10 Things We Want To See At The Oscars

Every year the lead up to the Oscars seems more dramatic and controversial than the year before. And finally, we’re almost on the front porch of the 2023 Academy Awards.

While we can’t predict everything that’s going to happen on the night (no one could have predicted last year’s slap in the face), we can take a look at who’s nominated and take a look at what happened throughout the rest of awards season.

With 11 Oscar nominations, Everything everywhere at once has absolutely dominated this year, cleaning up at the Golden Globes, the SAG Awards, the GALECA Dorian Film Awards, and Inside Our Hearts, so there could be some fair speeches from the EEAAO equipment. With nine nominations each, The Banshees of Inisherin and All calm on the west front He could also have a strong night. First-time acting nominees dominated the nominations this year, so we got to see some emotional wins.

Unfortunately, this year’s Oscars have overlooked black talent, something we hope to see addressed on stage this year. It’s one of a list of things we’d like to see, actually.

Here’s what we’d like to see at the 95th Academy Awards.

1. No jokes about the slap

It’s been a year since Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on the Oscars stage, and the cultural conversation surrounding it is long dead. Even the speech immediately following the slap was exhausting and over the top, dwarfing the actual winners of last year’s Academy Awards. To mention it again at this year’s ceremony would simply be reopening a rancid can of worms. Plus, the two men involved have already said the part about him: Smith accepted his ban from the Academy, and Rock just discussed the incident in a stand-up special. Now can we just let it go? — Belén Edwards, entertainment reporter

2. Jimmy Kimmel resisting the temptation to outshine award winners

This is not your time, Jimmy Kimmel.
Credit: Kevin Mazur/WireImage

Jimmy Kimmel is hosting the Oscars this year, and if the late-night show host could hold back any disrespectful and selfish bits onstage while the award winners are having their moment, that would be great. Kimmel was heavily criticized for ruining Quinta Brunson’s winning moment at the Emmys last year, when he won Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for his work on Abbott Elementarypilot episode of . As Brunson accepted the award from him, Kimmel was dragged onto the stage by comedian Will Arnett and lay at Brunson’s feet throughout his acceptance speech. Kimmel apologized to Brunson on his own show, and hopefully the host has learned that stealing someone’s moment and making it all about you is no fun at all. — Shannon Connellan, UK editor

3. Someone shouting the silence of black women

Remember when Janelle Monae slipped a #OscarsSoWhite reference into her opening number? Or when Natalie Portman maliciously called out the “all male nominees” of the 2018 Golden Globes for Best Director, live from the stage as a host? Even 2003 host Steve Martin kindly scoffed at the strict restrictions and double standards.(Opens in a new tab) around the age, body type and sexual orientation of bona fide movie stars. But this year, in addition to Jordan Peele’s epic No, several films directed and directed by black women received critical acclaim but received no Oscar nominations, from Gina Princewood-Bythe’s the king womanthat should have been the Oscars bait from top to bottom, to heartbreaking musings on motherhood, race and violence Until and Saint Omer. someone the academy does Giving the spotlight to should point out exactly who you ignored. — Caitlin Welsh, Australia editor

4. The show runs on time.

It’s a long road to Best Picture.
Credit: Richard Harbaugh – Handout/AMPAS via Getty Images

Every year, I look forward to the Oscars putting on a three-hour show, and every year I’m disappointed.

Presenting snippets and performances inflate the ceremony to the point of madness, when all I really want to do is see who takes home the gold. There’s one great thing about the Oscars run, though: We can all complain about it. together. — BE

5. Angela Bassett saying “I did the thing” if she wins

Doing the thing at the Golden Globes.
Credit: Rich Polk/NBC via Getty Images

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever star Angela Bassett is up for Best Supporting Actress, and if she wins, it will be Marvel’s first acting Oscar. Having won the Golden Globe for her impeccable portrayal of Queen Ramonda, she takes on Kerry Condon, who won the BAFTA for The Banshees of InisherinJamie Lee Curtis, who won the SAG for Everything everywhere at oncebuddy EEAAO star Stephanie Hsu, and The whale‘s Hong Chau. But if Bassett wins, we’ll cross our fingers for an acceptance speech that includes a nod to Ariana DeBose’s now-infamous BAFTA rap. — SC

