10 Celebrities Who Went Way Over The Time Limit While Giving Oscars Acceptance Speeches Vs. 10 Who Couldn't Have Kept Things Shorter If They Tried

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05-03-2025

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By now, you've definitely seen Adrien Brody's Oscars speech — or at least parts of it. The Brutalist star went way over the 45-second time limit as he accepted the Best Actor accolade on Sunday night, and it's since been confirmed that he actually broke the record for the longest acceptance speech in Oscars history. So, in light of all the buzz around his moment, let's take a look back at some of the longest — and shortest — award show speeches of all time, starting with Adrien:
1. Adrien Brody, 2025
'They're already counting me down. OK, thank you, God. Thank you for this blessed life. If I may just humbly begin by giving thanks for the tremendous outpouring of love that I felt from this world and every individual that has treated me with respect and appreciation, I feel so fortunate. You know, acting is a very fragile profession — it looks very glamorous, and in certain moments it is, but the one thing I've gained, having the privilege to come back here, is to have some perspective. And no matter where you are in your career, no matter what you've accomplished, it can all go away, and I think what makes this night most special is the awareness of that and the gratitude that I have to still to do the work that I love.
Winning an award like this it signifies a destination, and it's something my character references in the film, but to me, it is also beyond the pinnacle of a career it is a chance to begin again and the opportunity to hopefully be fortunate enough for that the next 20 years of my life that I can prove that I am worthy of such meaningful and important and relevant roles. I share this with my fellow nominees, who are just wonderful human beings who exude grace and goodness and brilliance with their work, there's so many people to thank. I will really try and be as brief as possible.
I thank of course my team, Andrew Tsoules, and my many friends at CAA and Lindsay Galin, and Heather at 2PM Sharp, and A24 and Focus and Universal for believing in us and Brady [Corbet] and Mona [Fastvold] for what you've done for independent film and for your beautiful spirit, and for giving me space to exist in this triumph of a work and my fellow cast. Guy [Pearce] and Felicity [Jones] you're just brilliant and lovely and I share this with you. I share this with my amazing partner Georgina, who has not only reinvigorated my own self-worth, but my sense of value and my values and her beautiful children Dash and India, I know it's been a rollercoaster, but thank you for accepting me into your life and Popsy's coming home a winner.
And who else? And Judy Becker, the real László Tóth, who deserves to be up here…I'm wrapping up, please, please. I'm wrapping up, I will wrap up. Please turn the music off. I've done this before — thank you. It's not my first rodeo. But I will be brief, I will not be egregious, I promise. You know, I have to thank my mom and dad who are here as well, and they've given me, they've just created just such a strong foundation of respect and of kindness, and wonderful spirit, and they've given me the strength to pursue this dream.
I'm here once again to represent the lingering traumas, and the repercussions of war and systematic oppression, and of anti-semitism, and racism, and of othering, and I believe that I pray for a healthier and happier, and a more inclusive world, and I believe if the past can teach us anything, it's a reminder to not let hate go unchecked. OK, I'll get out of here, I love you, I appreciate you all. Let's fight for what's right, keep smiling, keep loving one another, let's rebuild together. Thank you.'
2. Will Smith, 2022
'Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family. In this time in my life, in this moment, I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do and be in this world. Making this film, I got to protect Aunjanue Ellis, who is one of the most strongest, most delicate people I've ever met. I got to protect Saniyya [Sidney] and Demi [Singleton], the two actresses who played Venus and Serena. I'm being called on in my life to love people and to protect people and to be a river to my people.
Now I know, to do what we do, you've got to be able to take abuse. You got to be able to have people talk crazy about you. In this business, you've got to be able to have people disrespecting you, and you've got to smile and you've got to pretend like that's OK. What I loved — Denzel [Washington] said to me a few minutes ago, he said, 'At your highest moment, be careful; that's when the devil comes for you.' I want to be a vessel for love. I want to say thank you to Venus and Serena and the entire Williams family for entrusting me with your story. That's what I want to do. I want to be an ambassador of that kind of love and care and concern.
