Leo finally gets his Oscar... and leaves Kate Winslet in tears! The Revenant star DiCaprio follows Best Actress Brie Larson with gong - and he's the ONLY star whose speech isn't cut off by music
- Spotlight won Best Picture
- Leonardo DiCaprio won Best Actor for The Revenant
- Brie Larson won Best Actress for Room
- Alejandro G. Inarritu won Best Director for the second year in a row for The Revenant
- Alicia Vikander won Best Supporting Actress for The Danish Girl
- Mark Rylance won Best Supporting Actor for Bridge Of Spies
- Mad Max: Fury Road won six technical awards
- Inside Out won Best Animated Feature Film
- Amy, about the late Amy Winehouse, won Best Documentary Feature
- Son Of Saul won Best Foreign Film
- Sam Smith won Best Original Song for Writing's On The Wall, Spectre
- See our full Oscars 2016 coverage of all the winners, losers and red carpet style at www.dailymail.co.uk/oscars
Leonardo DiCaprio finally won his first Oscar for his performance in The Revenant on Sunday night, after four previous unsuccessful nominations.
The actor used his lengthy acceptance speech to deliver a lecture on climate change, and was able to speak for a longer period than other winners when the producers failed to play 'wrap-it-up' music as he went well past his allotted time of 45 seconds.
'Making The Revenant was about man's relationship to the natural world...climate change is real,' said DiCaprio. '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. We need to support leaders around the world who do not speak for the big polluters or the big corporations but for all people.'
'Let us not take our planet for granted,' he concluded. 'I do not take tonight for granted.'
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Finally: Leonardo DiCaprio used his Oscar win for Best Actor to deliver a lecture on climate change at the Academy Awards on Sunday night
While an advocate for addressing the threat of climate change, 41-year-old DiCaprio was reported to have taken six private jet flights in just six weeks in 2014. However, despite the frequent use of private air travel - which is known to be a big source of pollution - the actor has dedicated a great deal of his star power to get the word out about the environment.
But after winning big on Sunday night, DiCaprio had other things on his mind - most importantly his mother. 'Where's my mom?' Leonardo was heard yelling when he and his entourage arrived at the Academy Awards Governors Ball held on the top deck of the Dolby Theatre.
As aides went in search of the newly-minted Best Actor Oscar winner's mother Irmelin Indenbirken, DiCaprio tucked into a slice of chicken pizza.
'I'm so hungry', he was heard to say.
Then he begged to be allowed to eat in peace as his table was swarmed by well-wishers and photographers. Soon security officers ringed his table to keep onlookers at bay. 'Leo is asking for a little bit of privacy', one of the security detail said.
Platform: The actor used his lengthy acceptance speech to deliver a lecture on climate change, and was able to speak for a longer period than other winners when the producers failed to play 'wrap-it-up' music as he went well past his allotted time of 45 seconds
Partner in crime: Kate Winslet was one of the first to congratulate the star before he took the stage to accept his award
Finally gets his moment: Oscar gold has previously eluded the celebrated star, who has won plenty of other honours over his two decade long career
The long haul: The two stars, who rocketed to international fame with 1997 film Titanic, made sure to take in the milestone together
Hugging it out: It was plain to see the close bond and affection between the two A-list friends
Proud moment: Kate - who scooped a Best Actress Oscar for her role in The Reader (2008) - welcomed Leo into the club
Tearing up: Kate couldn't hold back tears as Leo took to the stage to accept his first Academy Award
His leading lady! Leonardo held his arms out open for Kate as they enjoyed a sweet moment together before the ceremony began
The winners: Leo, 41, congratulated Brie Larson on her win for Best Actress for Room
Winning combination: Leo's turn as a frontiersman in The Revenant has seen him sweep the awards season
Man in waiting: Oscar gold has previously eluded the celebrated star four times in the past
Meanwhile, Oscar gold has previously eluded the celebrated star, who has won plenty of other honours over his two decade long career. But it was this year's portrayal of frontiersman Hugh Glass in the revenge tale The Revenant that earned him the milestone.
