Demi Moore was left crushed as Mikey Madison beat her to the coveted Best Actress award at the 2025 Oscars, on a night when Anora dominated with five wins including Best Picture.

Demi, 62, had been a clear front-runner and her fury was palpable as 25-year-old rising star Mikey’s name was called out in front of a stunned audience at the 97th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

Other big winners on Sunday night included Zoe Saldana, who took home the Best Supporting Actress award for her role in the controversial Emilia Perez, and Adrien Brody, who triumphed over Timothée Chalamet for the Best Actor award with his performance in the The Brutalist. Kieran Culkin kicked off the evening with a Best Supporting Actor win for A Real Pain.

Demi could be seen with a clenched jaw as her name wasn’t called, but she did say ‘nice’ to herself as she applauded Mikey’s big win.

It was a particularly surprising upset because Demi had won the actress award at most of the major pre-Oscar events for her role in The Substance.

Mikey portrays an escort in Anora, an independent film with a $6 million budget for which Sean Baker won Best Director. She recognized the sex worker community in a touching acceptance speech.

 She said: ‘I also just want to, again, recognize and honor the sex worker community. I will. Yes. I will continue to support and be an ally. 

‘All of the incredible people, the women that I’ve had the privilege of meeting from that community has been one of the highlights of this incredible experience.’

She concluded her speech by recognizing her fellow nominees including A-lister Demi. 

Mikey said: ‘I also just want to recognize the thoughtful, intelligent, beautiful, breathtaking work of my fellow nominees. I’m honored to be recognized alongside all of you. 

‘This is a dream come true, I’m probably going to wake up tomorrow. Thank you so much, Sean [Baker], I adore you. This is all because of you. Thank you.’

At the end of the night the film earned top prize Best Picture Award over The Brutalist, A Complete Unknown, Conclave, Dune: Part Two, Emilia Pérez, I’m Still Here, Nickel Boys, The Substance, and Wicked.

Anora’s writer and director also earned three awards including: Best Original Screenplay, Achievement in Film Editing, and the coveted Best Director.

The film is centered around a young escort named Ani (played by Mikey) from Brooklyn meets and impulsively marries the son of a Russian oligarch. Once the news reaches Russia, her fairy tale is threatened as his parents set out for New York to get the marriage annulled. 

 Adrien Brody took home his second ever Best Actor award earlier in the night.

The 51-year-old actor  stopped the exit music from playing as he was recognized for his work in The Brutalist.

He beat out an impressive field including: Timothée Chalamet — A Complete Unknown, Colman Domingo — Sing Sing, Ralph Fiennes — Conclave, and Sebastian Stan — The Apprentice.

During his acceptance speech Adrien surpassed his allotted 45seconds  for his acceptance speech as he referenced his previous Oscar win.

He said:  ‘And I’m wrapping up, please turn the music off. I’ve done this before. Thank you. It’s not my first rodeo, but I will will be brief. I will not be egregious, I promise. 

‘You know, I am — I’m oddly — I have to thank my mom and dad who are here, as well. And they’ve given me — they just created just such a strong foundation of respect. And of kindness and wonderful spirit, and they have given me the strength to pursue this dream.’

Adrien referenced the state of the world as he concluded his speech with a powerful message.

He concluded: ‘I’m here once again to represent the lingering traumas and the repercussions of war and systematic oppression. And of anti-semitism and racism and of othering, and I believe that — I pray for a healthier and a happier and a more inclusive world, and I believe if the past can teach us anything, it’s a reminder to not let hate go unchecked. 

‘Okay, I’ll get out of here. I love you. I appreciate you all. Let’s fight for what’s right. Keep smiling, keep loving one another. Let’s rebuild together. Thank you.’ 

In The Brutalist the talented actress portrays visionary architect László Tóth who flees post-war Europe with his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) in 1947 to rebuild their legacy and witness the birth of modern United States, their lives are changed forever by a mysterious, wealthy client. 

Adrian previously won Best Actor for his work on classic film The Piano back in 2003 where he infamously kissed Halle Berry. 

 Zoe Saldaña shook the controversy surrounding her film Emilia Pérez as she earned Best Supporting Actress.

The show hit a high note as the 46-year-old American actress was crowned for the Netflix film.

 She triumphed over: Monica Barbaro — A Complete Unknown, Ariana Grande — Wicked, Felicity Jones — The Brutalist, and Isabella Rossellini — Conclave.

Zoe became the first ever Oscar winner of Dominican descent  and made sure to thank her ancestors for paving the way to have a successful acting career in America.

She said: ‘My grandmother came to this country in 1961 — I am a proud child of immigrant parents. With dreams and dignity and hard-working hands, and I am the first American on Dominican origin to accept an academy award, and I know I will not be the last. I hope. 

