The Oscars Were a Night of Mild Surprises, Including Neil Patrick Harris

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Going into the Academy Awards, several races had been considered up in the air. The major surprises at the Oscars weren’t just about who won, but how assured those winners seemed.

Eddie Redmayne, who’d been a slight favorite over Birdman’s Michael Keaton in the Best Actor category for his role in The Theory of Everything, seemed comfortable to a degree one might not expect from one of the youngest Best Actor winners in history. His speech, largely devoted to sufferers of ALS (like Redmayne’s on-screen character, Stephen Hawking), was moving, but Redmayne still felt like the product of an almost yearlong promotional cycle more than he did like an actor celebrating a spontaneous win. Similarly, Alejandro González Iñárritu, the winner of the Best Director and Best Picture trophies for his film Birdman, seemed confident in his two addresses to the audience.

Perhaps the only person who didn’t seem entirely prepared was Neil Patrick Harris. Perhaps that shouldn’t be surprising: Redmayne and González Iñárritu had months to prepare, as did Julianne Moore, the Best Actress winner for Still Alice, who presented a lovely tribute to her film’s directors. Harris had been presold as an expert live host, and yet seemed, befuddlingly, stymied by the exigencies of hosting. Whether it was his stumbling repeatedly over names or his truly uncomfortable segues, Harris seemed to violate the awards ceremony host’s mandate: first, do no harm. A star who had in every other setting appeared gleefully eager was, at the Oscars, glum and low energy.

Oscars 2015: Celebrities on the Red Carpet

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Emma Stone attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Scarlett Johansson attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Chris Pratt and Anna Faris attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Jessica Chastain attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Chris Pine attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Reese Witherspoon attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Anna Kendrick attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Frazer Harrison—Getty Images
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Rosamund Pike attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Bradley Cooper attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Neil Patrick Harris, right, and David Burtka attendsthe 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Lupita Nyong'o attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Gwyneth Paltrow attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Eddie Redmayne attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Julianne Moore attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Oprah Winfrey attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Nicole Kidman attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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America Ferrera attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Cate Blanchett attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Michael Keaton attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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David Oyelowo attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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J.K. Simmons attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Zendaya attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Josh Hutcherson attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Kevin Hart attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Dakota Johnson attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Melanie Griffith attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Hans Zimmer attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Ethan Miller—WireImage/Getty Images
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Giuliana Rancic attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Jason Reitman attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jeff Kravitz—FilmMagic/Getty Images
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Margot Robbie attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Joanna Newsom, left, and Andy Samberg attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Common attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Karolina Kurkova attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Jamie Chung attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Patricia Arquette attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Michael Strahan attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Michael Buckner—WireImage/Getty Images
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Mario Lopez attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Ryan Seacrest attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Will i Am attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Kelly Osbourne attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Miles Teller attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Felicity Jones attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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John Stamos attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Naomi Watts attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Marion Cotillard attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Alejandro G. Inarritu attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Genesis Rodriguez attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Frazer Harrison—Getty Images
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Laura Dern attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Questlove attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Chrissy Teigen attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Faith Hill and Tim McGraw attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jeff Kravitz—FilmMagic/Getty Images
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John Legend attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Rita Ora attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Chloe Grace Moretz attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Viola Davis attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Chiwetel Ejiofor attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Kerry Washington attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Sienna Miller attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Ansel Elgort attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Ed Norton and Shauna Robertson attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Channing Tatum attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Keira Knightley attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Justin Theroux and Jennifer Aniston attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images
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Chris Evans attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Felicity Jones attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Frazer Harrison—Getty Images
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Lady Gaga attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images
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Jennifer Lopez attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images
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Solange Knowles attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif.Jason Merritt—Getty Images

Thankfully, it’s not the hosts who are most vividly remembered. Patricia Arquette’s acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actress would likely have stolen the show in the first place, with its earnest, meaningful, read-off-a-computer-printout call for equal pay across genders; that the speech was punctuated with a cutaway to a meaningful look between Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lopez made it all the better. The booking of John Travolta paid dividends, as we’ll be talking about his reunion with Idina Menzel (Adele Dazeem?) for years to come. And Terrence Howard’s seemingly spontaneous onstage meltdown while presenting clips of Best Picture nominees goes into the “future legend” file, as firmly as the Sacheen Littlefeather incident bolstered Marlon Brando’s reputation.

It was nice that these moments existed, since they broke up a ceremony that otherwise felt dull and chummy. Asking Sean Penn (who once starred in a González Iñárritu film) to present the Best Picture Oscar was a significant mistake on the producers’ part; his crass joke about immigration, directed at González Iñárritu, was surely well-taken between friends, but served in large part to promote the idea that these guys are all friends. No wonder no other movie could ever break in.

Read next: Watch Sean Penn’s Oscars ‘Green Card’ Joke That Sparked Controversy

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