Sam Smith Wins Best Song Oscar, Ennio Morricone Wins Best Score
The Golden Globes repeated themselves a bit at the Oscars tonight, with Sam Smith and Jimmy Napes picking up a Best Original Song Academy Award for their Spectre theme “Writing’s On The Wall,” which Smith performed earlier in the evening, and legendary composer Ennio Morricone winning Best Original Score for his work on Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight. Smith beat out a field including the Weeknd, ANOHNI, Lady Gaga, and David Lang, and he dedicated his win to the LGBT community. It was the first merit category Oscar for both Smith and Morricone, although the latter previously received the Academy Honorary Award for “magnificent and multifaceted contributions to the art of film music” in 2007.
UPDATE: Smith told BBC his performance “was the worst moment of my life. Singing was horrible. I hated every minute.” He has also received flak for implying he was the first openly gay Oscar winner. He was not.