Leo earned his first Oscar nomination in 1994 for What's Eating Gilbert Grape when he was just 20 years old.
He was then nominated for Best Actor (The Aviator) in 2004. He later earned a Best Actor nod for Blood Diamond in 2006. And most recently for the Wolf Of Wall Street in 2013.
Shout out! Tom Hardy received recognition from his The Revenant co-star
His time to shine: The actor looked to be quite emotional as he left the stage after delivering his acceptance speech
The closing of the ceremony: Laszlo Nemes looked on as Larson, left, took a photograph of Emmanuel Lubezki, DiCaprio, and Alejandro G. Inarritu on stage
Making history: Inarritu took best director for a second straight year, a feat matched by only two other filmmakers: John Ford and Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Toast to us! Leo and Alejandro held up their trophies as the show came to a close
Golden man: Leo walked past the iconic Academy Awards statue proud in the knowledge that he had his own golden man in his hand before posing for photos with his Oscar-winning director Alejandra
Alejandro Inarritu took best director for a second straight year, a feat matched by only two other filmmakers: John Ford and Joseph L. Mankiewicz. His brutal frontier epic The Revenant, which came in with a leading 12 nods and the favorite for best picture, also won best cinematography for Emmanuel Lubezki.
Renowned for his use of natural light in lengthy, balletic shots, Lubezki became the first cinematographer to win three times in a row (following wins for Gravity and Birdman), and only the seventh to three-peat in Oscar history.
Inarritu, the Mexican director of last year's best-picture winner Birdman, was one of the few winners to remark passionately on diversity in his speech.
Two's company: Ben Affleck was quick to congratulate Leo at the star-studded Vanity Fair after party
Winners: Leo enjoyed a chat with previous Oscar winner Elton John
Leo lovers: Some fans were so overjoyed with the news that they threw parties in the street to celebrate together
Under cover: One group decided to continue the party on the way home, proudly wearing their Leo masks
'What a great opportunity for our generation to really liberate ourselves from all prejudice and this tribal thinking and to make sure for once and forever that the color of our skin becomes as irrelevant as the length of our hair,' said Inarritu.
While the other big winner of the night was relative newcomer Brie Larson, who took home Best Actress in a Leading Role, beating out Jennifer Lawrence and Cate Blanchett for the top honour.
She went on to thank her nine-year-old co-star in acclaimed independent feature Room while onstage: 'Jacob Tremblay [you were] my partner through this... and to my real partner Alex Greenwald: I love you... the whole thing!'
Newcomer to the awards shows: Brie has taken this season by storm with her tour de force in Room
Shocked! The 26-year-old took in the milestone as she laughed giddily en route to the stage
Partner in crime: Brie reached out to nine-year-old co-star Jacob Tremblay after her name was announced as the winner
![She went on to thank her nine-year-old co-star in Room while onstage: 'Jacob Tremblay [you were] my partner through this... and to my real partner Alex Greenwald: I love you... the whole thing!'](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/02/29/06/31ACCB3000000578-3453525-She_went_on_to_thank_her_nine_year_old_co_star_in_Room_while_ons-m-267_1456727647968.jpg)
![She went on to thank her nine-year-old co-star in Room while onstage: 'Jacob Tremblay [you were] my partner through this... and to my real partner Alex Greenwald: I love you... the whole thing!'](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/02/29/06/31A666E000000578-3453525-image-a-268_1456727663093.jpg)
She went on to thank her nine-year-old co-star in Room while onstage: 'Jacob Tremblay [you were] my partner through this... and to my real partner Alex Greenwald: I love you... the whole thing!'
Good luck charm: The actress got a high five from her little pal as the Best Actress nominees were announced
Class of 2016: Mark Rylance, Brie, Leo, and Alicia Vikander posed backstage after winning in the acting categories
In an underdog win for a movie about an underdog profession, the newspaper drama Spotlight took Best Picture.
Tom McCarthy's film about the Boston Globe's investigative reporting on sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests won over the favored frontier epic The Revenant.
