"Spotlight", a movie about the journalistic expose of Catholic church child sex abuse, won best picture while Leonardo DiCaprio walked away with the best actor trophy at the 88th Academy Awards, where host Chris Rock mocked racism in Hollywood with a biting monologue.
The Academy voters this year decided to scatter their love by awarding different films though George Miller's "Mad Max: Fury Road" swept in technical categories with six wins in editing, production design, sound editing, sound mixing, costume and makeup & hairstyle.
"Spotlight", directed by Tom McCarthy, went home with the top award and best original screenplay trophy for Josh Singer and McCarthy.
"This film gave a voice to survivors, and this Oscar amplifies that voice which we hope will become a choir that will resonate all the way to the Vatican," producer Michael Sugar said in his acceptance speech.
DiCaprio, who many considered was long overdue for Oscar, predictably won the best actor trophy for "The Revenant" and took the opportunity to highlight climate issue.
"...Climate change is real. It is happening right now. It is the most urgent threat facing our entire species, and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating... Let us not take this planet for granted. I do not take tonight for granted," DiCaprio, 41, said in lengthy speech.
Mexican helmer Alejandro Inarritu, who won his second consecutive directing Oscar for "The Revenant", a year after winning it for "Birdman", addressed the diversity issue, which has been at the centre of debate, in his speech by invoking a dialogue from his movie.
"I am very lucky to be here tonight but unfortunately, many others haven't had the same luck...
"So what a great opportunity to our generation to really liberate ourselves from all prejudice and this tribal thinking, and make sure for once and forever that the color of the skin become as irrelevant as the length of our hair."
The film won its third Oscar for best cinematography.
Brie Larson, a front-runner in the best actress category, bagged the trophy for her poignant portrayal of a woman trapped in a garden shade for years in "Room".
"I want to start big because the thing that I love about moviemaking is how many people it takes to make it," she said as she rushed through an extensive list of 'thank yous'.
Best supporting actress and actor trophies went to Alicia Vikander for "The Danish Girl" and British actor Mark Rylance for his role of a KGB spy in Cold War drama "Bridge of Spies"
Rock, who put up with the pressure to boycott the hosting gig, not only addressed the racial discrimination in Hollywood but also spoke about police brutality against blacks.
"Is Hollywood racist? You know, you have to go at that the right way. It is a different type of racist. You are damn right Hollywood's racist. Hollywood is sorority racist. But things are changing," the host said.
