The Biggest Memeworthy Moments Of This Year's Oscars

This year's Oscars were full of unnecessary drama. It started long before they even aired, which is to be expected because the Academy Awards are always surrounded by controversy involving racial biases. But there was also some controversy over Amy Schumer being one of the hosts since she is overwhelmingly disliked by many in the online community. And then, of course, when the Oscars actually went on everyone forgot about the actual ceremony because Will Smith slapped Chris Rock in the face. While this is definitely the biggest memeworthy moment of the 2022 Oscars, there were many more. Here are our favorites.

Will Smith Winning an Oscar

Perhaps the weirdest thing about Will Smith slapping Chris Rock is that he went on to win an Oscar only minutes later. He went to the stage for a tearful acceptance speech, bragging about “protecting” his family, both in the movie and apparently at the ceremony itself. Of course, this is already being made into memes online, but the sheer awkwardness of the situation is cringeworthy enough to be funny without even having to make jokes about it. Sure, the winners are chosen in advance, but there has to be a runner-up they could have switched over to, right?

Amy Schumer Calls Kirsten Dunst a “Seat Filler”

Of course, Amy Schumer didn't disappoint her non-fans, and she made a bunch of people uncomfortable with her jokes about an Oscar nominee being a “seat filler,” meaning she was only there to take up space on camera when the real celebrities got up. Dunst was nominated as best supporting actress for Power of the Dog, and a joke like this is almost as insulting as calling Jada Pinkett Smith G. I. Jane. However, Schumer claimed Dunst was in on the bit, which was planned out in advance. Either way, a lot of audience members did not seem to enjoy that bit. And yes, there are memes about it, but predictably they're more about the so-called “travesty” of having Amy Schumer as a judge rather than focusing on any of her uncomfortable moments in particular.

CODA Wins Best Picture

The best picture winner there's always a huge meme, especially after that one fiasco five years ago where the wrong winner was called and brought to the stage to receive their Oscar. Nothing particularly out of sorts happened when CODA was named the best picture winner, but since it’s a lesser-known movie compared to films like Dune and Don’t Look Up, the online community will definitely have some things to say about this once the excitement of the Will Smith memes die down, so it's likely that we'll be hearing more about it in about a week or so.

Celebrities on Their Phones During the Ceremony

At several points in the ceremony, celebrities were caught on camera texting or scrolling through social media on their phones. One of them happens to be fan-favorite Andrew Garfield, who, along with being a nominee for best actor, was also a recent star of Spider-Man: No Way Home. Another No Way Home star is Zendaya, who was caught doing the same. This naturally led to a lot of jokes that they were texting a group chat of Spider-Men from different universes. It wouldn't be surprising if either of these actors or both of them side-by-side became a popular new meme format, especially given their apparent lack of interest in the Oscars, despite what drama had gone down this year.

Celebrity Reaction Images

There were a lot of other actors and actresses who have had their reactions made into memes based on their shock surrounding the Will Smith and Chris Rock incident. The Rock, Meryl Streep, Matt Damon, and many more have all been supposedly sighted reacting strangely to what was playing out in front of them. Each actor has a different emotional reaction to what has happened, including fear, confusion and just plain amusement. Any of these will likely make their way into some low-effort reaction images for the next several months, even though most of these images have been debunked as actual in-context responses to what was happening since it’s believed some of these celebrities weren’t even at the Oscars this year.

Will Smith Laughs at Chris Rock’s Joke

Of course, we all know too much about Will Smith’s attack on Chris Rock. But one part of that interaction that's a little less talked about (but is definitely very significant) is Will Smith’s reaction to the joke initially. When Chris Rock first makes the joke, Smith can be seen laughing at it pleasantly, while his wife does not look amused in the slightest. This abrupt change in the behavior between the few seconds it took the joke to sink in and for Smith to climb to the stage and hit Chris Rock has led to a lot of people speculating about what exactly went on between Jada and Will at that moment, and whether she was actually the mastermind guilting her husband into taking action.

The Weird Red Carpet Looks

The Oscars are also known for its red carpet. This year, the looks were strange, just as they often are. For example, Jada Pinkett Smith herself, who wore a green pile fabric that extended over half the floor; by now, I know not to say anything slightly offensive about Will Smith’s wife, but I will say the dress is shaped like a caterpillar, and it’s really strange. Timothée Chalamet also showed up shirtless in a sparkly blazer, which is a bold choice for sure, and something the rest of us could never get away with. People are talking about the odd fashion choices amongst the discussions of violence and comedy at this year’s Oscars, and we can only hope they start to focus on the rest of the award’s show too instead of remaining distracted by Will Smith.