The well-crafted procedural, led by a strong ensemble cast, had lagged in the lead-up to the Oscars, losing ground to the flashier filmmaking of Inarritu's film.
But Spotlight - an ode to the hard-nose, methodical work of a journalism increasingly seldom practiced - took the night's top honor despite winning only one other Oscar for McCarthy and Josh Singer's screenplay. Such a sparsely-awarded Best Picture winner hasn't happened since 1952's The Greatest Show On Earth.
The theory of winning everything! Eddie Redmayne was the one to present Brie with her award
Kicking off: The night opened with a raucous monologue by host Chris Rock
Taking a hit: Sylvester Stallone was left heartbroken as he lost out in the Best Supporting Actor category to Mark Rylance, who took gold for his performance in Bridge Of Spies
![Rylance, 56, thanked his director Steven Spielberg before adding: 'If you ever asked if acting with Tom Hanks helps [your career] the answer is "yes it does!"'](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/02/29/03/31AB7FE000000578-3453525-image-a-133_1456717345115.jpg)
Rylance, 56, thanked his director Steven Spielberg before adding: 'If you ever asked if acting with Tom Hanks helps [your career] the answer is 'yes it does!''
It's not about how hard you can hit, but how hard you can get hit! Both Sly and Christian Bale lost out to Rylance
Hand-off: Patricia Arquette pesented the Best Supporting Actor award to the Bridge Of Spies actor
'We would not be here today without the heroic efforts of our reporters,' said producer Blye Pagon Faust when the film took Best Picture. 'Not only do they effect global change, but they absolutely show us the necessity for investigative journalism.'
Best Original Screenplay also went to the newsroom drama Spotlight, penned by McCarthy and Josh Singer. Backstage, a cord from a light suddenly fell behind the winners, prompting McCarthy - whose film shows the discovery of extensive sex abuse by Catholic priests - to exclaim in mock paranoia: 'That is the power of the Catholic Church, ladies and gentlemen!'
Adam McKay and Charles Randolph took best adapted screenplay for their self-described 'trauma-dy' about the mortgage meltdown of 2008. McKay thanked Paramount Pictures for taking a risk on a movie about 'financial esoterica.'
Newcomer! Alicia Vikander won Best Supporting Actress for The Danish Girl
Whiplash! J. K. Simmons presented the stunning actress with the gong
The 27-year-old took the stage and breathlessly delivered a heartfelt speech: 'Thank you so much to the Academy for this recognition. And Eddie - where are you? - there you are! Thank you for being the best acting partner. You raised my game!'
McKay, best known for broader comedies like Anchorman and Step Brothers, gave an election-year warning to power of 'big money' in the presidential campaign and government.
'Big money is taking over our government,' said McKay backstage.
Meanwhile, it was supposed to be his big night, But Sylvester Stallone was left heartbroken as he lost out in the Best Supporting Actor category to Mark Rylance, who took gold for his performance in Bridge Of Spies.
Rylance, 56, thanked his director Steven Spielberg before adding: 'If you ever asked if acting with Tom Hanks helps [your career] the answer is 'yes it does!''
Now she's a name: Plays Gerda Wegener in The Danish Girl where the plays the wife of the first person to undergo gender confirmation surgery
She then added: 'And my mum and dad - thank you for giving me the belief that anything can happen. Even though I would never have believed this!'
Celebratory kiss! Vikander and Michael Fassbender finally let their relationship walls down, for a second, on Sunday night
Proud colleague: Eddie looked on the verge of tears as he saw Vikander take the stage
A winning hug! Brie and Alicia embraced onstage at the end of the ceremony as all the night's victors rushed the stage
Shock win: Tom McCarthy's film Spotlight took home Best Picture
Rylance was a first time nominee and won for his portrayal of Russian spy Rudolf Abel, who becomes part of a high-stakes prisoner exchange during the Cold War between the United States and Soviet Union.
It was the first time Stallone had been in Oscar contention since 1977 when Rocky, which he starred in, wrote and produced, was nominated for 10 statuettes and won three, including Best Picture and Best Director for John G. Avildsen.
