been able to be an EGOT, which is the honor of winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony, and many felt that Erivo was more deserving. Erivo’s supporting actress Ariana Grande, was also nominated for Best Supporting Actress, but she lost to Zoe Saldaña in Emilia Pérez. When Grande was cast as Glinda, she said “I love her so much. I’m going to take such good care of her, thank you!” which was a role that she has been waiting to play her whole life (US Magazine). Although these two faced upsetting losses, Wicked was still able to win Best Costume Design and Best Production Design making Paul Tazewell the first African American to win Best Costume Design (Forbes). Viewers are hopeful that Wicked will be more successful next year, when the second part is released. 

There was no doubt that this year’s Oscars were filled with great talent along with big competition. The controversy over these awards highlight the deep passion that different audiences have for cinema. With Anora walking home with wins from the five biggest categories and Emilia Pérez getting both praise and backlash regarding its lead actress, these trends reflect the Academy’s thoughts about the Hollywood cinema this year and shows the high standards that award shows hold for its actors and actresses. With Wicked’s results being so unexpected, many fans were left very disappointed and determined to do better next year. The results of this year’s Oscars showcase the trends and thoughts of the Academy, which change so often which truly makes it hard for viewers to know who will win each year. Many people are already excited and anticipating that the 98th Oscars will be just as exciting. What movies do you want to see nominated next year?