The 94th annual Academy Awards were held tonight in Los Angeles, hosted by Regina Hall, Amy Schumer, and out comedian Wanda Sykes.
Ariana DeBose made history tonight as the first out queer woman of color to win Best Supporting Actress for her role as Anita in West Side Story.
“Ariana DeBose is an immensely talented actress and a tremendous advocate for LGBTQ people and people of color. She not only made history tonight as the first queer woman of color to win an Oscar, but she sent a beautiful and timely message to LGBTQ young people. I hope LGBTQ youth around the world saw her win, heard her speak and recognize that they too should dream big,” said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis.
In her speech, DeBose proudly declared herself, “an openly queer Latina who found her strength in art.” Watch her full acceptance speech below.
Jessica Chastain took home the Oscar for Best Actress for her role as the titular character in The Eyes of Tammy Faye. In her speech she shouted out the LGBTQ community and called out the anti-LGBTQ bills around the country. Watch her speech below.
Academy award nominated actor Elliot Page was one of the presenters for Best Original Screenplay along with Juno co-stars Jennifer Garner and JK Simmons. Lady Gaga also presented the award for Best Picture alongside legend Liza Minnelli.
The cast of Encanto performed their chart-topping song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” including out performer Stephanie Beatriz. Beatriz also presented the performance of Encanto’s nominated song “Dos Oruguitas.”
See a full list of the winners at the 94th Annual Academy Awards here.