Sly missed out on the Best Actor and Screenplay honours, which appears to be making this round of honours doubly meaningful and now even more heartbreaking.
Opening strong: Rock delivered an epic monologue at the beginning the of the 88th Academy Awards on Sunday night
'The big question is why are we protesting this year's Oscars?' Rock observed. 'It is the 88th Academy Awards.... At least 71 of them didn't have black actors nominated in the past.'
Rock then jokingly Introduced Stacey Dash as the new Minority Outreach Director for the Oscars
Chrissy Teigen and The Weeknd found the moment particularly hard to stomach with their obvious disdain
In the film Creed, Sylvester plays an ageing Rocky, who comes out of retirement to train promising young boxer Adonis Johnson, played by Michael B. Jordan, who is the son of his former rival, Apollo Creed.
Earlier in the evening, newcomer Alicia Vikander won Best Supporting Actress for The Danish Girl. She beat out the likes of Kate Winslet to take the gong for her role in the historical true story about a transgender woman (played by Eddie Redmayne) and his supportive wife (Vikander).
The 27-year-old took the stage and breathlessly delivered a heartfelt speech: 'Thank you so much to the Academy for this recognition. And Eddie - where are you? - there you are! Thank you for being the best acting partner. You raised my game!'
Belting it out: Lady Gaga performed Til It Happens To You from The Hunting Ground
Standing in solidarity: Gaga ended her set piece with men and women holding hands in unison
Vice President Joe Biden introduced Lady Gaga before her powerful performance during the Oscars. He made a plea urging Americans to speak out against sexual assault and to support Obama's It's On Us campaign
His big moment! Sam Smith won Best Original Song for Writing's On The Wall for the film Spectre, beating Lady Gaga
Shaken and stirred: Sam had delivered a wobbly performance of his tune during the ceremony
Doing the double: Sam followed in the footsteps of Adele by winning a best song gong for a Bond tune
She then added: 'And my mum and dad - thank you for giving me the belief that anything can happen. Even though I would never have believed this!'
The Swedish born actress beat out other more experienced Oscar hopefuls Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight), Rooney Mara (Carol), and Rachel McAdams (Spotlight).
And while they have refused to confirm their romance and have avoided public displays of affection, it seems the Oscars changed all that - sort of.
Vikander and Michael Fassbender finally let their relationship walls down, for a second, on Sunday night. The actress and her 36-year-old beau could not hide their excitement, or their feelings for each other. As the star's name was read out for her role in The Danish Girl, she gave her mother a big hug before Michael stood up to give her a loving kiss - finally publicly acknowledging their almost a year-long romance.
Dripping in gold: Smith and Vikander shared a sweet moment as they had their arms full of Oscar backstage
Diversity issue: The veteran comic got the audience bawling with laughter
Now that's a team! Winslet and Reese Witherspoon both wore strapless dresses
He's got some fans: Rock's monologue got a rise out of some of Hollywood's brightest
Special treatment: The host singled out DiCaprio as someone who always gets good roles each year
Despite their kiss and the fact the camera panned to her beau in anticipation, Alicia did not mention Michael's name, whether by design or whether by music-inducing nerves.
Pixar's Inside Out was the winner of the best animated feature film Academy Award.
The film tells the story of a young girl's emotions as her family relocates from Minnesota to San Francisco. Director Pete Docter has said the film, which mixes science with his experience, has also resonated with the parents of special needs children.
The film features an all-star vocal cast including Amy Poehler, Bill Hader, Lewis Black and Mindy Kaling. The win is the studio's eighth in the category.
First winners of the night: Director McCarthy and Josh Singer took Best Original Screenplay for Spotlight
Sirens: Emily Blunt and Charlize Theron presented the first honour of the night
Heading out: The two actresses looked tremendously glamorous as they made their way to the stage
High five! Charles Randolph and Adam Mckay won Best Adapted Screenplay for The Big Short
Bear Story won the best animated short Academy Award during the long ceremony.
An intimate look at the life of late singer Amy Winehouse was the winner of the best feature documentary Academy Award.
