‘Anora’ Wins Best Picture at the 2025 Oscars

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This year’s Best Picture Oscar favorite hasn’t been decisively established throughout the season. As the 97th Academy Awards commenced, it remained unclear who would eventually claim the top honor. Numerous prominent contenders bagged multiple awards. “The Brutalist” secured victories for Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, and Best Actor (Adrien Brody). “Emilia Perez” garnered accolades for Zoe Saldana’s Best Supporting Actress performance and Best Original Song. “Wicked” took home awards for Best Costume Design and Best Production Design. Even “Dune: Part Two” managed to snatch prizes for Best Sound and Best Visual Effects.

Gradually, I couldn’t help but observe Anora amassing one award after another, and it was almost taking home all the significant accolades. Sean Baker, the movie’s writer, director, and editor, kept adding to his collection of trophies. Interestingly, he managed to secure an award for each of those roles: Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Editor.

Later, Mikey Madison, who played the lead in the movie, stunned everyone by winning the Best Actress award at this year’s Oscars, surprisingly beating Demi Moore who had won the same category at this year’s Golden Globes earlier. To add to the surprise, when Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal announced the Best Picture winner on stage at the Dolby Theatre, they revealed that it was “Anora”.

Through this action, Baker achieved a distinction unprecedented in cinema history – he became the first director to secure four Oscars for contributions to a single movie.

In the past six years, Anora has become the second film to win the Best Picture award for distributor Neon, who also released the 2019’s Best Picture winner, Parasite. The previous year’s Best Picture winner was Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster biopic titled Oppenheimer.

You can find the complete list of this year’s Academy Award winners by clicking on this link. If you’re interested in reading ScreenCrush’s review of the movie Anora, it’s available here. And if you want to see where Anora ranked on our own top movies of 2024 list, you can check that out by clicking here.

Actors Who Won Oscars For Their First Movie Roles

1. Julie Andrews

As a budding movie critic, I recall vividly the unforgettable impact Julie Andrews made on the silver screen, a stage where she had previously amassed an impressive repertoire. It wasn’t until 1963, when she was just 27, that Walt Disney Pictures cast her as the iconic Mary Poppins. The following year, the film, which showcased Andrews’ captivating portrayal of the beloved nanny, was unveiled to universal critical acclaim and box office success. Her sparkling performance in Mary Poppins earned her the prestigious Academy Award for Best Actress, paving the way for her immediate casting in Robert Wise’s The Sound of Music.

2. Barbra Streisand

Barbra Streisand, similar to Andrews, already had some stage acting experience prior to transitioning into film acting. After a series of television appearances and an impressive lineup of hit albums in the 1960s, Streisand made her cinematic debut in the 1968 movie adaptation of “Funny Girl” playing Fanny Brice. Notably, she had previously portrayed this character on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theater in 1964, and her performance received critical acclaim. Ultimately, she was awarded the 1968 Academy Award for Best Actress for her outstanding work.

3. Timothy Hutton

In 1980, Timothy Hutton made his debut in Hollywood by landing the part of Conrad Jarrett, a troubled teenager, in Robert Redford’s movie “Ordinary People”. This character had returned home from a psychiatric hospital after an attempted suicide and struggled to reconnect with his aloof parents. At only 20 years old, Hutton became the youngest actor ever to receive the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1981. Following this success, he continued to appear regularly in films and television productions.

4. Anna Paquin

At the age of 11, when many of us were preoccupied with homework, chores, and school activities, Anna Paquin was already making history by winning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the romantic drama “The Piano”. She shared this title as the second-youngest Oscar winner ever, with Tatum O’Neal being the youngest at 10 years old, for her work in “Paper Moon”. Since then, Paquin has continued to thrive in her acting career, particularly during her four-year tenure playing mutant superheroine Rogue in the X-Men series.

5. Jennifer Hudson

Jennifer Hudson initially made her mark in the entertainment world as a contestant on Season 3 of ‘American Idol’, finishing in seventh place. However, greater success awaited the singer, as she was cast in her debut film role as Effie White in the movie version of the musical ‘Dreamgirls’. This saw her acting alongside established stars such as Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé Knowles, and Eddie Murphy. Hudson’s exceptional singing skills helped her secure the part over hundreds of other contenders, and her powerful performance did not go unrecognized. She went on to win a number of awards for her work, including the Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

6. Jo Van Fleet

Jo Van Fleet was already familiar with the world of entertainment when she received her Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress; however, prior to this, she hadn’t made an appearance in a movie. Interestingly, she had previously won a Tony Award, and it was Elia Kazan who later invited her to star in a film adaptation of John Steinbeck’s “East of Eden.” Her stage talent proved valuable on the big screen, ultimately earning Van Fleet an Oscar in 1956.

7. Tatum O’Neal

In her youthful age of only 10 years, Tatum O’Neal became the youngest individual to receive an Academy Award. O’Neal played Addie Loggins in Peter Bogdanovich’s movie “Paper Moon,” opposite her father Ryan O’Neal. Her captivating portrayal quickly drew attention and eventually led to her winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Subsequently, she took on the role of Amanda Wurlitzer in “The Bad News Bears” for her next film appearance.

8. Harold Russell

Way back in 1947, Harold Russell, a former soldier, won an Oscar for his role in the movie “The Best Years of Our Lives”. Remarkably, Russell was not a professional actor, making his Academy Award win even more impressive. In fact, he is the only actor to have ever won two Oscars for a single film. The second Oscar was honorary, acknowledging his efforts in inspiring fellow veterans with hope and courage. It’s worth noting that just before his debut acting performance, Russell had lost both hands in a military explosion. He didn’t act in another film for 34 years after that.

9. Shirley Booth

Just like Jo Van Fleet, Shirley Booth had previously won a Tony Award before moving to films. However, unlike her stage role, this time she reprised her character, Lola Delaney, from the play “Come Back, Little Sheba“. This was not only her debut film performance, but it was one of only five films she would act in throughout her career. Later on, she became renowned for playing the live-in maid on the NBC sitcom “Hazel“, eventually winning an Emmy Award in both 1964 and 1965.

10. Lupita Nyong’o

Prior to launching her professional acting career, Lupita Nyong’o immersed herself in academic pursuits. She obtained a bachelor’s degree in film and theater studies from Hampshire College, followed by a master’s degree at Yale School of Drama. After that, she worked as a production assistant in Hollywood. At the age of 30, Nyong’o filmed Steve McQueen’s period drama “12 Years A Slave,” playing the character Patsey. Although her screen time was limited, it was impactful enough to win her the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress the following year.

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2025-03-03 07:24