The 97th Oscars: A Night of Big Wins, Big Speeches, & Big Conan Energy
Award season is officially over, and the 2025 Academy Awards are now in the books. As I do every year, I watched the telecast. This year I watched with my girlfriend, Julie, and we had a small Oscar party, which was a blast.
But the real fun? The live interactive chat on my Patreon page, where we had a great crowd of subscribers discussing the ceremony in real-time. We talked about the pacing, debated the winners, analyzed the speeches, and even shared photos of what we were eating. It was a fantastic interactive event, and honestly, that made the night even more entertaining.
So, how was the show? Well, it ran 3 hours and 45 minutes, which is fairly typical these days. They’ve now permanently moved the start time to 6:00 p.m. Central, which Conan O’Brien made a joke about right at the top: “Hollywood’s biggest night... and it’s 4:00 in the afternoon.” Classic.
Later in the show, Conan made this statement directly to the camera: "If you're still enjoying the show, you have something called Stockholm Syndrome." Also, classic.
The Big Oscars 2025 Winner: Anora
The big winner of the night was Anora. Sean Baker took home four Oscars—Best Director, Best Editing, Best Original Screenplay, and of course, Best Picture. Now, I’m not the biggest fan of Anora. I think it’s wildly overrated, and Sean Baker has made far better movies in the past.
But hey, it was the Academy’s golden child this year, and it completely steamrolled the competition.
There were a few upsets and surprises, but overall, it was a fairly predictable night in terms of winners.
Conan O’Brien: The Host the Oscars Need (and Deserve)
Let’s talk about Conan O’Brien. Wow. This was a home run. This guy should absolutely become a recurring host, maybe alternating with Jimmy Kimmel every year.
Conan was fantastic. His monologue killed, filled with sharp, hilarious jokes that took well-placed jabs at Hollywood, movies, and even the ridiculousness of the Oscars themselves.
Now, I was hoping for some classic Conan weirdness—maybe a Masturbating Bear cameo or Triumph the Insult Comic Dog roasting A-listers. But he kept things professional (for the most part).
Still, he worked in his signature self-deprecating humor, sharp improv skills, and perfectly timed jabs. The pre-written bits were excellent, and his off-the-cuff reactions to things happening live in the theater were hysterical.
If you ask me, he should be back next year. This is the guy to host the Oscars. Make it happen, Academy.
The Good, The Bad, and The Awkward
The Good
Nick Offerman as the Oscars Announcer: Genius. Known for his deadpan delivery (hello, Parks & Rec fans), Offerman not only read the intros beautifully, but he also had great comedic bits throughout the night, especially in his interactions with Conan and Amy Poehler. A terrific choice for the job.
First Responders Tribute: Brilliant idea. Having firefighters and first responders from L.A. take the stage to tell jokes and introduce awards was a heartfelt, human moment. It was touching and funny, which is a rare balance for an awards show.
Andrew Garfield making Goldie Hawn cry: This was a surprisingly sweet moment when Garfield spoke about how much his mother loved Goldie Hawn—she was visibly moved. One of those unexpected, genuine moments that made the night special.
Flow wins Best Animated Feature: This was one of the biggest pleasant surprises of the night! I loved Flow, and it deserved the win. Also, in a rare turn of events, all the nominees in this category were great, which made this an even more satisfying victory.
Sean Baker’s Speech: As much as I think Anora is wildly overrated, Sean Baker’s speech about the importance of movie theaters and the theatrical experience was one of the best speeches of the night. He talked about how moviegoing is dying, how young people don’t get to experience it like past generations, and how we need to keep independent theaters alive. Fantastic message.
The Bad
The James Bond “Tribute”: This was an absolute disaster. It started off strong with a great montage, but then we got… that. Some relatively unknown pop singers came out, performed horrible arrangements of mediocre Bond songs, and Margaret Qualley awkwardly danced around in a comically bad choreographed number. What should have been a celebration of one of cinema’s most iconic characters turned into a baffling mess.
Quincy Jones Tribute Fail: How do you honor Quincy Jones—one of the greatest producers, composers, and musicians of all time—by only performing one song (Ease on Down the Road from The Wiz) and calling it a day?! They didn’t even include a montage of his greatest works, and not playing the Sanford and Son theme? That’s criminal.
The Most Annoying Acceptance Speech of the Night: The Best Original Song winners (El Mal from Emilia Pérez) decided to sing the backend of their acceptance speech. No. Just… no. Painfully self-indulgent, unbearably pretentious, and one of those moments where you just scream at the TV for the orchestra to start playing them off.
The Awkward
Robert Downey Jr. is now officially insufferable: Once a charming, charismatic actor with an inspiring comeback story, Downey Jr. has now become obnoxious, smarmy, and borderline unbearable. His condescending tone and sarcastic remarks throughout his presentation were painful to watch. A tiny dose of RDJ is fine. Anything beyond that is exhausting.
Adrian Brody’s Speech: Just wow. Brody wins Best Actor for The Brutalist and proceeds to deliver one of the most pompous, self-important speeches I’ve ever seen. At one point, he even stopped the orchestra from playing him off, declaring: “I’ve been here before. This isn’t my first rodeo.” Yikes. You just won an Oscar, dude—maybe try not being unbearable?
Demi Moore’s Disappointment: Everyone expected Demi Moore to win for The Substance. She was the favorite. But Mikey Madison pulled the upset. Now, I wasn’t the biggest fan of Anora, but I was fine with this win, just because it meant we didn’t have to hear another one of Moore’s painfully self-important speeches.
Final Thoughts: A Solid Show with a Standout Host
The Oscars 2025 was a strong telecast. Sure, it had some lowlights (the Bond tribute disaster, the Quincy Jones snub, a few insufferable speeches), but the highlights far outweighed them.
And above all else, Conan O’Brien absolutely stole the show. His perfect mix of satire, sharp humor, and genuine love for movies made for an unbelievably fun and engaging night.
So, award season 2025 is officially over, and while many of my favorite films and performances were snubbed, it was still a fantastic night of entertainment. See you next year, Oscars—hopefully with Conan back at the helm.
Here’s the complete list of winners at the 97th annual Academy Awards:
Best Picture
Anora
Best Actor
Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
Best Actress
Mikey Madison, Anora
Director
Sean Baker, Anora
Best Supporting Actress
Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez
Best Supporting Actor
International Film
Documentary Feature
Original Screenplay
Anora, Sean Baker
Adapted Screenplay
Original Score
The Brutalist, Daniel Blumberg
Original Song
El Mal from Emilia Pérez
Animated Film
Flow
Visual Effects
Costume Design
Cinematography
The Brutalist, Lol Crawley
Documentary Short Film
Best Sound
Dune: Part Two
Production Design
Wicked
Makeup and Hairstyling
The Substance
Film Editing
Anora, Sean Baker
Best Live Action Short
Best Animated Short
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