All the Best Moments From the 2025 Oscars
The biggest night in entertainment had a number of iconic moments.
The 2024 awards season has officially come to a close. The Oscars, which aired last night, were full of jaw-dropping fashion, sensational performances, and historic wins.
The night’s biggest prizes went to Anora, which took home five Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Mikey Madison), Best Original Screenplay, and Best Film Editing. Other major winners included The Brutalist, which won Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, and Best Actor for Adrien Brody, who milked every second of his win.
Meanwhile, the historical drama I’m Still Here became the first Brazilian film to win Best International Feature, pulling off a surprise victory over Emilia Pérez. Turns out that repeatedly dragging past Oscars ceremonies actually does hurt your chances of winning.
Though none of this year’s trailblazing queer nominees emerged victorious in their categories, the 2025 Oscars still had its fair share of iconic queer moments—and a few bizarre ones, too.
Red-Hot Red Carpet Moments
Best Actress nominee Cynthia Erivo arrived in a breathtaking forest-green velvet Louis Vuitton ballgown, another fabulous tribute to her Wicked character after a season full of Elphaba-inspired looks.
Meanwhile, Brandi Carlile, who was nominated for Best Original Song alongside Elton John for their duet “Never Too Late,” looked very dapper with wife Catherine Shepherd in a menswear-inspired polka dot Valentino suit.
Later, Colman Domingo lit up the carpet in a monochromatic scarlet look from Valentino, complete with tinted sunglasses, proving Best Dressed status comes naturally to the two-time Best Actor nominee. Domingo’s husband, Raúl, also made a rare appearance on the red carpet. During the ceremony, Domingo woke up the crowd with a dance break to “Before I Let Go” by Maze.
Finally, Nickel Boys star Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor debuted super-chic pink hair posing alongside co-stars Ethan Herisse and Brandon Wilson. Nickel Boys was nominated for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Later in the evening, Lily-Rose Depp stunned in an all-black lace Chanel couture number while co-presenting the award for Best Costume Design, where she introduced nominee Linda Muir (Nosferatu). The dress reportedly took over 500 hours to hand-embroider.
Iconic Performances
Wicked stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande kicked off the ceremony with a stunning medley that paid tribute to Oz movies past and present. Grande started the performance with a cover of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz before Erivo took the stage for a rendition of “Home” from The Wiz. Finally, the pair came together for their first live performance of “Defying Gravity.” We’re still holding space.
Next up, Doja Cat joined Lisa and Raye for a truly fascinating seven-minute-long musical tribute to the James Bond franchise. The sequence opened with a surprise dance number from The Substance star Margaret Qualley before the musical artists took the stage for separate renditions of three different James Bond theme songs. Doja’s unique take on “Diamonds Are Forever,” from the 1971 Bond film of the same name, was… definitely a conversation-starter.
In case you’re wondering, the answer is no: no Bond movies were nominated at the ceremony, and there is no new Bond movie on the books for this year. The bizarre performance was a tribute to the producing duo Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, the minds behind the Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig Bond films. The siblings won the Academy’s Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award for their contributions to cinema last year, shortly before announcing they were ceding control of the franchise to Amazon.
In the final performance of the night, Oscar nominee Queen Latifah paid tribute to the late Quincy Jones, who received a posthumous Honorary Academy Award this year, with a rendition of “Ease on Down the Road” from The Wiz. Jones’s work producing the soundtrack to the 1978 film earned him the fourth of his seven competitive Oscar nominations.
Historic Wins
Many LGBTQ+ nominees—including Cynthia Erivo, Colman Domingo, Brandi Carlile, and Elton John—went home without a win, but the Academy still broke a few historical records last night.
First, Emilia Pérez star Zoe Saldaña concluded her awards season sweep by claiming the prize for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first person of Dominican descent to win an Oscar in any category. Saldaña shouted out the historic moment in her acceptance speech, saying “I am the first American of Dominican origin to accept an Academy Award, and I know I will not be the last.”
Later in the night, Wicked costume designer Paul Tazewell also made history, becoming the first Black man to win the Oscar for Best Costume Design. The award was presented to him by cast member Bowen Yang, who appeared in costume as his scene-stealing character Pfannee.
Congratulations to all of the many winners, and even bigger congratulations to Cynthia Erivo for a performance that felt like a win.
