John Lennon’s Son Sean Wishes Yoko Ono Happy Mother’s Day In Oscars Acceptance Speech

The Oscars kicked off in a whirl of pageantry on Sunday, celebrating the best technical and artistic feats in film. Amidst the wins, losses, speeches, and concerts, Sean Lennon took time to appreciate his mother, 91-year-old Yoko Ono.

Sean was up there thanks to War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko winning the Oscar for Best Animated Short. Amidst the triumphant moment, Sean gave a big celebratory shoutout to his mother Yoko, who had Sean with John Lennon in 1957. The event also happened to fall on a relevant U.K. holiday.

Sean Lennon celebrates his mom Yoko Ono on Mother’s Day during the 2024 Oscars

When War Is Over! secured its Oscars win, Sean ascended the stage of the Dolby Theatre, joined by filmmakers Dave Mullins and Brad Booker. Their acceptance speeches discussed the legacy of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, the inspiration for the film, and the ongoing life of success led by Yoko.

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“John Lennon and Yoko Ono wrote a song, anti-war message we tried to honor with this film,” said Mullins. “We want to thank our executive producer and creative partner, who was amazing to work with.”

Sean tied it all together by cheering, “Happy Mother’s Day, Yoko!” In the U.K., residents celebrate Mother’s Day on March 10, lining up perfectly with the 2024 Oscars.

‘War Is Over!’ as a thoughtful work of art

War Is Over! is an 11-minute animated short film that is inspired by and notably features Lennon and Ono’s peace anthem, “Happy Xmas (War Is Over).” It was produced in partnership with Lennon Music, as well as Yoko and Sean. Celebrated film composer Thomas Newman composed the film’s score.

The movie is set in an alternate WWI reality. A brave pigeon carries letters back and forth across the two warring sides; the combatants and the pen pals don’t know who they are fighting as they play a game of chess with one another. The fighting and the chess game both intensify and the soldiers and audience are both left with the feeling that no matter which side conquers the other, nobody actually wins.

Mullins admitted to feeling a sense of responsibility to bring the song to life in a whole new way. “The song’s been played, I think for John and Yoko, it’s their most famous song that they’ve played at this point,” he explained. “So we had to take it seriously. We really just looked at what John and Yoko were trying to say with the song. We had Sean Ono Lennon as a creative executive producer, and we just tried to honor the antiwar message, and tried to do it in a creative way that was fun and made you cry.”