The 2025 Oscars were a celebration of film, with Anora sweeping the categories, Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo leaving the audience at home, and in the theater, in tears, and Adrien Brody giving what felt like the longest Oscars speech of all time.
But off-screen there was even more going on, and HELLO! was there to cover it all firsthand.
From the backstage speeches to the errors — and even the moments from the Dolby Theatre you didn’t see on camera…
Jacques Audiard shocks press:
Jacques Audiard won Best Original Song for “El Mar” from his controversial movie Emilia Perez, alongside songwriters Camille and Clement Ducol.
The film has come under fire from trans activists for its reductive portrayal of the trans experience, and Jacques, the director, was asked: “We’re in an era of anti-trans political attacks and there was no mention tonight of the trans community. Would you like to say anything at this point?”
© Penske Media via Getty ImagesThen, to gasps, he said (via a translator): “Since I didn’t win best film or director I had no opportunity to speak, but if I had that opportunity I would have spoken up.”
Well Jacques, you had the opportunity on stage when picking up the Oscar for Best Original Song, AND the floor, right there, in the press room…
Kieran’s got jokes:
Let me set the scene. In a giant ballroom, are rows of tables and on each row sits around 40 journalists.
Each journalist has a number assigned to them – we were 305 this year – and your number is called if you have the opportunity to ask a question of the talent.
© Getty ImagesKieran, fresh off his win for Best Supporting Actor, was quick to mock the process, shocked at the high numbers – “oh my God that’s a high number” – and then joining in, asking for “number two thousand eight hundred and seventy three…”
Zoe Saldana apologizes to Mexico:
Zoe starred as Rita, a lawyer who helps the titular Emilia to transition and find a new life away from the drug cartels in Emilia Perez, and she won Best Supporting Actress for her work in the film.
But it has also been criticized for its portrayal of Mexico and after a journalist shared that it has been “really hurtful for us Mexicans,” Zoe apologized.
© FilmMagic“I’m very, very sorry that many Mexicans felt offended. That was never our intention. We spoke from a place of love,” she told press in the interview room.
A toast to Los Angeles:
Around the 6.20pm mark, during a commercial break, audio in the press room revealed that Colmon Domingo was on stage and giving a speech.He could be heard telling the audience to “raise a toast” to Los Angeles: “This is for our city. We all fell in love with it a little bit more lately.”
The bit was not on television, and was also not televised in the press room, although some audience members were quick to get their cameras out to catch the moment.
Wicked: For Good teased:
The production designers for Wicked, Nathan Crawley and Lee Sandales teased what we can expect from the sequel, sharing that one set piece involving the iconic Yellow Brick Road featured 10,000 bricks.
© Universal Pictures“But you get to experience Kiamo Ko and that’s all I’m going to say,” then teased Nathan.
Kiamo Ko is Fiyero’s family home.
All the snacks:
Despite the long, and often cold, hours on a red carpet or working in a ball gown the snack situation can be hit or miss at many awards shows.
But at the Oscars, you won’t be surprised to learn that everyone is treated well
Cheese and breads and dips are placed out first, then they are switched out for sandwiches, pastas, empanadas and spring rolls. There are also petits fours and the most delicious cookies – and all the soda and coffee you could need to power through for a Sunday shift.
Selena Gomez’s dedication:
© PATHE FILMSCamille and Clement Ducol also won Oscars for their work on Emillia Perez, and French singer and songwriter Camille shared her experience of writing with Selena Gomez.
“Selena is a great icon, but the song we wrote for her, especially Mi Camino, was for her as a woman and she inspired us a lot,” Camille said.
“She worked with a lot of humility, but I felt in the studio she was acting and serving her character, and very open to direction.”
Of co-star Zoe, Camille said: “Zoe was a perfectionist, she is very precise, and so she was not in her comfort zone and she kept telling me she is not a singer, and I kept telling her, ‘Yes you are,’ and she proved so.”
Errors happen to the best of us:
© Getty ImagesThere was confusion when the winners for Best Visual Effects walked out but we had been told that it was the winner for Best Documentary.
As the first question was asked, praising the powerful speech, they had to interrupt to share who they really were, oops.
‘Saúde!’
The room is full of international journalists – on my table were journalists from America, Japan and Greece to name a few – so it’s no surprise that when one country wins, there are cheers from those who also live there.
© FilmMagicBut it was partcuarly loud when I’m Still Here, Brazil’s entry for Best International Feature Film, won as it was the first time Brazil had won an Academy Award.
The room – or one section of it – erupted with applause, putting a smile on everyone else’s face.
Sean Baker calls for decriminalization of sex workers:
“I’ve been pretty outspoken about my stance on sex work. It’s our oldest profession, yet it has an incredible, unfair stigma applied to it,” he told press after winning four Oscars for his film Anora – Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director and Best Editing.
“And what I’ve been trying to do with my films is sort of chip away at that very unfair stigma. Personally, I think it should be decriminalized, and I guess through my work, through hopefully humanizing my characters that are usually seen as caricatures in most film and television, it will help do that.”
Shocked interruption:
One journalist was about to ask The Brutalist’s cinematographer Lol Crawley about his techniques when a loud gasp went up around the room: Mikey Madison had won Best Actress, beating the favorite Demi Moore.
© FilmMagicBut Lol didn’t know that as he could not see the TV screens and so he was left with a split second wondering if he had done something wrong.
He then asked the ASL translator what was happening, before someone in the front row shared the news.
“Thank you, good night,” he joked, knowing he had lost the attention of the room.