I want to apologize to the Academy. I want to apologize to all my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment and I'm not crying for winning an award. It's not about winning an award for me. It's about being able to shine a light on all of the people: Tim [White, producer] and Trevor [White, producer] and Zach [Baylin, writer] and Saniyya and Demi and Aunjanue and the entire cast and crew of King Richard, and Venus and Serena, the entire Williams family.
Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father, just like they said about Richard Williams. But love will make you do crazy things. And my mother… A lot in this moment is really complicated for me, but to my mother, she didn't want to come out. She's had her knitting crew who she's in Philly watching with. Being able to love and care for my mother, my family, my wife… I'm taking up too much time… Thank you for this honor. Thank you for this moment and thank you on behalf of Richard and Oracene and the entire Williams family. Thank you. I hope the Academy invites me back. Thank you.'
3. Matthew McConaughey, 2014
'Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, to the Academy for this — all 6000 members. Thank you, to the other nominees. All of these performances were impeccable in my opinion. I didn't see a false note anywhere. I want to thank Jean-Marc Vallee, our Director. I want to thank Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner, who I worked with daily.'
There's a few things — about three things, to my count — that I need each day. One of them is something to look up to; another is something to look forward to; and another is someone to chase. Now, first off I want to thank God because that's who I look up. He's graced my life with opportunities that I know are not of my hand or any other human hand. He has shown me that it's a scientific fact that gratitude reciprocates. In the words of the late Charlie Laughton who said, 'When you got God, you got a friend, and that friend is you.'
To my family — that's who and what I look forward to. To my father, who I know he's up there right now with a big pot of gumbo; he's got a lemon meringue pie over there; he's probably in his underwear, and he's got a cold can of Miller Lite and he's dancing right now. To you dad, you taught what it means to be a man. To my mother, who's here tonight, who taught me and my two older brothers — demanded — that we respect ourselves. And what we in turn learned was then we were better able to respect others. Thank you for that, Mama.
To my wife, Camila, and my kids, Levi, Vida, and Mr. Stone, the courage and significance you give me every day I go out the door is unparalleled. You are the four people in my life that I want to make the most proud of me. Thank you. And to my hero, that's who I chase. Now when I was 15 years old, I had a very important person in my life come to me and say, 'Who's your hero?' And I said, 'I don't know. I gotta think about that. Give me a couple of weeks.' I come back two weeks later, this person comes up and says, 'Who's your hero?' I said, 'I thought about it. You know who it is?' I said, 'It's me in 10 years.' So I turned 25. Ten years later, that same person comes to me and goes, 'So are you a hero?' And I was like, 'Not even close. No, no, no.' She said, 'Why?' I said, 'Because my hero's me at 35.'
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. So, to any of us, whatever those things are, whatever it is we look up to, whatever it is we look forward to, and whoever it is we're chasing, to that I say, 'Amen.' To that I say, 'Alright, alright, alright.' To that I say, 'Just keep living.' Thank you.'
4. Halle Berry, 2002
'Oh my God. Oh my God. I'm sorry. This moment is so much bigger than me. This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll. It's for the women that stand beside me: Jada Pinkett, Angela Bassett, Vivica Fox. And it's for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened. Thank you. I'm so honored. I'm so honored. And I thank the Academy for choosing me to be the vessel for which His blessing might flow.
I want to thank my manager, Vincent Cirrincione. He's been with me for twelve long years, and you fought every fight, and you loved me when I've been up but more importantly, you've loved me when I've been down. You have been a manager, a friend and the only father I've ever known. Really. And I love you very much. I want to thank my mom who has given me the strength to fight every single day to be who I want to be and to give me the courage to dream, that this dream might be happening and possible for me. I love you, Mom, so much. Thank you, my husband, who is just a joy of my life. And India, thank you for giving me peace because only with the peace that you've brought me have I been allowed to go to places that I never even knew I could go. Thank you. I love you and India with all my heart.
I want to thank Lionsgate. Thank you, Mike Paseornek, Tom Ortenberg, for making sure everybody knew about this little tiny movie. Thank you for believing in me. Our director Marc Forster, you're a genius. You're a genius. This moviemaking experience was magical for me because of you. You believed in me, you trusted me and you gently guided me to very scary places. I thank you. I want to thank Ivana Chubbuck, I could have never figured out who the heck this lady was without you. I love you. Thank you. I want to thank Lee Daniels, our producer. Thank you for giving me this chance, for believing that I could do it. And now tonight I have this. Thank you.
