The Oscarless Leonardo DiCaprio memes are no longer. The actor won his first Academy Award for Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s “The Revenant” last night.
DiCaprio stepped on to the stage to a standing ovation for winning his first Oscar after four previous acting nominations.
The actor thanked the cast and crew, including Oscar nominated co-star Tom Hardy and director Iñárritu. DiCaprio poignantly mentioned director Michael Caton-Jones for affording him his first big film break in 1993’s “This Boy’s Life, as well as frequent collaborator Martin Scorsese.
As an ardent supporter of environmental issues, DiCaprio addressed climate change in his speech.
“Making ‘The Revenant’ was about man’s relationship to the natural world. A world that we collectively felt in 2015 as the hottest year in recorded history,” DiCaprio said. “Climate change is real; it is happening right now. It is the most urgent threat facing our entire species and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating.”
“The Revenant” additionally pulled in wins for Iñárritu (his second consecutive directing Oscar) and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki (his third straight award after wins for “Gravity” and “Birdman”). Iñárritu is only the third director in Oscar history to win back-to-back Oscars for directing. He joins an exclusive club that includes helmers John Ford and Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
Acting veteran and multiple Tony Award–winning thespian Mark Rylance pulled off somewhat of an upset in the supporting actor category, winning for Steven Spielberg’s Cold War–era drama “Bridge of Spies” ahead of Sylvester Stallone’s projected win for reprising his role as Rocky Balboa in “Creed.”
Rylance paid tribute to his director and co-star Tom Hanks.
Brie Larson won the best actress Oscar for “Room.” Larson thanked both Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals for helping the small film take flight, in addition to director Lenny Abrahamson, screenwriter Emma Donoghue, and co-star Jacob Tremblay.
“The Danish Girl” star Alicia Vikander won supporting actress thanking Focus Features, Working Title, director Tom Hooper, and co-star Eddie Redmayne.
The Oscars bestowed the first and last prizes of the evening to Boston-based journalism drama “Spotlight.” The Tom McCarthy helmed film upset nomination leaders “The Revenant” and “Mad Max: Fury Road” to win Oscar’s top prize.
“This film gave a voice to survivors,” producer Michael Sugar said. “And this film amplifies that voice, which we hope will become a choir that will resonate all the way to the Vatican.”
“Spotlight” is the first best picture winner since 1951’s “The Greatest Show on Earth” to win only one other award (a prize for original screenplay).
“Mad Max: Fury Road” swept most of the technical categories early in the evening with six. However George Miller’s high-octane action film was no match for the small film about investigative journalism and corruption in the Catholic Church.
Check out a list of complete Oscar winners below.
Best Picture
The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight
Actor in a Leading Role
Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Matt Damon, The Martian
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl
Actress in a Leading Role
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Brie Larson, Room
Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn
Director
Adam McKay, The Big Short
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Alejandro González Iñárritu, The Revenant
Lenny Abrahamson, Room
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
Actor in a Supporting Role
Christian Bale, The Big Short
Tom Hardy, The Revenant
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Actress in a Supporting Role
Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
Rooney Mara, Carol
Rachel McAdams, Spotlight
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Animated Feature Film
Anomalisa
Boy and the World
Inside Out
Shaun the Sheep Movie
When Marnie Was There
Cinematography
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Sicario
Costume Design
Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Documentary (Feature)
Amy
Cartel Land
The Look of Silence
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom
Documentary (Short Subject)
Body Team 12
Chau, beyond the Lines
Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
Last Day of Freedom
Film Editing
The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Foreign Language Film
Embrace of the Serpent
Mustang
Son of Saul
Theeb
A War
Makeup and Hairstyling
Mad Max: Fury Road
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out the Window and Disappeared
The Revenant
Original Score
Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Original Song
"Earned It," Fifty Shades of Grey
"Manta Ray," Racing Extinction
"Simple Song #3," Youth
"Til It Happens to You," The Hunting Ground
"Writing's on the Wall," Spectre
Production Design
Bridge of Spies
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Short Film (Animated)
Bear Story
Prologue
Sanjay's Super Team
We Can't Live without Cosmos
World of Tomorrow
Short Film (Live-Action)
Ave Maria
Day One
Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)
Shok
Stutterer
Sound Editing
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Sound Mixing
Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Visual Effects
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
The Big Short
Brooklyn
Carol
The Martian
Room
Writing (Original Screenplay)
Bridge of Spies
Ex Machina
Inside Out
Spotlight
Straight Outta Compton
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