The 98th Academy Awards paused for reflection Sunday night with an extended In Memoriam segment that ran 15 minutes longer than previous years. The Oscars 2026 In Memoriam honored film industry figures lost over the past year, with special tributes to Rob Reiner, Robert Redford, Diane Keaton, and Catherine O’Hara.
Producer Katy Mullan explained before the ceremony that the segment had been expanded due to what she called “an unimaginably hard year” for the film world. The result was a deeply emotional 15-minute journey through Hollywood’s recent losses.
The evening’s most powerful moment came when Billy Crystal took the stage to honor his longtime friend Rob Reiner, who died in December alongside his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, in an apparent homicide at their Los Angeles home. Their son, Nick Reiner, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
Crystal, who starred in Reiner’s beloved When Harry Met Sally, walked through the director’s extraordinary filmography, Stand By Me, The Princess Bride, Misery, A Few Good Men, This Is Spinal Tap, before delivering a line that brought the house down.
“Rob told me that it meant everything to him that his movies meant something to you,” Crystal said. “And for us, who had the privilege of knowing him and working with him. And loving him. All we can say is ‘buddy, what fun we had storming the castle'”.
The curtain then rose to reveal 17 actors from Reiner’s films standing together, holding hands . The supergroup included Meg Ryan, Billy Crystal, Demi Moore, Kathy Bates, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Jerry O’Connell, Wil Wheaton, Fred Savage, Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Carol Kane, Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Pollak, Annette Bening, John Cusack, and Daphne Zuniga.
Corey Feldman, who appeared in Stand By Me, was notably absent and later alleged on social media that he wasn’t invited due to his outspoken advocacy for abuse survivors .
Barbra Streisand delivered the evening’s most intimate moment, honoring her The Way We Were co-star Robert Redford, who died in September at age 89.
Streisand revealed the final note they exchanged before his death. “He’d call me, ‘Babs.’ And I’d say, ‘Bob, you know, do I look like a Babs?’ But the way he said it made me laugh,” she shared.
“Many years later, we were chatting on the phone about the usual, politics, art, Modigliani, our favorite. And as we were hanging up, he said, ‘Babs, I love you dearly, and I always will.’ I ended it with, ‘I love you too,’ and I signed it ‘Babs'”.
She called him an “intellectual cowboy who blazed his own trail” before launching into a stunning rendition of The Way We Were theme song, earning a standing ovation.
Rachel McAdams took the stage to remember two beloved actresses. Diane Keaton, who died of pneumonia in October, was honored by McAdams, who played her daughter in The Family Stone.
“For over 50 years, luminous on screen and indelible in life, believe me when I say there isn’t an actress of my generation who is not inspired by and enthralled with her absolute singularity,” McAdams said. “She wore so many hats, literally and figuratively, actress, artist, author, activist, but no hat more important to her than being a mother to her two children”.
McAdams also honored Catherine O’Hara, who died of a pulmonary embolism in January, describing her as a “comedic genius and scene stealer” who “made us laugh until we cried”.
Despite the extended segment, several notable names were absent from the televised broadcast.
James Van Der Beek, who died in February at 48 after battling stage 3 colorectal cancer, did not appear in the tribute . His family had announced his passing with a heartfelt Instagram post, but the Dawson’s Creek star was relegated to the Academy’s online memorial list.
Eric Dane, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, and Bud Cort were also omitted . But the most controversial exclusion was French icon Brigitte Bardot, who died in December . Some speculated her absence stemmed from her far-right political views and multiple convictions for inciting racial hatred. At France’s César Awards in February, a tribute to Bardot was met with boos and cries of “racist!”.
Indian cinema fans were disappointed to see Bollywood legend Dharmendra excluded from the broadcast, despite his November 2025 death and posthumous Padma Vibhushan honor . He appeared alongside Manoj Kumar, Saroja Devi, and Kota Srinivasa Rao only on the Academy’s website.
Val Kilmer and Robert Duvall received warm applause as their clips appeared . The segment also honored Robert Duvall, Dianne Ladd, and Michael Madsen.
The Academy published a complete list online featuring those omitted from the broadcast, including George Wendt, Loretta Swit, Demond Wilson, Julian McMahon, and IMAX executive David Keighley, whose son expressed disappointment on social media.
The segment closed with a lingering shot of the stage, a reminder that in Hollywood, even the longest night must eventually end but the memories remain.
