The 2024 Oscars: Highlights and Full List of Winners 

March, 2024

By Camila Juarez and Miguel Hernandez

The Academy Awards, also known as The Oscars, are awards given out annually in a ceremony to recognize excellence in cinematic achievements. The 96th Oscars was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel on March 10th, 2024.

The Oscars consists of 24 categories: Best Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Cinematography, Production Design, Editing, Original Score, Original Song, Costume Design, Makeup and Hairstyling, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing, Visual Effects, Foreign-language Film, Animated Feature Film, Animated Short, Live-action Short, Documentary Feature, and Documentary Short. The 5 major categories are Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Directing, and Best Screenplay (either original or adapted). This year, Oppenheimer was the most nominated, with 13 nominations. Poor Things came in second with 11, Killers of the Flower Moon with 10, and Barbie with 8. 

For the Best Picture category, the nominees include American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, Barbie, The Holdovers, Killers of the Flower Moon, Maestro, Oppenheimer, Past Lives, Poor Things, and The Zone of Interest.

The Best Actor nominees include Bradley Cooper for Maestro, Colman Domingo for Rustin, Paul Giamatti for The Holdovers, Cillian Murphy for Oppenheimer, and Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction. 

The Best Actress category includes Annette Bening for Nyad, Lily Gladstone for Killers of the Flower Moon, Sandra Hüller for Anatomy of a Fall, Carey Mulligan for Maestro, and Emma Stone for Poor Things. 

List of Winners

Best Picture: Oppenheimer 

Best Actor In a Leading Role: Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer

Best Actor In a Supporting Role: Robert Downey Jr – Oppenheimer

Best Actress In a Leading Role: Emma Stone – Poor Things

Best Actress In a Supporting Role: Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers

Best Directing: Christopher Nolan – Oppenheimer

Best Animated Feature Film: The Boy and the Heron

Best Original Screenplay: Anatomy of a Fall

Best Adapted Screenplay: American Fiction

Best Cinematography: Oppenheimer

Best Costume Design: Poor Things

Best Documentary Feature Film: 20 Days in Mariupol

Best Film Editing: Oppenheimer

Best International Feature Film: The Zone of Interest

Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Poor Things

Best Original Score: Oppenheimer

Best Original Song: What Was I Made For? – Barbie

Best Production Design: Poor Things

Best Animated Short Film: War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko

Best Live Action Short Film: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

Best Sound: The Zone of Interest

Best Visual Effects: Godzilla Minus One

Besides giving out awards, the Oscars also had amazing performances by Jon Batiste, Becky G, Billie Eilish and Finneas, Scott George and the Osage Singers, and Ryan Gosling and Mark Ronson. From all of these performances, the most memorable one is Ryan Gosling in a hot pink suit singing “I’m Just Ken” from Barbie along with the other Kens from the movie. The lyrics of the song were played on the big screens, which allowed everyone to sing along, and at one point, Ryan Gosling went to the audience to sing along with Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig, America Ferreira, and former Lalaland co-star Emma Stone. The pink stairs and costumes were inspired by Marilyn Monroe and were a tribute to “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” from “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.” Slash from Guns N’ Roses also made a surprise appearance, performing a solo on the guitar. This performance was outstanding, allowing everyone to have fun and enjoy a creative, catchy song.

Some other memorable moments were:

1. John Cena walking out on stage to present the Best Costume Design award. He walked out wearing nothing and covered himself with the card that had the winner’s name on it. 
2. Emma Stone’s reaction to winning Best Actress for Poor Things. She was very surprised and stunned, and her smile dropped when she heard her name. 
3. Vanessa Hudgens reveals her pregnancy on the red carpet. This was a huge surprise for everyone, and news began spreading online immediately.
4. Al Pacino announces the best picture winner. It was a confusing moment when Al Pacino opened his card but didn’t read the nominees like usual and instead just said, “I see Oppenheimer.”