By Mackenzie Cutruzzula
Columnist
It took 21 years, but Leonardo DiCaprio did the unthinkable — he won an Oscar. “The Revenant” star took home the coveted award Sunday, Feb. 28, and used his time on stage to address climate change. Lady Gaga gave a stellar performance of “Till It Happens to You” and was joined by survivors of sexual assault on stage, bringing the entire audience to tears. On a lighter note, Jacob Tremblay from the film “Room” was excited to be old enough to watch the awards through to the end, cheering on his co-star, Brie Larson, as she won for best actress in a leading role. Kate Winslet proved that she is the ultimate best friend when she excitedly watched DiCaprio win his award and the internet went nuts.
Chris Rock hosted the event, taking on the subject of cultural diversity with humor as well as bringing up some more serious points, such as the lack of diversity being a problem since the onset of the Academy Awards. In the awards’ 88th year, Rock noted that even the most liberal writers that get nominated might have trouble when it comes to casting. Rock referenced that his favorite actor is actually Paul Giamatti, who appeared in “12 Years a Slave” and “Straight Outta Compton,” showing that he has, in Rock’s opinion, a great range.
With DiCaprio surprising everyone, what ever happened to predictability? Well, predictability made a huge comeback as “Fuller House” premiered on Netflix on Friday, Feb. 26. The cheesy revival of “Full House” is predictable and essentially a parody of itself, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a hit and worth the watch. The 13-episode reboot features lots of hugging and flashbacks to keep every millennial obsessed with the ’90s tuned in. I’m still rooting for D.J. Tanner-Fuller to end up with her high school sweetheart Steve, but that could be because he was my first-ever childhood crush.
In more nostalgic news, Britney Spears added her two cents into the age-old feud of #TeamBackstreetBoys or #TeamNSYNC. Despite a romantic history with a certain NSYNCer, Spears posted a photo to Instagram Friday, Feb. 26, with Backstreet Boys’s own A.J. McLean. Spears confessed in her caption that she has always been a big fan of the band. I think I speak for everyone when I say that if the queen of the early 2000s picks a side, we should all agree with her. Although, that’s because I have always been on team Backstreet Boys — Nick Carter, call me.
In other revival news, the full cast of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” has been set. There was some backlash after it was announced in December that Noma Dumezweni, a black actress, would be taking on the role of Hermione Granger. Now, the rest of the ensemble has been finalized and the names of all the actors involved have been revealed, although it has not been specified which of the child actors will play which characters. The cast is set at 42 actors — enough to rival a full Broadway musical. “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” will premiere at the Palace Theatre in London’s West End on Sunday, July 31. If you can’t catch a flight to London this summer, the script will be published as a book.
