The epic sci-fi adventure “Dune: Part One” was winning numerically. Of its ten nominations, this film managed to cash in on six, all in technical categories such as Production Design and Montage. The power of the dog, previously favorite with no fewer than twelve nominations, came out poorly. Ultimately, only Jane Campion won an Oscar for her directing. Belfast, good for seven nominations, also yielded only one winner. Director and writer Kenneth Branagh won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
CODA also won the Best Supporting Actor award, played by deaf actor Troy Kotsur, while Sian Heder’s adapted screenplay was also recognized. This film cashed in on all of its nominations. Ariana DeBose received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles for her performance as Anita in West Side Story.
Will Smith, however, became the man of the night, but not only in a positive way, when he returned a comment from Chris Rock about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s baldness with a slap in the face and some name-calling. That incident will go down in history as the Oscar moment of 2022.