The 94th Academy Awards 2022 saw Troy Kotsur become the first deaf man to win an Oscar as CODA bagged best picture, during an evening full of memorable performances from Beyoncé and Billie Eilish.
The awards took place Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday with Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer and Regina Hall triple-hosting the ceremony.
It was actually Will Smith’s first Oscar (Best Actor) in which we won minutes after slapped Chris Rock stage in the most astonishing moment in the long history of the Oscars. Afterwards, he broke down crying as he apologised to the Academy.
The chaos overshadowed CODA’s triumph, which won Best Picture. It was the first film with a largely deaf cast to win the best picture category. CODA’s Troy Kotsur became the first deaf actor to win an acting Oscar, for best supporting actor.
Other winners included Jessica Chastain for best actress, Jane Campion for best director, and Sir Kenneth Branagh finally winning his first Oscar for best original screenplay.
One of the highlights of the night was at the very beginning as Beyoncé opened the Oscars with a beautiful performance of her King Richard song “Be Alive”. This also marked her first Academy Award nomination.
Beyoncé’s performance paid a nostalgic homage to tennis star duo Venus and Serena Williams which took place at the Compton tennis courts where the sisters ran drills as children. The performance was also introduced by the Williams sisters as Beyoncé sang amongst the dancers and orchestra in coordinating tennis lime green outfits.
You can take a look at the performance below.
Elsewhere, also nominated in the same category was Billie Eilish‘s James Bond theme “No Time To Die,” which won in the category. Also featured was Lin-Manuel Miranda‘s “Dos Orguitas” for Encanto and others.
See a list of all the Oscar winners here.