It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was the "did Will Smith actually slap Chris Rock on the Oscars stage???" of times. The 2022 Oscars are officially over, and it was a night full of historical, never-before-seen moments — like the aforementioned slap that sent social media into a tailspin. But among all of the chaos of the 94th Academy Awards (and there was so much chaos), some very deserving films, craftspeople, and artists were celebrated for their work.
The success story of the night goes to CODA, a heartfelt film that not only made history for Apple TV+ — marking the first time a streamer has taken home the night's top prize of Best Picture (sorry, Netflix) — but also won every category it was nominated in, including Best Adapted Screenplay for director-writer Siân Heder and Best Supporting Actor for deaf actor Troy Kotsur. Meanwhile, Denis Villeneuve's stunning spice epic Dune swept the technical categories, winning six Oscars. (Its leading man Timothée Chalamet, while not an Oscar winner, did win the hearts of the people while exposing his bare chest on the red carpet.)
The Power of the Dog helmer Jane Campion became the third woman to win an Academy Award for Best Director in the telecast's 94-year history. (Yes, let that sink in.)
In a night that wasn't all that full of surprises on our Oscar ballots — supporting actors Kotsur and West Side Story's Ariana DeBose had been locked as winners for months, while Will Smith had looked like a shoo-in for his leading performance in King Richard — Jessica Chastain's Best Actress win for The Eyes of Tammy Faye felt the most transcendent. But it's likely the only thing viewers will remember from the 2022 Oscars is Will Smith.
After slapping comedian Chris Rock on stage over a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith's hair, Smith accepted the Oscar for Best Actor in tears, seemingly regretful for his actions during the live show. This was a win decades in the making, and it's unfortunate that the peak his career will be marred by such a dramatic — dare we say, unprecedented — event.
And that was only the half of it. Check out Oscar night's full list of winners below.
Best Picture
WINNER: CODA
Belfast
Don’t Look Up
Drive My Car
Dune
King Richard
Licorice Pizza
Nightmare Alley
The Power of the Dog
West Side Story
Best Director
WINNER: Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog)
Kenneth Branagh (Belfast)
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car)
Paul Thomas Anderson (Licorice Pizza)
Steven Spielberg (West Side Story)
Best Lead Actor
WINNER: Will Smith (King Richard)
Javier Bardem (Being the Ricardos)
Benedict Cumberbatch (The Power of the Dog)
Andrew Garfield (Tick, Tick … Boom!)
Denzel Washington (The Tragedy of Macbeth)
Best Lead Actress
WINNER: Jessica Chastain (The Eyes of Tammy Faye)
Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter)
Penélope Cruz (Parallel Mothers)
Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos)
Kristen Stewart (Spencer)
Best Supporting Actor
WINNER: Troy Kotsur (CODA)
Ciarán Hinds (Belfast)
Jesse Plemons (The Power of the Dog)
J.K. Simmons (Being the Ricardos)
Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Power of the Dog)
Best Supporting Actress
WINNER: Ariana DeBose (West Side Story)
Jessie Buckley (The Lost Daughter)
Judi Dench (Belfast)
Kirsten Dunst (The Power of the Dog)
Aunjanue Ellis (King Richard)
Best Adapted Screenplay
WINNER: CODA, Siân Heder
Drive My Car, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, Takamasa Oe
Dune, Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve, Eric Roth
The Lost Daughter, Maggie Gyllenhaal
The Power of the Dog, Jane Campion
Best Original Screenplay
WINNER: Belfast, Kenneth Branagh
Don’t Look Up, Adam McKay, David Sirota
King Richard, Zach Baylin
Licorice Pizza, Paul Thomas Anderson
The Worst Person in the World, Eskil Vogt, Joachim Troer
Best Cinematography
WINNER: Dune, Greig Fraser
Nightmare Alley, Dan Laustsen
The Power of the Dog, Ari Wegner
The Tragedy of Macbeth, Bruno Delbonnel
West Side Story, Janusz Kamiński
Best Animated Feature Film
WINNER: Encanto
Flee
Luca
The Mitchells vs. the Machines
Raya and the Last Dragon
Best Animated Short Film
WINNER: "The Windshield Wiper"
"Affairs of the Art"
"Bestia"
"Boxballet"
"Robin Robin"
Best Costume Design
WINNER: Cruella
Cyrano
Dune
Nightmare Alley
West Side Story
Best Original Score
WINNER: Dune, Hans Zimmer
Don’t Look Up, Nicholas Britell
Encanto, Germaine Franco
Parallel Mothers, Alberto Iglesias
The Power of the Dog, Jonny Greenwood
Best Sound
WINNER: Dune
Belfast
No Time to Die
The Power of the Dog
West Side Story
Best Original Song
WINNER: "No Time to Die" (No Time to Die), Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell
"Be Alive" (King Richard), Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Dixson
"Dos Oruguitas" (Encanto), Lin-Manuel Miranda
"Down to Joy" (Belfast), Van Morrison
"Somehow You Do" (Four Good Days), Diane Warren
Best Documentary Feature
WINNER: Summer of Soul (…Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Ascension
Attica
Flee
Writing With Fire
Best Documentary Short Subject
WINNER: "The Queen of Basketball"
"Audible"
"Lead Me Home"
"Three Songs for Benazir"
"When We Were Bullies"
Best Film Editing
WINNER: Dune
Don’t Look Up
King Richard
The Power of the Dog
Tick, Tick … Boom!
Best International Feature Film
WINNER: Drive My Car (Japan)
Flee (Denmark)
The Hand of God (Italy)
Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (Bhutan)
The Worst Person in the World (Norway)
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
WINNER: The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Coming 2 America
Cruella
Dune
House of Gucci
Best Production Design
WINNER: Dune
Nightmare Alley
The Power of the Dog
The Tragedy of Macbeth
West Side Story
Best Visual Effects
WINNER: Dune
Free Guy
No Time to Die
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Spider-Man: No Way Home
Best Live Action Short Film
WINNER: "The Long Goodbye"
"Ala Kachuu – Take and Run"
"The Dress"
"On My Mind"
"Please Hold"
Topics Oscars
