The 8 Best Moments from the 2016 Oscars

By Olivia Bahou
Updated Feb 29, 2016 @ 3:15 pm
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The Academy Awards are Hollywood’s biggest night, and the 2016 Oscars did not disappoint. From the dresses to the performances, powerful statements and inspiring speeches, every moment of the show had us glued to our TV screens.

Stunning pastels dominated the red carpet, from Cate Blanchett’s gorgeous Armani gown to Alicia Vikander's princess moment courtesy of Louis Vuitton. Host Chris Rock gave the Oscars diversity controversy the attention it deserves, and Leonardo DiCaprio finally took home his first Academy Award.

Room's Brie Larson won Best Actress, while her adorable sidekick Jacob Tremblay stole our hearts on stage. Spotlight took home Best Picture (video below) to mark the end of awards season, and it couldn’t have gone out with a bigger bang.

RELATED: See the Stars on the 2016 Oscars Red Carpet

Keep scrolling for the most memorable moments from the evening.

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Chris Rock's opening monologue

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The host made sure that the focus of the night was the #OscarsSoWhite controversy from his opening statements. “I thought about quitting. I thought about it real hard, but I realized they’re going to have the Oscars anyway,” he said. “The last thing I need is to go and loose another job to Kevin Hart.” The host went on to assert that boycotting wasn’t the answer, but that African American actors need to be given more opportunity in Hollywood.

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Mad Max: Fury Road’s Oscar sweep

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The action film took home a record-breaking six technical awards, including best costume design, production design, makeup and hairstyling, editing, sound editing, and sound mixing. Mark A. Mangini and David White looked victorious after accepting the award for best sound editing, raising their arms in triumph.

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Tina Fey and Steve Carrell’s hilarious presentation

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This comedy dream team brought the laughs when they united on stage to present the award for best production design. While Steve Carrell was straight-faced and serious, Tina Fey announced sets like “the thing where a bear lives” and “Tom Hanks’s… house?” Carrell explained away her appearance with a hilarious one-liner. “Tina has been drinking.”

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Jacob Tremblay and his wooden crate

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The adorable Room star aptly presented the award for Best Live-Action Short alongside Abraham Attah. Host Chris Rock helped out the child stars by bringing them wooden crates to stand on to reach the microphone. “Thanks Chris. I loved you in Madagascar,” Tremblay said. Attah went on to introduce the award, proving that “size really doesn’t matter.”

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Lady Gaga’s powerful performance (and introduction by Joe Biden)

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Lady Gaga took to the stage to give an emotional performance her Oscar-nominated song, “Til It Happens to You.” Introduced to the stage by Vice President Joe Biden, Gaga brought sexual assault survivors onstage in a powerful movement to encourage people to intervene when they see non-consensual sexual interactions.

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Sam Smith’s dedication to the LGBT community

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Singer Sam Smith took home his first statuette for his song “Writing’s on the Wall” from Spectre and dedicated his win to the LGBT community. “I want to dedicate this to the LGBT community all around the world,” he said. “I stand here tonight as a proud gay man and I hope we can all stand together as equals one day.”

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Leonardo DiCaprio’s first win!

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Leonardo DiCaprio finally took home an Oscar for Best Actor. The star was honored for his work in The Revenant, and received an enthusiastic round of applause from the relieved audience.

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Spotlight’s Best Picture win

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After winning Best Picture at the 2016 SAG Awards, Spotlight took home yet another major award. The cast took the opportunity to express the necessity of investigative journalism and thank the real-life reporters who inspired the story.

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