Amy won the documentary honor at Sunday's ceremony. Director Asif Kapadia used archival footage and testimonials to offer new insights into Winehouse, who died in 2011 from accidental alcohol poisoning.
The film won the Grammy Award for best music film earlier this month.
Good banter: Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe took the stage as they announced the nominees for Best Adapted Screenplay
Too cute: Room's Tremblay and Beasts Of No Nation's Abraham Attah presented the award for Best Live Action Short Film
Rock brought out crates for the two young actors to reach the microphone. 'Thanks, Chris,' nine-year-old Tremblay began. 'I loved you in Madagascar! He was great. He played the Zebra.'
Da Ali G Show: Sacha Baron Cohen used his old character to poke fun at the lack of diversity at this year's Oscars as Olivia WIlde stood by
Controversial: He said there should be an Oscar for 'hard-working little yellow people... the Minions.'
The best documentary short Oscar was awarded to the film, A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness.
Sam Smith won Best Original Song for Writing's On The Wall for the film Spectre.
Sam and songwriter Jimmy Nape, who beat out Lady Gaga and The Weeknd, won the prize, which followed in the footsteps of Adele's more critically praised Bond song Skyfall by taking the gong.
The proud Englishman said: 'I stand here tonight as a proud gay man and I hope that we can all stand together as equals one day.'
Sam, 23, also advanced the idea that he may have been the first openly homosexual person to win an Oscar, however this is not the case.
That's some inking! Whoopi Goldberg presented an award at the show as she showed off a tattoo on her shoulder
Gorgeous: Blanchett announced the nominees for Best Costume Design
Proud moment: Jenny Beavan accepted the award for Best Costume Design for Mad Max: Fury Road
He said: 'I read an article a few months ago by Sir Ian McKellen, and he said that no openly gay man had ever won an Oscar.
'If this is the case, even if it isn't the case, I want to dedicate this to the LGBT community all around the world.' However, the famed thespian had talked about the fact an openly homosexual man has yet to win the best actor Oscar specifically, not just any Academy Award.
The title for the night's most-awarded film, however, went to neither Spotlight nor The Revenant. George Miller's post-apocalyptic chase film, Mad Max: Fury Road sped away with six awards in technical categories for editing, makeup, production design, sound editing, sound mixing and costume design. Roundly acclaimed for its old-school craft, Miller's Mad Max was assured of becoming the evening's most awarded film.
'Us Mad Maxes are doing OK tonight,' said editor Margaret Sixel, who's also Miller's wife. The flurry of wins brought a parade of Australian craftsmen onstage, including sound editor Mark Mangini, who celebrated with a loud expletive.
The composer John Williams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which went away empty-handed despite being the biggest box-office hit of the decade) came in with his 50th nod, but lost to Ennio Morricone, who, at 87, landed his first competitive Oscar for Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight. (He was given an honorary one in 2009.)
Chris Rock introduced one pair of presenters as: 'Nominee Rachel McAdams and should have been nominated Michael B. Jordan'
Cute pair: Benicio del Toro and Jennifer Garner took to the stage to announce some nominees
Final marks! Del Toro and Garner pictured backstage before announcing some nominees
Reunion! The gorgeous and newly single actress was seen joking with Steve Carell, who she starred with in Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Chris Rock opened the ceremony with a rollicking monologue as celebs gathered at the Dolby Theater to toast another year in movies.
The show kicked off with a montage of the films from 2015 and the 51-year-old comedian referenced the clip as he took the stage.
'Man I counted at least 15 black people in that montage. I am here hosting at the Academy Awards otherwise known as the White People's Choice Awards. If they nominated hosts I wouldn't be your host. It'd be Neil Patrick Harris. People be like, "Chris you should boycott. You should quit." Only people without jobs say to quit something. And the last thing I need is to give another job to Kevin Hart. Porno stars don't make movies that fast!'
'The big question is why are we protesting this year's Oscars?' Rock continued. 'It is the 88th Academy Awards.... At least 71 of them didn't have black actors nominated in the past.'
