Oscars 2023: 10 Ups & 5 Downs

7. The Slap Is (Mostly) Ignored

The Oscars sunk to an undeniable low last year with the infamous Will Smith/Chris Rock slapping incident, which above all else sucked all of the oxygen out of the room and distracted from the rest of the night's awards.

Thankfully the slap was mostly ignored this year, bar a few one-liners from Jimmy Kimmel, with Academy producers resisting the sure temptation to build an SNL-esque skit around the controversy or even attempt to manufacture a similarly headline-grabbing moment this year.

If last year's show felt like a nadir for the Oscars for this and several other reasons, this year's show smartly moved past it and got back to what the ceremony should be about: rewarding great artists while avoiding inane drama.