Everything Everywhere All at Once director defends drag in impassioned Oscars speech after Tennessee ban
Director said that drag is a ‘threat to nobody’
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Everything Everywhere All at Once director Daniel Scheinert rebuked the growing amount of anti-drag legislation appearing across the US during his Oscars acceptance speech.
Last month, a bill banning “adult-oriented” entertainment from public properties was passed by Tennessee’s Republican-controlled House of Representatives in a bid to target drag performances in the state.
In doing so, Tennessee became the first state in the country to effectively ban public drag performances and drag shows for children.
Scheinert and his co-director Daniel Kwan were the big winners at Sunday (12 March) night’s awards show, with Everything Everywhere All at Once taking home seven awards, including for Best Picture.
Find the full list of winners here, and all the live updates from the ceremony as it happened here.
Oscars 2023 – as it happened: Reactions to winners, Jimmy Kimmel jokes and Hugh Grant’s ‘obnoxious’ interview
Hugh Grant accused of ‘obnoxious’ behaviour to Ashley Graham during ‘disaster’ Oscars red carpet interview
‘She was snubbed’: Angela Bassett praised for ‘real’ reaction after losing Oscar to Jamie Lee Curtis
As the pair – known as the Daniels – received the award for Best Director, Scheinert told the crowd: “We want to dedicate this to the mommies. To our moms. Specifically to my mom and dad.”
“Thank you for not squashing my creativity when I was making disturbing horror films or perverted comedy films, or dressing in drag as a kid, which is a threat to nobody,” he added, with emphasis.
There was a huge round of applause and cheers from the audience, with Twitter users quick to voice their approval, calling it the “speech of the night”.
However, it was also pointed out that Scheinert was the only person to defend drag performances on stage, at a time when they are being attacked nationwide.
Many in the LGBT+ community had hoped for a more strident stance from Hollywood in defence of both drag and trans issues, also under attack from the American political right in many states. There have been calls for both celebrities and corporations that say they are allies of the community to step up in the face of these attacks.
Last week, famed drag performer RuPaul spoke out on the Tennessee bill following public pressure to fight back on the issue.
In a video shared on social media, RuPaul called the bill a “classic distraction technique”, saying: “Drag queens are the marines of the queer movement. Don’t get it twisted and don’t be distracted.
“Register to vote so we can get these stunt queens out of office and put some smart people with real solutions into government.”