This past Sunday, the 88th Annual Academy Awards aired for the world to see. The night started off relatively normally, with "Mad Max" sweeping the technical categories and garnering all of the awards that nobody really cares about. Surprising no one, "Inside Out" won Best Animated Feature and reminded us all of our totally justified adult tears. The tension mounted when "Max" was dethroned by "Ex Machina" for Best Visual Effects, and the night ramped up even further when Mark Rylance and Alicia Vikander took home the Supporting Actor and Actress categories respectively.
Brie Larson snatched the Best Actress for "Room," which was exciting for the moment. However, everyone was on the edge of their seats for what came next. As Julianne Moore took the stage, watchers were waiting to hear the momentous name that had been deprived of an Oscar for so long. The Best Actor nominees each received a small mention before Moore finally announced the winner. The world was at a standstill as the envelope opened. To the shock and amazement of the audience and world alike, Leonardo DiCaprio's name echoed around the Dolby Theatre.
Within seconds, the internet imploded with tweets, statuses and hashtags. At more than 440,000 tweets per minute, congratulations surged through social media. By 9 am the next morning, DiCaprio's thank you post to Facebook had more than 1.5 million likes and he had become the most tweeted about thing ever. The internet was overjoyed with the news that their hero had finally achieved his dream.
However, there are two sides to every story, and this one is no different. Though we sat as witness to an iconic and fantastic event, we also had front row seats to the death of a meme. For years, Leonardo DiCaprio was more than just an actor, he was an icon. Though he never won that Oscar, he pressed on and threw himself entirely into every role he took. Though robbed of award after award, he remained a symbol of perseverance and talent, regardless of recognition. DiCaprio, though incredibly talented, represented the everyman and gave us a reason to keep going in the face of failure.
The end of one of the internet's most iconic memes is not a cause for sadness, however. The perseverance that used to be represented by Leonardo DiCaprio is now replaced by success and hope. If he can finally get his Oscar, you can finally get that job, ask that person out or ace that test. Though Leonardo the meme may be dead, Leonardo the man has risen from the ashes, and it's time that we follow suit.
