The Legendary Night of the Oscars: Recap of the 97th Academy Awards

The 2025 Oscars, hosted by Conan O’Brian, gave us an evening of poignant and touching moments, nostalgic reunions and massive announcements. The ceremony took place on March 2, 2025 at 4 p.m. Pacific Time at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, and not only honored film masterclasses, but also celebrated great individuals who have made their mark on entertainment history.

One of the highlights of the evening was when Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg took to the stage to honor legendary composer Quincy Jones. Jones has redefined music and film all by himself, and the tribute was capped by a performance by the well renowned rapper, Queen Latifah.

Audiences for the movie, “When Harry Met Sally,” were rewarded when the star behind the character Harry Burns, Billy Crystal, and the star behind the character Sally Albright, Meg Ryan, got together to present the Best Picture award, which was given to the movie “Anora.” Their good-natured banter was a scene from the movie, a moment out of the 1989 romantic-comedy, and was one of the most tearful moments of the night.

Another highlight was when actress Halle Berry toasted the “James Bond” series. The show featured a tense performance by Blackpink's Lisa and Doja Cat, paying tribute to the iconic, multi-generational spy series.

But no Oscars would be complete without a little controversy. The "In Memoriam" tribute was criticized for leaving out such giant stars as actresses Michelle Trachtenberg and Shannen Doherty, creating some drama on the social media front.

The night was topped off with exciting movie news. Zendaya was announced to be providing the voice of Shrek and Fiona's daughter in the new movie "Shrek 5." Most of the fans were thrilled by the announcement, although some were unhappy with the animation of the movie as well as Zendaya's appearance, which will be near too common as she has appeared in too many movies in the recent past.