Meryl Streep, J. Lo react to Patricia Arquette’s politically-tainted speech at the 2015 Oscars, the awesome moment goes viral.
Meryl Streep and J. Lo react to Patricia Arquette’s speech at the 2015 Academy Awards and the moment is grabbing headlines. Arquette was long seen as the favorite in the Best Supporting Actress category at this year’s ceremony and just like it was predicted, she won the Oscar for portraying a single mother named Olivia Evans, who is raising two teenagers in Richard Linklater‘s groundbreaking coming-of-age drama film Boyhood.
Arquette made the best of her moment in the spotlight and her speech that focused on equal pay for equal work, became one of the highlights of the 2015 Oscars. The 46-year-old actress said:
“To every woman who gave birth to every taxpayer and citizen of this nation, we have fought for everybody else’s equal rights. It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all, and equal rights for women in the United States of America.”
The audience loved the speech, but three-time Oscar winner Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lopez, who were seated next to each other, stole the show. They jumped out of their seats, waved and yelled as the Medium actress was talking. At some point, it seemed that the two ladies were listening to a sermon and felt a perfect symbiosis with what was being said.
The internet could not miss their reaction, it was turned into memes and GIFs right away. Lopez was a presenter at the ceremony and Streep was nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category for her work in the movie Into the Woods. Streep also introduced the “In Memoriam” montage of the evening. All of this will forever be overshadowed by their reaction to Patricia Arquette’s speech.
Arquette’s comments also got seized on by the political world. DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida congresswoman, took to Twitter to show some support.
.@pattyarquette THANK YOU for using your special moment to stand up for #equalpay for women! Congratulations on your Oscar! #Oscars2015
— D Wasserman Schultz (@DWStweets) February 23, 2015
The Labor Department also backed Arquette’s speech on social media.
FACT: Women make 78% of what their male counterparts make. Learn more: http://t.co/ZUbWdaIJPr #Oscars pic.twitter.com/YyNgF14gRk
— US Labor Department (@USDOL) February 23, 2015
Patricia Arquette is in some trouble for remarks she made to the press room after winning her Oscar. She told reporters:
“So the truth is, even though we sort of feel like we have equal rights in America, right under the surface, there are huge issues that are applied that really do affect women. And it’s time for all the women in America and all the men that love women, and all the gay people, and all the people of color that we’ve all fought for to fight for us now.”
You can watch the controversial comments at 2:25 below.
Arquette does a lot of charity work, she has been helping Haiti get back on its feet following the devastating 2010 earthquake. She donated to Democratic presidential candidates, Barack Obama in 2008 and John Kerry in 2004. The actress’ call for equality was a success in some corners, but Meryl Streep and J. Lo’s priceless reaction was a hit everywhere.
What are your thoughts on Patricia Arquette’s speech?
