It seems Sunday’s night’s Oscar ceremony was the most enjoyable for audiences in awhile, including the hosts of “The View.” But for Ana Navarro, the show was more than just fun; it was historic proof of “how immigrants make America great.”
Indeed, the ceremony did mark some historic milestones, largely thanks to the domination of Best Picture winner “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” Along with Best Picture, the movie scored acting wins for Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis, as well as a Best Director win for The Daniels.
Ke Huy Quan brought much of the audience to tears during his acceptance speech, as he himself joyfully sobbed through it, celebrating his win. “This is the American dream!” he exclaimed, after recounting his journey from refugee camp to the stage. Even the hosts of “The View” admitted they got emotional watching the show.
“We had a few years there where immigrants were under attack — and they’re still under attack, from some sectors, over and over again — and yesterday I think it was a real celebration of how immigrants make America great,” Navarro said.
“We saw wins by East Asians for best song, we saw some incredibly poignant speeches about the American dream, and the American exceptionalism and the opportunity that comes with living in America that you don’t get often in other countries. And so, to me, that was incredibly meaningful.”
The winner for Best Song was “Naatu Naatu” from “RRR,” which brought another crowd-pleasing performance.
On the whole, this year’s Oscars did have some huge moments, in terms of diversity.
With her win for Best Actress, Michelle Yeoh became the first Asian woman to win the award, while “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” costume designer Ruth E. Carter became only the second Black woman to have won Best Costume Design, or twice in any category in general. Daniel Kwan, one half of the directing and writing duo for “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” became the fourth Asian artist to win Best Director.
This year’s Asian representation, particularly in the acting categories, was the highest in Academy Awards history, with the most nominations since 2004.