Daniel Kaluuya's Oscars speech was equal parts moving and hilarious
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One of the biggest talents of the last five years, it's no surprise Daniel Kaluuya won Sunday night's Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his rousing performance in Judas and the Black Messiah, in which he played Black Panther Party Illinois chairman Fred Hampton (stream the full show now on CTV).
Charming as ever, his speech was equal parts moving and hilarious, which is signature Kaluuya if you've been following the awards circuit at all.
In it, he thanked the filmmakers, cast, his family and Hampton himself, reminding those in the room that there is still so much more work to do when it comes to equality and activism.
“Bro, what a man,” said Kaluuya. “What a man. How blessed we are that we lived in a lifetime where he existed. You know what I mean? Thank you for your light. He was on this earth for 21 years, and he found a way to feed kids breakfast. Educate kids, give free medical care, against all the odds."
"He showed me, he taught me, him, Huey P. Newton, Bobby Seale, the Black Panther party, they showed me how to love myself, and with that love, they overflowed it to the Black community and other communities. And they showed us the power of unity," he continued. "Thank you so much for showing me myself... When they play divide and conquer, we say unite and ascend... There’s so much work to do, guys -- and that’s on everyone in this room."
After noting he will absolutely be celebrating his win well into Monday, Kaluuya added, “I’d like to thank my mom. You gave me everything. You gave me your factory settings. So I could stand at my fullest height.”
He then went on to remind everyone to celebrate life in a very special way: "My mum met my dad; they had sex; that's amazing. You know what I'm saying? I'm here! I'm so happy to be alive, I'm gonna celebrate that tonight."
Someone give the camera crew Oscars, because right then, thanks to an instant cut to his family, we saw his sister hide her face in embarrassment and his mom lost in very mom-like confusion.
According to The Black List, after winning and heading to the press room, Kaluuya joked that he was avoiding his phone for a bit to "brace for his mom's reaction to his speech tonight, but he ultimately thinks she'll be cool about it."
As CNN anchor T.J. Holmes said on Twitter, "Thank you, Daniel Kaluuya ... for setting a new standard for what an #Oscars speech should be."
This was Kaluuya's second nomination, the first being for his role in Get Out in 2018. He beat out fellow nominees LaKeith Stanfield, Paul Raci, Leslie Odom, Jr. and Sacha Baron Cohen.
Watch the full 93rd Academy Awards on CTV.ca and the CTV app.
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