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Leonardo DiCaprio’s first Oscar win was the most-tweeted Academy Awards moment ever

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Despite the Academy Awards being shrouded in controversy, there was one man we could all rally behind. Leonardo DiCaprio, the ultimate Oscars also-ran, who after two decades of failed attempts had become the personification of the phrase “always the bridesmaid, never the bride.” Then, all too quickly, our wishes were granted, and equilibrium restored: Leonardo DiCaprio won his first ever Oscar.

Now on his fifth attempt, the actor we had all watched grow up on screen was finally given his due. The joy was almost palpable online, and nowhere more so than on Twitter, which at times felt like it was utterly devoted to the ceremony. A quick glance at the trending topics on the night showed that the majority were related to the Oscars.

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Leo’s golden moment topped them all, almost breaking Twitter in the process. The boyish wonder’s Best Actor win generated more than 440,000 tweets, making it the most-tweeted minute of an Oscars telecast ever. The previous record holder was host Ellen DeGeneres’ celebrity-packed selfie from 2014, which generated 255,000 tweets in the same timeframe.

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Even with the evident public support, DiCaprio’s win was never a sure bet. He faced fierce competition from last year’s winner Eddie Redmayne, for a more showy (and relevant) turn in The Danish Girl, which arguably pandered to the Academy. In general, the Oscars were anything but predictable, marching to their own tune in a number of categories. Best Supporting Actress, for example, went to Alicia Vikander, not Kate Winslet as was widely predicted. And Spotlight beat The Revenant to win Best Picture. In the end, however, DiCaprio triumphed over his competitors (who he graciously referenced in his speech, along with his pet cause, climate change).

It was a bittersweet moment for online commentators everywhere, as it also signalled the death knell for the Leo Oscars meme. The actor’s bad luck with the Academy, had been transformed into a number of viral images and GIFs over the years, which had been employed to great effect in the run-up to this year’s ceremony. At one point, the 41-year-old’s supposed determination for a statuette had also been turned into a video game. Luckily, those same Internet sensations have now been converted into Leo Oscar win memes, as seen below.

Leo : *finally gets to take an #Oscars home*
Everyone on this damn planet : pic.twitter.com/7RV0SSrVEw

— Satan (@StylinsonCraze) February 29, 2016

leo getting in one last dig at the academy for all those years pic.twitter.com/gpBbY955xP

— nevona (@nevona) February 29, 2016

And thus, a meme has been laid to rest. #Oscars pic.twitter.com/JeVk1q1itf

— Brandon Newberger (@Newbs28) February 29, 2016

The other most buzzed-about moments on Twitter were the Best Picture win for Spotlight, and Mad Max: Fury Road collecting its sixth award for sound mixing. The Oscars itself was a multimedia event on Twitter, with GIFs, videos and images from the red carpet permeating timelines throughout the night. Check out some of the highlights in the Oscars Twitter Moments feed:


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Saqib Shah
Saqib Shah
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Saqib Shah is a Twitter addict and film fan with an obsessive interest in pop culture trends. In his spare time he can be…
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