Oscars 2020: “Parasite” Makes History As First Foreign Language Film To Win Best Picture At The Academy Awards

The Oscars took place Sunday night with the usual glitz, glam, and of course, snubs that the award show is known for.

However, one film made history as the first film not in the English language to win the Academy Award for best picture. South Korean thriller “Parasite” took home the evening’s highest honor, breaking a ninety-two-year tradition. The Bong Joon Ho directed film faced off with “Joker,” Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood,” and Martin Scorsese’s Netflix crime hit, “The Irishman.” Bong Joon-ho also won best director for the film.

Joaquin Phoenix took home best actor for his stunning performance as the deranged villain in “Joker.” The film also won best music (original score). Renée Zellweger beat out Cynthia Erivo, the star of “Harriet,” for best actress. Former NFL wide receiver turned film writer Matthew Cherry won best animated short film for “Hair Love.”

Netflix’s” The Irishman” was notably the biggest snub of this year’s awards ceremony. The mobster drama was poised to take home multiple awards of the evening. However, of its ten nominations, the Martin Scorsese film left empty-handed. The “Lion King” also lost the best visual effects category to “1917.”

The awards also faced scrutiny for excluding “Beverly Hills, 90210” star Luke Perry and Disney actor “Cameron Boyce” from its “In Memoriam” segment of the ceremony. Perry suffered a stroke in March 2019, and Boyce succumbed to an epileptic seizure in July. The Oscars made no mention of either actor during the segment, which featured tributes to both Kobe Bryant and Kirk Douglas.