Oscars 2022 In Memoriam Honors Sidney Poitier, Ivan Reitman, Betty White, and More

The 94th Academy Awards took place Sunday night and while this year’s ceremony saw some changes from ceremonies past, there was one Oscars tradition that remained. The awards ceremony shared its In Memoriam tribute, honoring those we’ve lost over the past year. Since last year’s Oscars, we’ve said goodbye to many beloved Hollywood figures, including William Hurt, Peter Bogdanovich, Richard Donner, Ivan Reitman, Betty White, and Sidney Poitier. 

This year’s tribute was set to a live, choral performance of a medley of songs performed by The Samples Choir, including some more upbeat selections. A bit different than previous years, the tribute also saw some presenters come on stage to pay tribute to those lost as well. Tyler Perry offered a moving tribute to Poitier, Ghostbusters star Bill Murray appeared during the segment to pay tribute tribute Reitman while Jamie Lee Curtis, and an adorable puppy also took to the stage to pay tribute to  White who, in addition to being a Hollywood legend was also a lifelong champion for animals. You can watch the video portion without the choral performance or on-stage tributes in the video below.

“Friends, family, peers, people, we all know there will be loss,” Jill Scott said in closing the tribute. “Here is where we must honor the legacies, the moments that tickled us and reminded us of us. Here is where we celebrate the lights, where we say the names and where we clap our hands in gratitude.”

The In Memoriam segment of the Oscars has been a fixture of the Academy Awards ceremony since the 66th Academy Awards in 1994. The tribute was largely developed by producer Michael J. Shapiro who spoke about the way the tribute touches people with the Wall Street Journal last year.

“There were some people who said they cried when they looked at some of the images,” Shapiro said. “I love that I was able to touch somebody with images of people that we grew up with in darkened theaters.

He added, “I said, ‘It should be an affectionate goodbye to all of these people, and we should see them when they were at their very best.”

In addition to the In Memoriam segment of the Oscars telecast, you can also see the entire gallery of those lost since last year’s Oscars on the official site for The Academy here.