Oscar 2023 Biggest Surprises

Despite the fact that the 94th Academy Awards were mostly overshadowed by Will Smith and Chris Rock’s altercation, Oscar 2022 was full of snubs and surprises. And Oscar 2023 was no exception. The night’s emotional highs and lows came from fan-favorite front-runners delivering impassioned acceptance speeches. Here are the greatest Oscars 2023 surprises having occured.

Winning Best Animated Film: Pinocchio

Winning Best Animated Film: Pinocchio

Winning Best Animated Film: Pinocchio

A huge lesson was learned early on in the evening when Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio won Best Animated Feature, defeating well-known flicks like Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.

This showed that Dreamworks and the House of Mouse aren’t the only studios making high-caliber animated pictures. By becoming the first person to win Best Picture, Best Director, and now Best Animated Feature at the Oscars, Del Toro created Oscar history.

Best Supporting Actor Award goes to Ke Huy Quan

Best Supporting Actor Award goes to Ke Huy Quan

Best Supporting Actor Award goes to Ke Huy Quan

Ke Huy Quan’s performance in Everything Everywhere All At Once wasn’t necessarily expected to win Best Supporting Actor. Despite the fact that he was the favorite to win based on the Critics’ Choice Award and Golden Globes triumphs.

Quan raced to the microphone and erupted in tears. And he explained what winning the Academy Award meant to him after beating out industry giants like Brendan Gleeson. The triumph marked his transition into a decent leading man for someone who is most known for his work as a young actor in The Goonies and the Indiana Jones sequel.

Michelle Yeoh Wins Best Actress Award Over Cate Blanchett

Oscar 2023

Michelle Yeoh Wins Best Actress Award Over Cate Blanchett

While other Oscar 2023 winners appeared to be a foregone conclusion, the race for Best Actress was closely contested by two undisputed front-runners. In Everything Everywhere All At Once and Tár, both Michelle Yeoh and Cate Blanchett portrayed difficult, emotionally and physically roles.

Yet, whereas Yeoh had worked in Hollywood for decades with little acclaim, Blanchett had already received ten Oscar nominations. It was a proud moment for Asian actors, as startling as it was to see Yeoh upset the Oscar  2023 hierarchy with her nomination and win Best Actress as the first Asian actress.

Another Best Costume Design Award for Ruth E. Carter

Oscar 2023

Another Best Costume Design Award for Ruth E. Carter

Superhero movies are not known for frequently winning Oscars. The nomination of Black Panther in other categories, including Best Costume Design, which Ruth E. Carter once again won for her outstanding work on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, changed that.

Carter said in her acceptance speech that her creations were “reshaping how culture is represented.” That may be why she is the first person to receive this honor for both an original film and its sequel.

RRR was awarded Best Original Song for Naatu Naatu

Oscar 2023

RRR was awarded Best Original Song for Naatu Naatu

Following its explosive performance in the middle of the Oscar 2023, RRR’s nomination for Best Original Song “Naatu Naatu” beat out Lady Gaga’s “Hold My Hand” for Top Gun: Maverick and Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up” for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever for the top honor. RRR’s victory was a historic moment for Southeast Asia. As it was the first for an Indian feature film, and an unusual choice given how strong its fellow nominees singing at the Oscar 2023 were.

Everything in RRR was extravagant, from the drama and action scenes to the stunning special effects. So it only made logical that “Naatu Naatu” would be as well. As a result, the Academy was forced to give “Naatu Naatu” a prize for spectacle.