The Academy Awards turned into something of a coming out party for one actor you may not know.
Shia LaBeouf attended the ceremony with Zack Gottsagen, his co-star in “The Peanut Butter Falcon,” which came out last year.
Gottsagen is an actor with Down syndrome and, in the film, he plays a man with the condition who dreams of becoming a professional wrestler and runs away from the nursing home where he lives, only to befriend a wanted man on the run, played by LaBeouf.
Gottsagen became the first person with Down syndrome to present an award at the Oscars when he and LaBeouf announced the winner in the live-action short film category. He got the chance to say the classic line, "And the Oscar goes to ...”
“It means some people believe in me ... (and) a lot of people love my talent,” Gottsagen told the Associated Press last year about his rise to fame.
LaBeouf also credits Gottsagen with helping him stay sober, reports Variety. Was Gottsagen nervous about meeting LaBeouf? “Nope! I was just so happy just to meet him,” he told Variety.
Gottsagen's presence at Hollywood's biggest night did not go unnoticed.
"GET IT ZACK," Special OIympics tweeted. "So excited to see @zachrgottsagen presenting tonight at the #Oscars!"
Dakota Johnson, who starred with them in “The Peanut Butter Falcon,” is definitely rooting for Gottsagen to achieve even more.
“He deserves all the success in the world,” Johnson told Variety.