The 95th Annual Academy Awards was bound to be less dramatic than last year’s show no matter what happened.
The Academy caught heat for failing to react quickly enough when Will Smith strode onstage and assaulted show host Chris Rock last year, making it so they played things extra safe in 2023. Some say the Oscars were a little too cautious, or to phrase it another way, even more boring than usual. That meant cutting down on the political rhetoric that’s become so predictable at every awards show.
But despite host Jimmy Kimmel attempting to make non-offensive jokes, there were still moments during the Oscars which fully displayed the ingrained leftist leanings of the Hollywood community. Did conservatives expect anything else?
1. “Everything Everywhere All At Once” director defends drag queens
The night’s big winner was the sci-fi indie flick “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” a totally out-of-the-box project about a Chinese-American immigrant (Michelle Yeoh) who must connect with parallel universe versions of herself to prevent the destruction of the multiverse. The film won seven Oscars including Best Picture.
The movie’s co-director Daniel Scheinert used his Oscars acceptance speech to defend people who dress in drag, including kids. “We want to dedicate this to the mommies, all the mommies in the world, to our moms,” Scheinert said.
“Specifically my mom and dad … thank you for not squashing my creativity when I was making really disturbing horror films, or really perverted comedy films, or dressing in drag as a kid, which is a threat to nobody!” he said, likely referencing recent legislation some states introduced that would prohibit sexually explicit drag performances in front of children.
2. “Top Gun: Maverick” snubbed
No one expected the enormously successful sequel “Top Gun: Maverick” to win an Academy Award, which probably explains why Tom Cruise decided to skip the ceremony completely. Fans marveled that this pro-America, pro-masculinity movie was even nominated in the first place.
MSNBC opinion writer and editor Zeeshan Aleem summed up the feelings of most leftists about “Top Gun” as part of a weekend column. In it, the writer called this blockbuster film’s message “insidious,” “poisonous,” and “literal propaganda.”
“I hope it tanks at the Oscars,” Aleem concluded. “It’s possible to make thrilling action without so brazenly priming the public for warfare.”
“Maverick” didn’t win any awards despite being adored by fans and raking in more than $1.4 billion worldwide. Even Kimmel made a few jokes about how the movie “saved” Hollywood by getting people to go back to movie theaters again.
The film won for “Best Sound” but lost in all the other six categories it was nominated in.
3. Jimmy Kimmel adds a January 6 dig
Considering how liberals can’t go more than 15 minutes without discussing January 6, it should come as no surprise that the evening’s host couldn’t restrain himself from making a joke about it.
While introducing the film editing category, Kimmel added a joke about Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
“Anyone who’s ever received a text message from their father knows how important editing is,” the late-night host joked. “Editors do amazing things,” he continued. “Edits can turn 44,000 hours of violent insurrection footage into a respectful sight-seeing tour of the Capitol.”
4. Feminism gets a shout out during a “Women Talking” speech
In a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, “Women Talking” director Sarah Polley added a little dig to her acceptance speech for “Best Adapted Screenplay.”
“First of all, I just want to thank the Academy for not being mortally offended by the words ‘women’ and ‘talking’ put so close together like that,” Polley said. She ended her speech by addressing her children, saying, “Your story will be different from ours.”
Polley adapted “Women Talking” from the 2018 novel by the same name. The story, which was written by Miriam Toews, is about a group of Mennonite women who must decide whether to stay in or leave their community following widespread sexual assault.
5. Kimmel jokes about Hunter Biden
At least leftists aren’t calling the laptop story fake anymore.
During his opening monologue, Kimmel quipped that “The Fabelmans” director Steven Spielberg and actor Seth Rogen were the “Joe and Hunter Biden of Hollywood.” That joke got a huge round of applause from the star-studded audience.
6. George Santos becomes the butt of a joke
Another political joke of the evening was at the expense of Congressman George Santos (R-NY), who became a public disgrace after admitting to being a “terrible liar.” It was revealed that he lied about being Jewish plus his education, employment, charity work, and that his mother died on 9/11.
“Did you know … the last directing team to win an Oscar was Congressman George Santos?” Kimmel quipped at one point in the evening.
Bonus: Michelle Yeoh takes a dig at Don Lemon
Oscar Award winner Michelle Yeoh, who took home the night’s top prize for Best Actress, made a not-so-subtle reference to notorious left-leaning CNN host Don Lemon’s comment about presidential hopeful Nikki Haley (R) being “past her prime.”
Yeoh made history as the first Asian person to win an Academy Award.
“For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities,” the 60-year-old star said.
“This is proof that dreams, dream big, and dreams do come true. And ladies, don’t ever let anyone tell you you are ever past your prime. Never give up!”