A Sweep & Snubs at the 95th Academy Awards

This year’s 95th Academy Awards were held on Sunday, March 12, 2023 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles to honor films released in 2023 and went ahead without much incident considering the result of the 2021 (COVID-precautions: remote appearances and a trimmed ceremony) and the 2022 Oscars (the now-infamous Slap from Will Smith to host Chris Rock). The almost four-hour-long production was hosted by Jimmy Kimmell. The length was due to previously cut awards being reinstated and allowing winners to give their entire acceptance speeches without being cut off.

Everything Everywhere All at Once (EEAAO) swept the major categories with wins in Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Actress (Michelle Yeoh). Yeoh became the first Asian woman and second woman of color to win Best Actress. The actress, 60, emotionally took the stage, dedicated her award to her 84-year-old mom watching the ceremony live from Malaysia, Asian youth, and implored women to not “let anybody tell you you’re past your prime.” EEAAO also took home three more awards for a total of seven that night including Best Film Editing, Best Supporting Actor (Ke Huy Quan) and Best Supporting Actress (Jamie Lee Curtis).

Jamie Lee Curtis’ win (EEAAO) came as a shock to awards pundits, the Oscars crowd, social media, and even Curtis herself who exclaimed, “shut up!” Some saw it as an honor to the Halloween star’s long Hollywood career who was the third favorite to win, while many saw it as a snub to the considered frontrunner Angela Bassett (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever). Social media exploded with those expressing remorse for Bassett’s position, who in 1992 nominated for Best Actress (Tina Turner – What’s Love Got To Do With It?) and was beaten by Holly Hunter (The Piano), after a clip of her blank expression went viral.

Shortly after the announcement, the Creed III stars Michael B. Jordan (Bassett’s Black Panther co-star) and Jonathan Majors appeared on stage to present an award and in the process gave a nod to Bassett. Jordan began with a fan-favorite Killmonger line, “Hey, Auntie” with Majors adding, “We love you.”

One win for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever came when Ruth E. Carter accepted the Oscar for Best Costume Design. Carter paid tribute to her recently deceased mother, Mabel Carter, and made a request for the dearly departed Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther) to “please take care of mom.” This is her sec- ond award after winning for the first installment in the Black Panther series in 2018.

There were other films with perceived snubs including two that were starring and directed by Black women: Till (Danielle Deadwyler as Mamie Till-Mobley and director Chinonye Chukwu) and The Woman King (Viola Davis as Nanisca and director Gina Prince-Bythewood). The biggest perceived slight was to The Woman King, which brought in huge box office numbers and achieved widespread critical success. Another nomination-neglected movie included Jordan Peele’s Nope. No Black actors in the lead actor categories and Black or female directors were nominated at this year’s ceremony.

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