Patricia Arquette had won 30 awards for her role in "Boyhood" entering the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Sunday and she had delivered nearly as many acceptance speeches.
So when Jared Leto announced her name as the Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Arquette took the opportunity to say more in her speech than the usual litany of thank-yous for co-stars, agents, managers and family members.
The 46-year-old used her time on the Oscar stage to give a voice to American women still fighting against the wage gap between male and female workers.
"To every woman who gave birth, to every taxpayer and citizen of this nation, we have fought for everybody else's equals right. It's out time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America," Arquette said to finish her speech.
Her closing statement earned rousing applause from the audience and an animated show of support from Meryl Streep, a competitor of Arquette's in the category, sitting in the front row.
The actress wasn't the only Oscar winner to take advantage of the spotlight to push a political issue. "Birdman" director Alejandro G. Iñárritu and the songwriters of "Glory," John Legend and Common, also used the platform to voice their opinion on current events.
Legend and Common first took the stage to perform their song from the nominated film, "Selma." The performance moved nearly everyone in the audience to tears including the movie's star David Oyelowo.
A few moments later, they returned to accept the award for Best Original Song and each shared how the song about an event 50 years ago still resonates today.
Common said:
Recently, John and I got to go to Selma and perform “Glory” on the same bridge that Dr. King and the people of the civil rights movement marched on 50 years ago. This bridge was once a landmark of a divided nation, but now is a symbol for change. The spirit of this bridge transcends race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and social status. The spirit of this bridge connects the kid from the South side of Chicago, dreaming of a better life to those in France standing up for their freedom of expression to the people in Hong Kong protesting for democracy. This bridge was built on hope. Welded with compassion. And elevated by love for all human beings.
Legend said:
Nina Simone said it’s an artist’s duty to reflect the times in which we live. We wrote this song for a film that was based on events that were 50 years ago, but we say Selma is now, because the struggle for justice is right now. We know that the voting rights, the act that they fought for 50 years ago is being compromised right now in this country today. We know that right now the struggle for freedom and justice is real. We live in the most incarcerated country in the world. There are more black men under correctional control today than were under slavery in 1850. When people are marching with our song, we want to tell you that we are with you, we see you, we love you, and march on.
"Birdman" director Iñárritu gave three speeches on the night, but he made his boldest statements in his acceptance speech for Best Picture. The Mexican native first made a joke about America's immigration policy, but then switched gears, asking for compassion for today's immigrants that come to America in search of the same opportunities that past immigrants have come looking for in this country.
Maybe next year, the government might impose some immigration rules on the academy. Two Mexicans in a row, that's suspicious... I want to take one second. I want to dedicate this award for my fellow Mexicans, the ones who are leaving Mexico. I pray that we can find and build a government that we deserve. And the ones... who are part of the latest generation of immigrants in this country, I just pray that they can be treated with the same dignity and respect of the ones who came before and built this incredible, immigrant nation.
Other winners used their acceptance speeches to shine a light on issues explored in their movies, such as "The Theory of Everything" star Eddie Redmayne dedicating his Best Actor award to those struggling with ALS like his character, Stephen Hawking, or Julianne Moore shining a light on those dealing with Alzheimer's disease like her character in "Still Alice."
Screenwriter Graham Moore, who won for Best Adapted Screenplay for "The Imitation Game," spoke about his attempted suicide at age 16 because he "felt different" and like he "didn't belong." Now an Oscar winner, he encouraged anyone else who feels the same way to "stay weird, stay different."