I want to thank my agents. CAA, Josh Lieberman especially. I have to thank my agents. Kevin Huvane, thank you. Thank you for never kicking me out and sending me somewhere else. Thank you. Um... I, I, I, who else? I have so many people that I know I need to thank. My lawyers! Neil Meyer, thank you. OK, wait a minute. I got to take... seventy-four years here! I got to take this time! I got to thank my lawyer, Neil Meyer, for making this deal. Doug Stone. I need to thank lastly and not least, I have to thank Spike Lee for putting me in my very first film and believing in me. Oprah Winfrey, for being the best role model any girl can have. Joel Silver, thank you. And thank you to Warren Beatty. Thank you so much for being my mentors and believing in me. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!'
5. Al Pacino, 1993
'You broke my streak. The last... I was at an affair recently — thank you so much for this by the way — I was at a ceremonial-type thing like this recently, and I didn't have a speech. I kept going into my pocket for a speech, but I never wrote one. But now I got one. It's here, and I should have had a little water before I got on because my mouth's dry. But I thank you and I just have to say... First, I don't know where he is in the house, I can't pick him out, but I got to thank him. I'm completely indebted to Marty Brest who directed the picture and who had such great love for this character I played. And that love is what he communicated to me every day, so I thank you, Marty, for that.
I thank Bo Goldman, who wrote such a complicated, interesting, funny guy that could be and would be any actor's dream part. That part was so great. I thank Chris O'Donnell, my co-star in this. He made every day a pleasure for me. And I thank the wonderful support of cast and crew, of course. I also want to thank Tom Pollock and Casey Silver at Universal Pictures, and my agent Rick Nicita who urged me to do this part and actually threatened me if I didn't do it, 'cause I didn't want to do the part for some reason. Ira Lewis, my friend and my colleague, who helped me, Ira Lewis. And The Associated Blind for their generous support to me.
If you'll indulge me for a minute—I'm just not used to this, so I had to write this down. I had this thought, and I thought if I ever got up here I would say it. I've been very lucky. I found desire for what I do early in my life and I'm lucky because I had people who encouraged that desire, from Lee Strasberg, to my great friend and mentor Charlie Laughton, to the great writers and filmmakers that I've been fortunate enough to work with. Now, recently a young girl came up to me. I was at a function for the South Bronx, which is where I'm from. And she said that I had encouraged her, and that's not necessarily by my work but just by the fact that we came from the same place. And I just can't forget that girl, and I can't forget the kids out there who may be thinking tonight that if he can do it, I can do it. So this is really a proud and hopeful moment for me, because I want to thank the Academy for giving us a gift of encouragement. And this is a gift, a great gift to me. I thank you all, really. Thank you.'
6. Tom Hanks, 1994
'Here's what I know. I could not be standing here without that undying love that was just sung about by, not Bruce [Springsteen], but Neil Young. And I have that in a lover that is so close to fine, we should all be able to experience such heaven right here on earth. I know also that, I should not be doing this, I should not be here, but I am because of the union of such filmmakers as Ed Saxon, Ron Nyswaner, Kristi Zea, Tak Fujimoto, Jonathan Demme — who seems to have these [Oscars] attached to his limbs for every actor that works with him of late. And a cast that includes Antonio Banderas, who, second to my lover, is the only person I would trade for. And a cast that includes many other people, but the actor who really put his film image at risk, and shone because of his integrity, Mr. Denzel Washington, who I really must share this with.
I would not be standing here if it weren't for two very important men in my life, so... two that I haven't spoken with in a while, but I had the pleasure of just the other evening. Mr. Rawley Farnsworth, who was my high school drama teacher, who taught me to act well the part, there all the glory lies. And one of my classmates under Mr. Farnsworth, Mr. John Gilkerson. I mention their names because they are two of the finest gay Americans, two wonderful men that I had the good fortune to be associated with, to fall under their inspiration at such a young age. I wish my babies could have the same sort of teacher, the same sort of friends.
