“Anora” Completes Its Cinderella Story With Fairy Tale Oscars Night
The 97th Oscars ended up being a true fairy tale story for writer/director Sean Baker’s Anora, with Baker capping an already magical night after winning Oscars for Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Director—in which he gave a rousing acceptance speech defending the unparalleled experience of the theater experience—by seeing Anora take the top prize, Best Picture. For good measure, Anora‘s Cinderella herself, Mikey Madison, had what was probably the biggest upset win by besting Demi Moore for the Best Actress award.
While Anora was the belle of the ball, one that began in earnest during last May’s Cannes Film Festival where it was awarded the fest’s top honor, the Palme d’Or, there were a lot of other moving moments during the telecast. Taking place only weeks after the greater Los Angeles area was devastated by wildfires in early January, host Conan O’Brien had members of the LA Fire Department come on stage for their richly deserved praise, and, in a nice twist, had them deliver a few jokes that proved these heroes also have comedic timing.
It was a big night for firsts as well. Wicked‘s costume designer Paul Tazewell became the first Black man to win an Oscar for Best Costume Design. Despite the controversy that has swirled around Emilia Pérez, Zoe Saldaña became the first Dominican-American to win an Oscar after she scooped up the award for Best Supporting Actress. Walter Salles’ incredibly moving I’m Still Here gave Brazil its first Oscar win in the Best International Feature category. And finally, Flow‘s win for Best Animated Film was the first Oscar win for Latvia.
22 years after winning an Oscar for Best Actor for The Pianist, Adrien Brody was back on the stage to accept the award again, once again for a monumental performance as a Holocaust survivor in Brady Corbet’s appropriately monumental The Brutalist. He was up against some fine actors giving great performances—Colman Domingo for his moving performance in Sing Sing, Timothée Chalamet’s chamelonic turn as a young Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown, and Ralph Fiennes and Sebastian Stan, playing a Cardinal in Conclave and a sinner in The Apprentice, respectively.
A few other notable moments were Kieran Culkin’s Oscar win for Best Supporting Actor for his exuberant, funny turn in Jesse Eisenberg’s A Real Pain, followed by an acceptance speech that involved extracting a promise of a larger family from his wife, who was laughing in attendance, thinking what, we cannot know.
An epic dual performance from Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo opened the show. The Wicked stars began by taking turns on stage, with Grande first singing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” from The Wizard of Oz, and then Erivo following that with a solo performance of her own, pulling off Diana Ross’s “Home” from The Wiz. Then the two met on stage to deliver Wicked‘s anthem, “Defying Gravity,” opening the telecast with a proper jolt of good, old fashioned star power.
Here’s your full list of winners:
Best picture
Anora
Best Actor
Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
Best Actress
Mikey Madison, Anora
Director
Sean Baker, Anora
Best Supporting Actress
Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez
Best Supporting Actor
Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
International Film
I’m Still Here
Documentary Feature
No Other Land
Original Screenplay
Anora, Sean Baker
Adapted Screenplay
Conclave, Peter Straughan
Original Score
The Brutalist, Daniel Blumberg
Original Song
“El Mal” from Emilia Pérez
Animated Film
Flow
Visual Effects
Dune: Part Two
Costume Design
Wicked, Paul Tazewell
Cinematography
The Brutalist, Lol Crawley
Documentary Short Film
The Only Girl in the Orchestra
Best Sound
Dune: Part Two
Production Design
Wicked
Makeup and Hairstyling
The Substance
Film Editing
Anora, Sean Baker
Live Action Short Film
I’m Not a Robot
Animated Short Film
In the Shadow of the Cypress
For our interviews with Oscar nominees, take your deep dive here!
Featured image: HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 02: (EDITORS NOTE: Image has been converted to black and white) Mikey Madison attends the 97th annual Oscars at Ovation Hollywood on March 02, 2025 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)
