Winners and losers of the 90th Academy Awards

Last night marked the celebration of the 90 th annual Academy Awards. For 90 years, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been handing out awards to performers, directors, composers and writers for their work in their respective fields. Some people get nominated multiple times throughout their lifetime, yet never attain that tantalizing golden trophy. Here are this year’s winners and losers.

Winner- Guillermo del Toro
Taking home both Best Director and Best Picture for his film, The Shape of Water, del Toro arguably won two of film’s most prestigious awards. The Shape of Water tells the unlikely love story of a janitor at a covert research facility and a newly discovered amphibious creature.

Loser- Daniel Kaluuya
After his stellar performance in Get Out as protagonist Chris Washington, Kaluuya was snubbed in favor of Gary Oldman for the Best Actor award. Kaluuya arguably put up the stronger performance in the woke-est movie of the awards. Get Out portrays a young African American’s weekend getaway at his white girlfriend’s childhood home, but things are not as they seem when the get together escalates from uneasy to deadly.

Winner- Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
When a film can house both this year’s Best Actress in Frances McDormand and Best Supporting Actor in Sam Rockwell, as well as receive a nomination for Best Picture, it must be good. “Three Billboards” shows just how far a mother will go for her children when Frances McDormand, as Mildred, pushes the local authorities to find her daughter’s killer.

Loser- John Williams
Arguably one of this generation’s greatest composters, John Williams was snubbed for the Best Original Score award for his work on Star Wars: The Last Jedi. His work on the Star Wars, Harry Potter and Indiana Jones series alone have warranted much praise, but it was almost as if the academy wanted to stop giving him this award when Alexandre Desplat won it instead for The Shape of Water.

Winner- Kobe Bryant
Just when you thought Kobe couldn’t possibly add more hardware to his trophy case, he goes ahead and wins an Academy Award. His short, animated film, Dear Basketball, serves as Kobe’s farewell speech to the game he gave so much to. The film hears Kobe describe his passion for basketball, from his childhood through the legend he forged through his 20-year career.