Last evening was perhaps the Blackest Oscars ever held. Seven Black folk walked away with awards, which is nothing short of historic. The night was filled with melanated magic, as attendees owned the red carpet, reached career highs, and celebrated each others triumphs like a Black graduate’s family. It was amazing. Here’s a recap of some of the best and brightest (read Blackest) moments from the Oscars:
Billy Porter Killing in his gown:
Designed by Christian Siriano, Porter showed up in a gown inspired by Hector Xtravaganza. It was a moment that both defied gender roles and paid homage to the Ballroom culture that inspired the look.
Spike Lee winning his first Oscar.
Undercover Brotha: So you mean the entertainment industry really is out to get Spike Lee, is
that right?!
Conspiracy Brotha: Come on man, even Cher got an Oscar! CHEEEEEERRRR!!!
It has been both common knowledge and a recurring joke in the Black community that Spike Lee was way too real for Hollywood. The realism that he presents while exploring racial themes in his films made him into the Paul Mooney of movie making. Despite his numerous, legendary contributions to the film industry and numerous accolades, the Academy Award seemed like something that would continue to elude Lee. However last night it appeared as if the culture caught up with Spike, as he won Best Adaptive Screenplay for BlacKkKlansman. Samuel Jackson was ecstatic as he screamed Lee’s name and hugged him in a warm embrace. Lee gave Jackson one of his first acting gigs, so it was a form of poetic justice that he got to announce Lee as the winner.
Regina King wins best supporting actor
We all know King deserved an Oscar. She was the cousin we were all rooting for. From 227 to Boyz in the Hood to The Boondocks, King’s contributions to Hollywood and pop culture are plentiful. In the film adaptation to James Baldwin’s If Beale Street Could Talk King plays Sharon Rivers, the courageous and compassionate mother to Ernestine Rivers, Teyonah Parris’ character. King delivers some powerful lines, such as the Grandchild Scene. She cites the film as “the baby” that “he birthed”, in reference to the renowned author James Baldwin.
Into the SpiderVerse wins Best Animated Feature
Every since Miles Morales became a prominent figure in Marvel, I could not stop seeing little Black boys aspiring to be him. This past Halloween was filled with black and red spider-man costumes. It’s a testament to the phrase, “representation matters”. In his acceptance speech, co-director Peter Ramsey said: When we hear that somebody’s kid was watching the movie and turns to them and says ‘He looks like me …,’ we feel like we’ve already won.” Ramsey became the first Black person to win for best animated feature. I can suspect there will be an even bigger surge in Morales costumes in the near future.
Ingenious Inside Jokes
The presenters of awards had their fair share of witty cracks at white people’s expense. Presenting Black Panther as Best Picture nominee, Daily Show host Trevor Noah jokes: “Growing up as a young boy in Wakanda, I would see King T’Challa flying over our village, and he would remind me of a great Xhosa phrase: Abelungu abazi ubu ndiyakholwa, which means: ‘In times like these, we are stronger when we fight together than when we try to fight apart.’” However it actually translated to: “white people don’t know that I’m lying,”
Tessa Thompson and Michael B. Jordan used humor to dispel stereotypes about Black people while presenting the award for Best Score. Jordan jokes about the most memorable film scores connoting troubled waters. Thompson replies with asking Jordan if he could swim. Thompson added “A lot of people don’t know that about us,” before looking into the camera.
Black Panther takes home three gold statues.
As costume designer Ruth Carter exclaimed, “finally the door is wide open”. Carter became the first black woman to win for Best Costume design for her stunning work with Black Panther. Carter has also worked on other iconic Black films such as Angela Bassett’s costumes in her Tina Turner biopic, or Denzel Washington in Malcolm X. Hannah Bleacher would become the first Black woman to win for Production Design as well.Black Panther would also go on to win Best Original Score giving it a three-peat for the night. While it didn’t win Best Picture, this was the first Academy Award that Marvel took home. It should be noted that Wesley Snipes gave Marvel its first box-office success with Blade.
This was by far one of the Blackest displays in Hollywood. There are still many doors to knock down, but last night was a celebration over the wood chips of those we’ve already blown open. Happy Black History Month.
