Asghar Farhadi’s absence

Iranian director behind the winning Best Foreign Language Film, Asghar Farhadi, did not attend the ceremony as a protest of American President Donald Trump’s travel ban, but his absence did not make his words any less powerful . In his acceptance speech, read by Iranian-American astronaut Anousheh Ansari, he explained, “my absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of the six other nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans the entry of immigrants to the United States. Dividing the world into the ‘us’ and ‘our enemies’ categories creates fear—a deceitful justification for aggression and war. These wars prevent democracy and human rights in countries which have themselves been victims of aggression.”

Asghar Farhadi, who did not attend the #Oscars, in a statement following his win for Best Foreign Language Film. https://t.co/NyoIMBXzow pic.twitter.com/Wc0ckly36j

— ABC News (@ABC) February 27, 2017

Tour bus tourists

Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the awards had their share of lighter moments, namely when a lucky group of tourists were told that they would be going to an exhibit of Oscar dresses and instead found themselves smack in the middle of the ceremonies themselves. The tourists were guided down to the front row by Kimmel and introduced to celebrities. One engaged couple, Vickie and Corey from Chicago, were even married by Denzel Washington.

Read also: Here's what happened onstage during the Oscars' mistake

Auli'i Cravalho’s performance

Sixteen-year-old Auli'i Cravalho, voice of the titular character in Best Animated Film nominee Moana, performed "How Far I’ll Go" from the film. Introduced with a rap by Moana songwriter, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Cravalho easily knocked it out of the park, putting her on par with the other Oscar performers like John Legend and Sara Bareilles. The teen even got bumped in the head by one of the props but continued to sing, unfazed.

full performance of auli'i cravalho's performance pic.twitter.com/phpuWf2d4d

— Ellen DeGeneres (@EllenReaction) March 1, 2017

Parachute treats

In a moment rivaling Ellen DeGeneres’s mid-Oscar pizza delivery and Chris Rock’s Girl Scout cookie sale from Academy Awards past, Kimmel arranged movie theater treats to drop from the ceiling not once but three times. Confections like Red Vines, Mike and Ikes and cookies rained down on the celebrities, much to the unabashed joy of actress Taraji P. Henson, along with others.

I wish I could live my life with half as much joy as Taraji Henson has receiving candy from the sky #Oscars pic.twitter.com/OXrAtjbGYn

— ⭐️ Blake Hyodo ⭐️ (@BlakeHyodo) February 27, 2017

Viola Davis’ win

With her win for Best Supporting Actress, Viola Davis is the only woman to have won an Oscar, an Emmy, a Tony, a Golden Globe, a SAG and a BAFTA. Despite the fact that she is only a Grammy away from the infamous EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony), she has said that she doubts she will get there since she “can’t sing”. Do not lose too much hope, though, join those already gunning for her to try to win in the Spoken Word category. (sul/kes)

.@ViolaDavis is the first black actor to win an Oscar, Emmy, and Tony award https://t.co/kYXYHp89kH pic.twitter.com/AoQtm9Y51s

— Variety (@Variety) February 28, 2017

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