We are in the heart of awards show season, and it's always so enjoyable to see all the hard work that goes into movies be recognized. I'm a huge movie nerd, like I love knowing all the little fun facts about the actors and their successes, so I get kind of emotionally invested when awards season comes along. So here are some of the best awards speeches I've seen, and I hope the hard work of these amazing people is as inspiring to you as it is to me.
1. Matthew McConaughey-2014 Oscars
In accepting his Best Actor Award for his role in "Dallas Buyer's Club," Matthew McConaughey gave one of the most riveting, down-to-earth, wisdom-filled speeches I have ever seen. He delivers it with such grace, you can't help but respect all the hard work he's done to be the actor he is today.
"So you see every day, every week, every month and every year of my life, my hero’s always 10 years away. I’m never gonna be my hero. I’m not gonna attain that. I know I’m not, and that’s just fine with me because that keeps me with somebody to keep on chasing.”
2. Meryl Streep-2017 Golden Globes
Just a few weeks ago, Meryl Streep was presented with the Cecil B. DeMille Award for her lifetime achievements at the Golden Globes. She then used her platform to speak out against President Trump without even saying his name. She delivered it with passion, commitment, and a tear in her eye, inspiring many to stand for what they believe in as we head into this new administration.
“Disrespect invites disrespect. Violence incites violence. When the powerful use their position to bully others, we all lose.”
3. Lin-Manuel Miranda-2016 Tonys
One of my personal heroes in the entertainment world, the brilliant writer Lin-Manuel Miranda accepted his Tony for Best Score for the hit show "Hamilton" with nothing less than a beautiful sonnet. He's a politically active, highly compassionate guy who wants nothing more than to see the world become better than it was yesterday, and his speech conveys that.
“We chase the melodies that seem to find us
Until they’re finished songs and start to play
When senseless acts of tragedy remind us
That nothing here is promised, not one day”
4. Tom Hanks-1994 Oscars
Tom Hanks is an actor that everyone knows and loves, and back in the day, he won quite a few Oscars. In his 1994 speech, he was accepting the award for his portrayal of a lawyer with HIV that fights for a wrongful termination lawsuit, in a time where HIV/AIDS was an epidemic that everyone was terrified of. He thanks and honors the people that suffered like the man he was portraying, recognizing that the world wasn't friendly to them while they were alive, but that he hopes they find peace in seeing the way the world has changed. It's a speech that acts as a helpful reminder for us to be more compassionate to those that are different from us.
“They finally rest in the warm embrace of the gracious creator of us all. A healing embrace that cools their fevers, that clears their skin, and allows their eyes to see the simple, self-evident, common sense truth that is made manifest by the benevolent creator of us all and was written down on paper by wise men, tolerant men, in the city of Philadelphia two hundred years ago.”
5. Graham Moore-2015 Oscars
Winning the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for his work on The Imitation Game, Graham Moore came out of the woodwork to deliver a speech that inspires those who are different to get through the rough parts of life and stay who they are. This goes well with the message of The Imitation Game, where Alan Turing is persecuted for being different, and never gets to be recognized for his enormous accomplishments. Anyways, Graham Moore's speech was amazing.
“Stay weird, stay different. And then when it's your turn and you're standing on this stage, please pass the same message to the next person who comes along.”
So look for these people this awards season. You may think they are just celebrities, they live a privileged life where they don't have the same problems as normal human beings. But many of them were just like you and me, with dreams and aspirations that they clawed and struggled to achieve. So maybe they will have some nuggets of wisdom for those of us still struggling to achieve our huge dreams.