'Black people didn't protest because we had real things to protest. Too busy being raped and lynched to worry about who won best cinematography. When your grandma's hanging from a tree...'
Hot! The Weeknd performed his Oscar nominated song Earned It for feature Fifty Shades of Grey
Gorgeous production: The ceremony held at the Dolby Theater put on quite a show
Tribute: Dave Grohl sang Blackbird as stars who passed in 2015 were celebrated
Now that's really a pair! Margot Robbie and Jared Leto presented the award for best makeup and hairstyling
He then went on to poke fun at Jada Pinkett who had said she was boycotting the Oscars ahead of the ceremony on Sunday: 'Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna's panties! I wasn't invited.'
'Everyone wants to know in the world, is Hollywood racist?' said Rock. 'Is it "burning cross racist"? No. Is it "fetch me some lemonade racist"? No. It's a different type of racist…. Hollywood is "sorority racist." It's like, "we like you Rhonda, but you're not a Kappa".'
And he added: 'We want opportunity. We want the black actors to get the same opportunities. Not just once. Leo (DiCaprio) gets a great part every year. All you guys get great parts all the time.'
Actress and Fox News personality Stacey Dash said she wanted to bring a different kind of diversity to Hollywood - and that's why she participated in one of the oddest Oscar moments.
The former Clueless actress has attracted attention lately for her conservative viewpoints, including suggesting on Fox that there should not be a Black History Month. Dash, who is black, also spoke out against people complaining that the Oscars didn't reflect diversity.
She was jokingly introduced by host Rock as director of the Oscar's minority outreach program. Dash strode onstage to say 'I cannot wait to help my people out. Happy Black History Month!'
Elka Wardega (L), Lesley Vanderwalt (C), and Damian Martin accept the award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Mad Max: Fury Road
Tina Fey (L) and Steve Carell present the Oscar for Best Production Design to Colin Gibson (2nd R) and Lisa Thompson for Mad Max: Fury Road
Quite the production: Celebs gathered at the Dolby Theater to toast another year in movies as they were honoured by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Landmark achievement: Liev Schreiber and actress Priyanka Chopra present the award for best Achievement in Film Editing, in Mad Max, to film editor Margaret Sixel
The joke fell flat, perhaps because many people in the audience didn't understand the reference.
Dash explained online why she did it, saying ideological diversity is much harder to achieve in Hollywood.
Later in the show, Rock had some local Los Angeles Girls Scouts sell cookies in an effort to help his own daughters, who are also Scouts, raise money. He called out some celebs to put there money on the line as he said, 'C'mon, Leo you made $30 million!'
But he gave one actor some trouble for buying the cookies: 'Oh Lou Gossett watch out now! You got diabetes!' He revealed that he pulled in $65,243 in earnings from the cookie sales.
Rock also shared a video of him asking people on the street in Compton, California about nominees at this year's white washed Oscars. Nearly all of the interviewees had never heard of the nominees for Best Picture but all of them had seen Straight Outta Compton, which was nominated for Best Original Screenplay.
Some healthy satire: Angela Basset starred in a short video clip titled Oscars Edition Black History Month Minute that honour comedic actor Jack Black
Not pulling any punches: Chris Rock's show made sure to address the issue of race
Vice President Joe Biden took the stage to a standing ovation as he introduced Lady Gaga for her performance of Til It Happens To You which was nominated for Best Original Song for the film The Hunting Ground.
Biden addressed sexual abuse on college campuses: 'I urge you to take the pledge, "I will intervene when consent cannot or will not be given." Let's change the culture so that no woman or man will ever have to ask "what did I do?"'
'They did nothing wrong,' he added firmly. 'Folks I really mean this go online and take the pledge. Welcome my friend Lady Gaga.'
Lady Gaga produced and performed the haunting track, which she is said to have co-wrote with Diane Warren, for the soundtrack of documentary film The Hunting Ground which tackles issues surrounding campus rapes in American educational institutions.
Make that money! Later in the show the comedian had some local Los Angeles Girls scouts sell cookies
He called out some celebs to put there money on the line as he said, 'C'mon, Leo you made $30 million!'
