Awards season officially came to an end with the 2026 Oscars delivering an unforgettable ceremony.
Hollywood’s brightest stars traveled to the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on Sunday, March 15, to take a break from the heavy news surrounding the world and try to celebrate the best in movies.
“If I can be serious for just a moment, everyone watching right now around the world is all too aware that these are very chaotic, frightening times,” host Conan O’Brien acknowledged in his opening monologue. “It’s at moments like these that I believe that the Oscars are particularly resonant. Thirty-one countries across six continents are represented this evening, and every film we salute is the product of thousands of people speaking different languages, working hard to make something of beauty.”
The former late-night host added, “Let us celebrate not because we think all is well, but because we work and hope for better in the days ahead.”
In case you missed the live telecast, Us Weekly is breaking down the best and worst moments from the 98th Academy Awards. Keep reading to see what pop culture fans will be talking about long after the show is over.
Best Handling of an Oscars Tie: Kumail NanjianiPresenter Kumail Nanjiani was visibly surprised when he opened the envelope for Best Live Action Short Film and discovered there were two winners.
“And the Oscar goes to – it’s a tie. I’m not joking. It’s actually a tie,” Nanjiani told the audience. “Everyone calm down. We’re going to get through this. Focus up. Remain calm. I’m going to name one winner, they’ll come up, accept their award and I’ll come back and name another winner and they’ll accept their award. OK? Here we go. One Oscar goes to The Singers.”
The presenter — who clearly attended rehearsals — later announced Two People Exchanging Saliva were also winners.
Best Jokes About the Future of the Oscars: Conan O’BrienIn his opening monologue, host Conan O’Brien poked fun at the news that the Oscars will begin airing solely on YouTube starting in 2029.
“Yeah, it’s the future. Yes, it’s a big change. Some people are worried this will change how the Oscars are viewed, but I’ve been assured that,” he said before a mock commercial of Jane Lynch selling a flashlight interrupted his thought. “I’m sorry about that, but, like I said, I don’t think this will change the Oscars at all. I think …”
As another mock commercial interrupted O’Brien’s thought, the message was clear: This year’s host wants the show to remain on network TV.
Best Props: Channing Tatum’s ‘Magic Mike’ Thong
Before Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans announced the winner for Best Original Screenplay, the pair decided to celebrate a major anniversary in their career.
“Downey, what did you get me for our anniversary? It’s the 14th anniversary of the first Avengers film,” Evans shared. “I got you a signed copy of the script. It’s backstage, from the table read. The whole cast signed it. I really thought this through.”
While Downey originally joked that all he had was a valet ticket, the actor came through with an unexpected present.
“Of course I got you something,” he told Evans. “I got you the official Channing Tatum thong from Magic Mike. It’s sequin, got a mirrorball effect, light usage.”
If that wasn’t good enough, the camera then panned to Tatum in the audience, who shouted, “Hey, I’m going to need that back though. I got to work later.”
Best Presentation of a New Category: Paul Mescal, Gwyneth Paltrow, Chase Infiniti, Wagner Moura and Delroy LindoFor the first time ever, voters were able to select a winner for a brand-new award titled Best Casting.
To introduce the new category, five presenters appeared onstage to celebrate the casting directors who helped give them an incredible job opportunity.
“The five of us on this stage are truly honored to be presenting the first-ever Oscar for achievement in casting,” Paul Mescal shared before Cassandra Kulukundis of One Battle After Another was announced as the winner.
Best Movie Reunion: The Cast of ‘Bridesmaids’
Nearly 15 years after Bridesmaids hit the big screen, cast members Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph, Kristen Wiig, Rose Byrne and Ellie Kemper reunited to present the awards for Best Sound and Original Score.
“You know, earlier today when I was counting my money, I asked myself, ‘What is sound, really?’” Rudolph said. “Am I right?”
McCarthy replied, “It’s a mystery, Maya. They’ve asked scientists. We have the best in the world, including Steven Spielberg. Even he doesn’t know. Once again, I found myself disappointed in you, Steven.”
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight before showtime, Bridesmaids director Paul Feig revealed Wendi McLendon-Covey was not showing up because of scheduling issues. “She might even be traveling, I’m not sure,” he shared. “But we will miss her terribly because I love Wendi.”
Best Acceptance Speech: Michael B. Jordan
Although the Best Actor race was neck-and-neck with Michael B. Jordan and Timothée Chalamet, the Academy voters ultimately chose Jordan to receive the trophy for his role in Sinners.
“Man, God is good. Mama, what’s up? You know how I feel about my mother,” Jordan joked as he accepted his award. “Pops, where you at? My dad flew in from Ghana to be here. My brother and sister are here too.”
The Oscar winner also expressed gratitude for the actors who came before him and allowed his dreams to become a reality.
“I stand here because of the people that came before me: Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Jamie Foxx, Forest Whitaker, Will Smith,” he shared. “To be amongst those giants, those greats, amongst my ancestors, amongst my guys, thank you everybody in this room and everybody at home for supporting me over my career. I feel it.”
Worst No-Show: Sean PennWhile some of Us gave Sean Penn a bit of grace when he was missing from the SAG’s 2026 Actor Awards as he won Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role, we couldn’t help but notice he was also missing from the 2026 Oscars.
When the One Battle After Another star won for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, he was nowhere to be found at the show once again. (According to the New York Times, Penn was planning to visit Ukraine.)
“Sean Penn couldn’t be here this evening or didn’t want to,” presenter Kieran Culkin said. “I’ll be accepting the award on his behalf.”
Worst Interrupted Speech: ‘Two People Exchanging Saliva’
As Natalie Musteata and Alexandre Singh accepted their awards for Best Live Action Short Film, viewers were caught off guard when the mic was cut off and the camera turned to host Conan O’Brien instead of the winners speaking onstage.
While Singh was able to finish his speech, O’Brien acknowledged the mistake immediately after.
“I know we’re tight,” he said, “but you retract a microphone on a man when he’s speaking is hilarious.”
Worst Use of the Play Off Music: ‘Frankenstein’While so many of Us love when an awards show tries to stay on time, viewers weren’t too impressed when the music began playing loudly and quickly for Jordan Samuel, Mike Hill and Cliona Furey after they won Best Makeup and Hairstyling.
Spoiler alert: The awards show still ended up running late — 10 minutes to be exact.
While five songs were nominated for Best Music (Original Song), only “Golden,” from Kpop Demon Hunters and “I Lied to You,” from Sinners were performed live during the telecast.
As an added bummer, when the Kpop Demon Hunters team won the award, the winners didn’t have time to finish their acceptance speech as music played off into a commercial break. Despite one winner, jumping up and down hoping for more time, producers ultimately moved on with the show.
