Graduation ceremonies can be long and tedious — unless you've got an A-list celeb giving the commencement address obv! SomeGoodNews/Giphy / Via giphy.com
These college grads hit the jackpot when it came to commencement speakers and learned some valuable lessons along the way. Here's who took the stage at college graduations: 1. Taylor Swift Taylor Swift received an honorary doctorate degree when she took the stage to talk to New York University students in May 2022. In her speech, Taylor talked about her career and accepting that life is going to be a little "cringe" sometimes. She added that it's important to know that everyone makes mistakes — and it's how you grow from them that's important.
"I know it can be really overwhelming figuring out who to be, and when. Who you are now and how to act in order to get where you want to go. I have some good news: it’s totally up to you. I also have some terrifying news: it’s totally up to you," Taylor said on stage .
Dia Dipasupil / Getty Images 2. Robert De Niro 3. Meryl Streep 4. Ken Jeong 5. Dolly Parton 6. Lisa Kudrow 7. Tom Hanks 8. Will Ferrell Will Ferrell gave an "unorthodox" speech during Harvard University's Class Day in 2003. Although Will said he wouldn't be using humor in his speech and wasn't going to "sugarcoat" his thoughts, it ended up being almost 10 minutes of hilarity. Will shared fake quotes, dished his advice on everything from dealing with incompetent assistants to tax fraud, and ended his speech with a song.
"I’m sorry, graduates. But this is a world where you aren’t allowed to use your cell phone on airplanes, during live theater, at the movies, at funerals, or even during your own elective surgery. Apparently, the Berlin Wall went back up because we now live in Russia. I mean just try lighting up a cigar in a movie theater or paying for a dinner for 20 friends with an autograph. It ain’t that easy. Strong words, I know. Tough talk. But more like tough love. Because this is where my faith in you guys comes into play, Harvard University’s graduating Class of 2003, without a doubt, the finest, most talented group of sexual beings this great land has to offer," Will said at one point .
Douglas Mcfadd / Getty Images 9. Jennifer Garner 10. Steve Carell 11. John Krasinski 12. Mindy Kaling Which celebrity commencement speech was your favorite? If yours didn't make the list, tell us in the comments! View comments