But he gave one actor some trouble for buying the cookies: 'Oh Lou Gossett watch out now! You got diabetes!'
Cookie time! Christian Bale and Kate WInslet indulged in some old standards
Is that for real? The number Rock gave for how much he raised seemed a bit inflated
Room's Jacob Tremblay and Beasts Of No Nation's Abraham Attah presented the award for Best Live Action Short Film. Rock brought out crates for the two young actors to reach the microphone.
'Thanks, Chris,' nine-year-old Tremblay began. 'I loved you in Madagascar! He was great. He played the Zebra.'
Meanwhile, the audio on Kevin Hart's speech at the Oscars was abruptly cut out for an unknown reason when he took to the stage to introduce musician The Weeknd.
Kevin Hart's speech at the Oscars was abruptly cut out for an unknown reason when he took to the stage to introduce The Weeknd and offered impassioned words of support to actors of color
Rapper and poet Common (left) and singer John Legend (right) were other presenters of color at the Oscars
Happy singer Pharrell Williams (left) and Quincy Jones (right) presented the award for best original score
Chadwick Boseman (left) presented the award for best sound editing while Louis Gossett Jr. (right) introduced an in memoriam tribute at the Oscars
The comedian was in the middle of an unscripted monologue congratulating actors of color who were shut out in this year's nominations, when the audio was edited out.
In a slow-motion playback of Hart's speech, he appears to say: 'God****it, congratulations' or 'Congratu-f******-lations.' Others wondered whether he had said anything profane at all.
It's possible the audio was cut because of profanity, but others have speculated that nervous producers pulled the plug when Hart began his unvetted speech on diversity.
A corner for Joy: JLaw and David O Russell sat next to Christian Bale
Handsome announcers: Jason Segel and Olivia Munn showcased some winners from the Sci-Tech Awards
The Oscars had 12 black presenters amidst the #OscarsSoWhite controversy. Among the presenters were Common, Morgan Freeman, Whoopi Goldberg, Louis Gossett, Jr. and comedian Hart.
While other races made up the 47 presenters of the night, the majority - 30 people - were white.
Other races represented included two Latin Americans, Benicio del Toro and Sofia Vergara and two people of Indian descent, Dev Patel and Priyanka Chopra.
Lee Byung-hun, who is South Korean, and Olivia Munn, who is half Japanese also presented awards.
However a tasteless moment occurred when Ali G, the comedy alter ego of English funnyman Sacha Baron Cohen, made a shock comeback at the event, who was last seen on 2014's Ali G: Rezurection.
Star Wars C-3PO, R2D2 and BB-8, arrive on stage to celebrate composer John Williams
Let me see! Tremblay got out of his seat to look at the Star Wars droids
Speaking in his trademark Staines Massive drawl, he said: 'Ow come there’s no Oscar for dem very hard-working little yellow people with tiny d***s. You know, the Minions.'
The comic continued to mine the controversy over the claimed lack of racial diversity at this year's event, drawing howls of laughter from the white-majority audience.
Sacha was introducing best picture nominee Room with Olivia Wilde when he decided to speak out in support 'all people of all colors.'
The 44-year-old said: 'I is here representing all of them that’s been overlooked.
'Will Smith. Idris Elbow. And of course that amazing black bloke from Star Wars... Darth Vader.'
Meanwhile, a good awards speech can echo through the generations but a bad one can mar an entire broadcast.
The Academy Awards decided to create some new rules as this year they no longer allowed winners to name those they felt indebted to during their speeches.
In the flesh: An actor playing Suge Knight made a fake appearance at the awards show as Straight Outta Compton was up for Best Original Screenplay
Instead, the Oscars rolled a screen ticker behind the honoree naming each person they wanted to thank.
In addition, speeches were cut down to just 45 seconds, in an effort to keep the running time of the ceremony within an acceptable domain, as the show has famously gone overtime.
For a show that has been plagued with often self-indulgent oratory performances, it is actors and showbusiness people after all, the new rule set was intended to ensure a smoother running broadcast that has often been criticized for being boring.
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