People's Choice Awards Recap: Big Moments and Big Absences [VIDEO]

At the People's Choice Awards, fans have come to expect upsets at the last moment, but they could never predict just what the stars were going to do during Wednesday's 2012 awards show.

While accepting his award for Best Comedic Movie Actor, Adam Sandler's thank-yous included a group the actor said he had constantly forgotten: his teachers. In an extensive and entertaining list, Sandler spelled out the unique characteristics his teachers had and the few lessons he learned from them.

A short while later, after Bridesmaids won for Best Comedy Film, star Maya Rudolph kicked off a sing-a-long of the Wilson Phillips song "Hold On," which is in the film. Judd Apatow and Rudolph also thanked Betty White. For what, we're not sure.

White had a prime seat in the front row and enjoyed quite a bit of attention. Don Cheadle jumped off stage while presenting to give her a hug. During the acceptance speech for Hot in Cleveland, White's co-star Jane Leeves asked the audience to wish the actress a happy 90th birthday -- which is next week -- and the audience gave White a standing ovation.

One of the biggest shocks of the night was 14-year old Chloe Grace Moretz beating the entire cast of Harry Potter for Favorite Star Under 25. The lesser-known actress even acknowledged the awkwardness of beating Radcliffe, Grint, Watson and Felton in her acceptance speech as she giggled off stage.

The HP crew was even more noticeable as the film picked up four awards and not a single one of them was there to accept, E! Online reports. While the young stars are clearly ready to close the Potter chapter of their lives and move on, the fans aren't quite ready to let them go.

Other big absences included big winner Katy Perry, who had pulled out earlier in the week according to the BBC, and Johnny Depp who is a PCA regular and won two awards. E! Online is concerned the Pirates of the Caribbean frontman will also be a no-show at the Golden Globes on Sunday, though there has been no official word of his RSVP.

In a record 230-million votes (there are 43 categories remember), fans took to Facebook and Twitter to give some unexpected wins a leg up, says USA Today. Actors Neil Patrick Harris and Chloe Grace Moretz both acknowledged their fans Twittering away to help them win.

The Vampire Diaries star Nina Dobrev noted in her acceptance speech for Best TV Drama Actress that she was never on the ballot. Thanks to write-ins from fans including a few angry words here and there, she was added to the category as a nominee. Dobrev also celebrated a "birthday win," she turned 23 on Monday.

As the awards season kicks off, many stars have said the PCA is their favorite awards show of the season. In the next few months, all we can do is hope our favorite stars continue to get recognized and for Robert Pattinson to grow out that ridiculous buzz cut he showed off.