‘The fact that I’m getting an award for a role where I got to sing and speak in Spanish, my grandmother, if she were here, she would be so delighted, this is for my grandmother. Thank you so much. Thank you.’

Emilia Pérez has earned a tide of negative publicity after racist and Islamophobic tweets from her costar Karla Sofía Gascón — some quite recent — were discovered.

Netflix went so far as to stop covering Gascón’s travel for awards shows, but she did appear at the Oscars.

In Emilia Perez, Zoe plays Rita Mora Castro who is a lawyer as the film is centered around four remarkable women pursuing their individual happiness in Mexico.

Cartel leader Emilia (played by Gascon) enlists Rita, an unappreciated lawyer, to help fake her death so that she can finally live authentically as her true self. 

The award show started out in fine form as Kieran Culkin took home the first award of the night.

It kicked off with the 42-year-old actor taking home Actor in a Supporting Role for his role in A Real Pain.

He beat out an impressive field including: Yura Borisov — Anora, Edward Norton — A Complete Unknown, Guy Pearce — The Brutalist, and his Succession co-star Jeremy Strong — The Apprentice.

Kieran started out his acceptance speech by acknowledging Strong – who portrayed his brother Kendall Roy on the highly-popular HBO series – with profanity as the broadcast had bleeped much of the acknowledgement.

He said: ‘Jeremy you’re amazing in The Apprentice, I love your work, it’s f***ing – there we go, I cursed, I didn’t mean to, and I’m not supposed to single anyone out as favouritism, but you were great.

‘And I’ve already lost whatever speech I prepared, 20 seconds in.’

He finished off the speech by acknowledging his wife Jazz Charton  and shared a sweet story which began: ‘I love you, Jazz. I have to thank my wife Jazz. 

‘Please don’t play the music, because I want to tell a really quick story about Jazz.’

The couple share two children: a 5-year-old daughter Kinsey Sioux, and a 3-year-old son Wilder Wolf.

Kieran continued: ‘A year ago, I said that I want a third kid, because she said if I won the award, she would give me the kid. Turns out she said that because she didn’t think I was going to win. But — and people came up to me and were like, you know, really annoying her, it got to her. 

‘But anyway — after the show we’re walking through a parking lot, she’s holding the Emmy, she goes, oh, god, I did say that. I guess I owe you a third kid. I turned to her, I said, really, I want four. And she turned to me, I swear to god this happened, she said, I will give you four when you win an Oscar. 

‘I held my hand out, she shook it and I have not brought it up once until just now. You remember that, honey? Then I just have to say to you, jazz, love of my life, ye of little faith — No pressure. I love you. I’m really sorry I did this again. And let’s get cracking on those kids, what do you say? I love you. I love. I love you.’

A Real Pain – directed and written by Jesse Eisenberg – stars Eisenberg and Culkin as mismatched cousins who reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother, but their old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history.

Paul Tazewell became the first Black male winner of Achievement in Costume Design for his work in Wicked.

The 60-year-old American costume designer for the theatre, dance, and opera and television was up against: A Complete Unknown — Arianne Phillips, Conclave — Lisy Christl, Gladiator II — Janty Yates and Dave Crossman, and Nosferatu — Linda Muir.

Paul was emotional during his acceptance speech as he said: ‘ This is absolutely astounding. Thank you, academy. For this very significant honor. I’m the first Black man to receive costume design award. For my work on Wicked. I’m so proud of this.

‘Thank you everyone in the UK for all of your beautiful work. I could not have done this without you. My Ozian muses, Cynthia and Ariana, I love you so much. All the other cast, thank you, thank you, thank you for trusting me with bringing your characters to life. This is everything.’

No Other Land earned Best Documentary as the directors  gave a speech about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Selena Gomez, 32, and Samuel L. Jackson, 76, presented the best documentary award to the four activists who made the movie, two of them Israeli and two Palestinian.

No Other Land is fiercely critical of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and stars two of its directors – Palestinian Basel Adra and Israeli Yuval Abraham.

 

The two men delivered impassioned speeches from the Oscars stage denouncing the displacement of the Palestinians, as well as Israel’s assault on Gaza in the wake of the October 7 attack by Hamas in 2023.

Early in the Oscars speech, Adra spoke about ‘always fearing settlers’ violence, home demolition and forced displacement’ amid the ‘Israeli occupation.’

He also issued a call to ‘the world to take serious actions to stop the un-justice and to stop the ethnic cleansing of Palestinian people.’

Abraham then stepped in, noting that Palestinians and Israelis collaborated on the film ‘because together our voices are stronger.’

He then slated ‘the atrocious destruction of Gaza and its people, which must end,’ while also condemning ‘the crime of October 7,’ adding that the ‘brutally taken’ Israeli hostages ‘must be freed’ by Hamas.

