“Hostless” Oscars Broadcast Draws 30 Million Viewers

For many movie lovers, the Oscars are a long awaited event: the star-studded red carpet, the heartwarming speeches, the show-stopping performances, the whole works.

Though the event draws millions of viewers- this year’s show bringing in a grand total of 29.6 million watchers- many movie lovers or pop culture fanatics simply don’t have the time to dedicate three hours to watching film’s biggest event on a Sunday night. If you’re one of those people who either didn’t have the time to tune in or are simply tired of hearing the buzz and not being able to contribute, here’s a run down of the 2019 Oscars big moments.

One of the biggest facets of this year’s show was its host or should I say, lack thereof. After controversy surrounding tweets by intended host, Kevin Hart, it was announced that for the second time in history the Oscars wouldn’t have a host. Though many were skeptical, it was widely accepted that the lack of host only made the show run more smoothly and cut down on unneeded chit chat. The show had a total run time of just barely over three hours making it one of the most efficient shows in Oscar history.

There were also too many show stopping moments to count. Queen and Adam Lambert started the show off with a bang with their stunning and upbeat performances of the hits “We Will Rock You” and “We are the Champions” which had the crowd and viewers at home on their feet. Aside from Queen’s crowd pleasing opening, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper sparked a huge conversation after their intense performance of Shallow from their hit movie A Star Is Born. The two stunned the crowd with their vocals and tugged at many heart strings with their touching eye contact moment that dominated headlines the following day.

Now onto the most important part of the Academy Awards: the awards! Though around 30 awards were handed out to talented actors, actresses, and filmmakers alike, the big winners were as follows: Green Book shocked many when it took home the show’s biggest award for Best Picture. Green Book also took home the titles for Best Original Screenplay for Brian Currie, Nick Vallelonga, and Peter Farrelly, as well as Best Supporting Actor for Mahershala Ali.

Bohemian Rhapsody swept has its fair share of wins too with Rami Malek winning Best Actor and the film winning Best Sound Mixing and Sound editing. Lady Gaga delivered an emotional speech after winning her first Oscar for best original song, “Shallow”, from A Star is Born. Black Panther took home the title of Best Original Music Score on behalf of its captivating and upbeat soundtrack. Spike Lee, Kevin Willmott, Charlie Wachtel, and David Rabinowitz accepted the award for Best Adapted Screenplay for BlacKkKlansman.

This year’s Oscars were full of shocking wins and captivating performances, leaving both audience members and viewers at home at the edge of their seats. Though many had preconceived notions about how the show would go without a host and who would take home the big wins in such a close race, the show ran without a hitch and was yet another successful example of how the art of film can make us laugh, cry, ponder, and always brings us together.