And there lies my dilemma here tonight. I know that my work in this case is magnified by the fact that the streets of heaven are too crowded with angels. We know their names. They number a thousand for each one of the red ribbons that we wear here tonight. 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. God bless you all. God have mercy on us all. And God bless America.'
7. Colin Firth, 2011
'I have a feeling my career has just peaked. My deepest thanks to the Academy. I'm afraid I have to warn you that I'm experiencing stirrings, somewhere in the upper abdominals, which are threatening to form themselves into dance moves which, joyous as they may be for me, it would be extremely problematic if they make it to my legs before I get offstage. So I'm going to do my best to be brief with my gratitude.
First, for being on this extraordinary list of fellow nominees; something quite formidable and possibly the greatest honor of this. All the crew and my fellow cast members, those who are not here and those who are. Geoffrey, Helena, and Guy, whose virtuosity made it very, very difficult for me to be as bad as I was planning to be. And David Seidler, whose own struggles have given so many people the benefit of his very beautiful voice, and Tom Hooper, for the immense courage and clear sightedness with which he interpreted that. The men who finessed this to the screen: Gareth, Emile, Iain, Xavier, and of course Harvey, who first took me on twenty years ago when I was a mere child sensation.
And all the people who have been rooting for me back home. Also Jessica Kolstad, my friend, Paul Lyon-Maris and Chris Andrews, for bearing with me through some of the less fortunate moments as well as the good ones. And my very fortunate friendship with Tom Ford who, to whom I owe a very big piece of this. And to the Anglo-Italian-American-Canadian axis which makes up my family. And Livia, for putting up with my fleeting delusions of royalty and who I hold responsible for this, and for really everything that's good that's happened since I met her. Now, if you'll all excuse me I have some impulses I have to tend to backstage. Thank you very much.'
8. Kate Winslet, 2009
'OK, that fainting thing, Penélope. I'd be lying if I haven't made a version of this speech before. I think I was probably eight years old and staring into the bathroom mirror and this [holding up her statuette] would've been a shampoo bottle. Well, it's not a shampoo bottle now! I feel very fortunate to have made it all the way from there to here and I'd like to thank some of the people along the way who had faith in me. My friends and my family, especially my mum and dad, who are in this room somewhere. Dad, whistle or something, 'cause then I'll know where you are. Yeah! I love you!
I also want to thank Hylda Queally, Dallas Smith and the late, much loved, much missed Robert Garlock. And from Peter Jackson and Emma Thompson to my very own Sam and Stephen Daldry. I'm very lucky to have been given 'Hanna Schmitz' by Bernhard Schlink and David Hare. And Stephen, working with you is an experience I will never forget. There was no division between the cast and the crew on this film, and that's what made it so special. So, to have been surrounded by a remarkable group of people who provided an unbroken chain of support, from David Kross to Ralph Fiennes, Bruno Ganz, Lena Olin, from hair and makeup to cinematography, from the art department to the ADs, and from New York to Berlin. And I'm so lucky to have a wonderful husband and two beautiful children who let me do what I love and who love me just the way that I am.
Anthony [Minghella] and Sydney [Pollack], this is for you. This is for both of you. And I want to acknowledge my fellow nominees, these goddesses. I think we all can't believe we're in a category with Meryl Streep at all. I'm sorry, Meryl, but you have to just suck that up! And just to the Academy, thank you so much. My God! Thank you!'
9. Joaquin Phoenix, 2020
'God, I'm full of so much gratitude right now. I do not feel elevated above any of my fellow nominees or anyone in this room, because we share the same love, the love of film. This form of expression has given me the most extraordinary life. I don't know what I'd be without it. But I think the greatest gift that it's given me and many of us in this room is the opportunity to use our voice for the voiceless.
I've been thinking a lot about some of the distressing issues that we are facing collectively, and I think at times we feel or we're made to feel that we champion different causes. But for me, I see commonality. I think whether we're talking about gender inequality or racism or queer rights or indigenous rights or animal rights, we're talking about the fight against injustice. We're talking about the fight against the belief that one nation, one people, one race, one gender, or one species has the right to dominate, control, and use and exploit another with impunity. I think that we've become very disconnected from the natural world and many of us what we're guilty of is an egocentric worldview, the belief that we're the center of the universe. We go into the natural world, and we plunder it for its resources. We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow, and when she gives birth, we steal her baby even though her cries of anguish are unmistakable. And then we take her milk that's intended for her calf, and we put it in our coffee and our cereal.