Referring to Adra, he said: ‘When I look at Basel, I see my brother, but we are unequal. We live in a regime where I am free under civilian law, and Basel is under military laws that destroy his life and he cannot control.’ 

He urged the parties to seek ‘a different path, a political solution without ethnic supremacy, with national rights for both of our people,’ and argued to the American audience that US foreign policy was ‘helping to block this path.’

When it came to the best Adapted Screenplay category it was Peter Straughan who won for Conclave.

He won over: A Complete Unknown — James Mangold and Jay Cocks, Emilia Pérez — Jacques Audiard with Thomas Bidegain, Léa Mysius and Nicolas Livecchi, Nickel Boys — RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes, and Sing Sing — Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar; Story by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John ‘Divine G’ Whitfield.

The show began with an incredible medley from Wicked stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.

The Academy Awards are honoring the best films of 2024, with the star-studded ceremony being held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

Conan O’Brien, 61, made his debut as Oscars host, after joking: ‘I only agreed to host so that I could get invited.’

During his monologue, Emilia Pérez star Karla Sofia Gascon looked awkward as she was pictured in the crowd Sunday at the 97th Academy Awards, while host Conan fired off a few jokes about her tweet scandal.

Gascón, 52, appeared to be uncomfortable in her seat in the event, which stemmed from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, as O’Brien rattled off a series of remarks about the controversy she was involved in after unsavory old tweets resurfaced.

Gascón found herself in the crosshairs of controversy shortly after making history as the first openly-transgender actress nominated in the Best Actress category for her portrayal of Emilia Pérez’s titular character.

She landed in hot water amid resurfaced shock social media posts from the actress that garnered controversy amid allegations of racism, homophobia and body shaming, among other unpleasantries.

O’Brien joked that Best picture nominee Anora used ‘the f-word 479 times,’ adding ‘that’s three more than the record set by Karla Sofía Gascón’s publicist!’ 

The host joked as the camera panned on the actress, who did not appear to be amused, adding, ‘Karla, if you are gonna tweet about the Oscars my name is Jimmy Kimmel.’ 

Voting deadlines for the Oscars had to be extended in January, as Los Angeles — the US entertainment capital and home city of the Academy Awards — was devastated by multiple blazes that killed more than two dozen people and forced tens of thousands to flee.

Meanwhile some of Hollywood’s biggest stars did not come away tasting Oscar gold but they did make for a star-studded red carpet ahead of the event. 

Selena Gomez led the best dressed list on the red carpet in a custom skintight rose gold mesh Ralph Lauren gown, with her short locks in old Hollywood waves.

Demi Moore also opted for a metallic hue, opting for a gray-silver Armani Prive number that highlighted her incredible physique.

Halle Berry wowed in a silver stained glass style frock that she sported with minimal jewelry, with her short hair loose around her. She is wearing Christian Siriano.

Emma Stone chose a silver mermaid inspired nude and silver gown by Louis Vuitton, featuring an asymmetrical neckline. 

Selena looked like a goddess in her form-fitting outfit, which also showcased her slimmed down figure.

Her gown, which is a custom Ralph Lauren gown, inspired by gowns worn by Hollywood icon Sophia Loren.

She worked with Sophia’s tailor, according to InStyle magazine.

The frock had 16,000 glass droplets and Rosemont crystals, Elle reported, with the glass drops airbrushed pink ombre.. 

The actress and singer chose a glittering gown that had off-the-shoulder sleeves, highlighting her ample cleavage.

Selena paired the shiny frock with a diamond choker necklace with a pendant, as well as multiple diamond rings.

She wore her short locks loose in a slight wave, with her makeup minimal – highlighting her stunning natural beauty. 

The Substance star Demi shimmied down the red carpet in a skintight silver Armani Prive gown, with a ruched accent along her hips.

She wore her long brunette locks loose around her, with diamond earrings for even more sparkle. 

Halle chose a stained glass style strapless Christian Siriano frock, perfectly molded to her figure. 

She styled the look with minimal jewelry, and her short hair loose and with a slight flip toward the ends. 

Emma channeled a mermaid in her custom Louis Vuitton gown, which had silver sequins throughout.

The chain metal number had an asymmetrical neckline and a slit in the skirt.

She styled her pixie cut slicked down with pink lipstick on her pout.

Kylie Jenner attended the Oscars for the first time, as her boyfriend Timothee Chalamet’s date.

The reality star wore a racy black cut-out gown that showcased her figure, paired with her black hair loose and in waves around her. She is wearing a custom Miu Miu gown.

The appearance was her first one since the tragic and sudden death of her longtime hairstylist Jesus Guerrero at age 34. 

In January, Kylie attended the Golden Globes for the second year in a row as Timothee’s date.

Timothee, 29, and Kylie, 27, first met in January 2023 at Paris Fashion Week – and romantically linked three months later.