Over the Rainbow at the Oscars: Our Top Ten Takeaways for 2025
With gravity-defying duets, soaring acceptance speeches and eyebrow-raising surprises, the 97th Academy Awards were anything but ordinary. From Conan's opening monologue to a wickedly satisfying mashup, last night's Oscars had us cheering from the start.
With a series of firsts, moments of female friendship and forward-looking speeches, here are Être's Top Ten Takeaways from the 2025 Oscars:
It was a night of FIRSTS:
Despite Hulu glitches at the start, this was the first time over 1 billion Oscar viewers tuned in and it was Conan O'Brien's first time hosting this ceremony
It was the first time Latvia has ever won an Oscar (Flow winning for Animated Feature)
It was the first time a Black man has won for Best Costume design (Paul Tazewell for Wicked)
It was the first time an American of Dominican origin accepted an Academy award (Zoe Saldaña for Emilia Pérez)
It was a night of FEMALE FRIENDSHIPS:
Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo locked eyes, held hands and brought the room to it's feet with their Wicked duet
Four nominees leapt with joy as Zoe Saldaña's name was called for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Emilia Pérez) and she promised to pay that gift forward
Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg joined forces to sing Quincy Jones' praises before introducing Queen Latifah
Role models like Selena Gomez signed the handmade Oscar autograph book sent to the ceremony with Long Beach Fire Captain Jake Hefflin by his 9-year-old stepdaughter Ali
And it was a night of FORWARD-LOOKING SPEECHES:
Twenty-five year old Anora star Mikey Madison swept the Best Actress award, marveling “I grew up in Los Angeles, but Hollywood always felt so far away from me,” and honoring "the breathtaking work of my fellow nominees…This is a dream come true. I am probably going to wake up tomorrow."
Although not all of it was about the next gen: Best Live Action Short winner Victoria Warmerdam (I'm Not a Robot) made it very clear to her husband that winning an Oscar didn't accelerate any other plans, quipping “I'm not having your babies because of this statue.”
The audience roared.
All in all, as we curled up on couches and texted predictions, the Oscars gave us something much-needed to smile about. And for next gen girls watching throughout the evening, they saw women in film support and cheer their lungs out for each other. That's award-worthy, I thought as I clapped along, and I hope they're thinking of Glinda's steadfast stare as she whispers in Wicked "you can do ANYTHING, and Elphaba responds with equal solemnity, "I know."
May they continue to know.
Looking forward,
Illana
ÊXTRAS: Three more Oscar-worthy mentor moments you won't want to miss: Cynthia Erivo and Whoopi Goldberg holding hands during a red carpet interview about kindness, Ariana Grande and Selena Gomez hugging after Zoe Saldaña's speech, and a standing ovation for firefighters who battled the Palisades and Eaton fires.