6. “Naatu Naatu” dominating the Oscars stage

Performances by the Best Original Song nominees are often hit or miss, but this year’s Oscars have a chance to deliver a truly iconic number thanks to RRRThe success of “Naatu Naatu”. The infectious Telugu song, composed by MM Keeravani and lyrics by Chandrabose, accompanies an energetic dance between RRR(Ram Charan and NT Rama Rao Jr.) and a host of British colonizers. “Naatu Naatu” will be performed live at the Oscars by its original singers Rahul Sipliganj and Kaala Bhairava, who will be joined by dancers from Los Angeles. Seeing the hook step and braces choreography of “Naatu Naatu” on the Oscars stage is a surefire way to get the audience out of their seats and go down in history as one of the best original song performances yet. the moment. — BE

7. Tiny googly eyes on all the statues

Hell, cover the stage with them.
Credit: Paula Danielse/Getty Images

It’s an easy win, Oscars. Popping some googly eyes out of Everything everywhere at once in the coveted heads of gold statues would only rule, thank you. — SC

8. Rihanna topping her Super Bowl performance

Floating stages may not be in the Oscars budget, but…
Credit: Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)

Yes, she will be there and she will perform her nominated song from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, “Lift me up”. It will be his first live performance of his: There was no room for the runway at his Super Bowl appearance, where he commanded the stage Smash Bros-style without any dance moves or complicated stunts. Only Ms. Fenty knows if that was a purely artistic choice or if her range of motion was limited by the pregnancy she announced that night, but she sent a message either way: all she needs is a microphone. Rihanna might shine in a stripped-down, Lady Gaga-esque performance, but it’s also possible that the Academy will go all-out and stage an epic performance that will serve as a tribute to Panther himself, Chadwick Boseman. God knows they need a repeat on that. -CW

9. Every award brought to the stage by a donkey

Donkeys deserve their moment.
Credit: Jonathan Hession/Searchlight Pictures

In a trend we didn’t see coming, donkeys have made their way into the middle of this year’s award season. From Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin to Ruben Östlund’s triangle of sadness and Jerzy Skolimowski EOHis donkeys, as Mashable’s Belen Edwards writes, signaled moments of unforgettable tragedy on our screens:

“With their soulful eyes and roaming demeanor, the donkeys make the perfect suave figures for McDonagh, Östlund and Skolimowski to place at the center of the mayhem and pain of their films, and not just because they’re adorable.”

So why not give our mild-mannered, hoofed equine friends a moment of riotous victory after all this dramatized pain? I humbly request that each Academy Award winner be carried to the stage by a donkey during this year’s ceremony, and that a cornucopia of top-notch carrots, apples, and turnips be included on the rider backstage. — SC

10. Whoever presents the Best Animated Short Film to laugh reading “My Year of Dicks”

Credit: Sara Gunnarsdóttir

Riz Ahmed and Allison Williams had to stifle smiles when naming these shorts at the unveiling ceremony, and let’s be real here: it’s a great title. I’m looking at the list of presenters right now, and in order, my predictions for who is likely to present this award AND a good shot at winning: Hugh Grant, Samuel L. Jackson, Melissa McCarthy. End of list. -CW

Honorable Mention/Suggestion: Cate Blanchett Conducting the Oscar Orchestra

Credit: Universal Images

Tár star Cate Blanchett is up for Best Actress for her portrayal of Lydia Tár, the lauded principal conductor of a major German orchestra, accused of sexual abuse. Blanchett is nominated alongside Michelle Yeoh for Everything everywhere at onceMichelle Williams by The FabelmansAna de Armas for Blondand Andrea Riseborough for to leslie. Would it be appropriate for her to conduct the Oscars orchestra? Insecure. But you know Blanchett would never play with anyone. — SC

The 95th Academy Awards will take place on March 12 at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT. Here’s how to watch the Oscars and here are all the nominees.