I think we fear the idea of personal change, because we think that we have to sacrifice something, to give something up. But human beings at our best are so inventive and creative and ingenious, and I think that when we use love and compassion as our guiding principles, we can create, develop, and implement systems of change that are beneficial to all sentient beings and to the environment. I've been a scoundrel in my life. I have been selfish, I've been cruel at times, hard to work with, and I'm grateful that so many of you in this room have given me a second chance. I think that's when we're at our best, when we support each other. Not when we cancel each other out for past mistakes, but when we help each other to grow, when we educate each other, when we guide each other towards redemption. That is the best of humanity. When he was 17, my brother wrote this lyric. He said, 'Run to the rescue with love and peace will follow.' Thank you.'
10. Leonardo DiCaprio, 2016
'Thank you, thank you all so very much. Thank you to the Academy, thank you to all of you in this room. I have to congratulate the other incredible nominees this year for their unbelievable performances. The Revenant was a product of the tireless efforts of an unbelievable cast and crew I got to work alongside. First off to my brother in this endeavor, Mr. Tom Hardy. Tom, your fierce talent on screen can only be surpassed by your friendship off screen. To Mr. Alejandro Iñárritu, as the history of cinema unfolds, you have forged your way into history these past two years. What an unbelievable talent you are, thank you to you and Chivo for creating a transcendent cinematic experience for all of us. Thank you to everyone from Fox and New Regency, in particular Arnon Milchan, you are the champion of this endeavor. My entire team. I have to thank everyone from the very onset of my career, Mr. Caton Jones for casting me in my first film. Mr. Scorsese for teaching me so much about the cinematic art form. To Mr. Rick Yorn, thank you for helping me navigate my way through this industry. And to my parents none of this would be possible without you. And to my friends I love you dearly — you know who you are.
And lastly I just want to say this. Making The Revenant was about man's relationship to the natural world. A world that we collectively felt in 2015 as the hottest year in recorded history. Our production needed to move to the southern tip of this planet just to be able to find snow. Climate change is real, it is happening right now. It is the most urgent threat facing our entire species and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating. We need to support leaders around the world who do not speak for the big polluters or the big corporations, but who speak for all of humanity for the indigenous people of the world. For the billions and billions of underprivileged people who will be most affected by this. For our childrens' children. And for those people out there whose voices have been drowned out by the politics of greed.
I thank you all for this amazing award tonight. Let us not take this planet for granted. I do not take tonight for granted. Thank you so very much.'
1. Joe Pesci, 1991
2. Rita Moreno, 1962
'I can't believe it! Good Lord! I'll leave you with that.'
3. Alfred Hitchcock, 1968
Bettmann / Bettmann Archive
'Thank you.'
4. Patty Duke, 1963
Bettmann / Bettmann Archive
'Thank you.'
5. Alfred Newman, 1953
Bettmann / Getty Images
'I'm very grateful to everybody. Thank you.'
6. Ethan Coen, 2008
GABRIEL BOUYS / AFP via Getty Images
'I don't have a lot to add to what I said earlier. Thank you.'
7. Louie Psihoyos, 2010
GABRIEL BOUYS / AFP via Getty Images
'Thank you.' (In fairness, the "wrap" music started playing).
8. Tatum O'Neal, 1974
Ron Galella / Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
'All I really wanna thank is my director, Peter Bogdonavich, and my father. Thank you.'
9. Christopher Walken, 2003
Kevin Winter / Getty Images
'Thank you, Michael. I'm very happy to have this. I salute Michael Cimino with this Oscar here tonight. And I'd like to add my thanks to the members of the Academy and to Mr. Robert De Niro. Thank you all.'
10. Merritt Wever (Emmys, 2013)
Michael Tran / FilmMagic
Honorable shoutout to this non-Oscars (but Emmys) speech from Merritt Wever: 'Thank you so much! Thank you so much. I gotta go, bye.'
Well, it's safe to say that the latter half of this article was a lot easier to write… If you can think of any more speeches that I've missed, either long or short, LMK down below!
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