“For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities. This is proof that dreams do come true. And, ladies, don’t anyone tell you you’re past your prime. Never give up!”—Michelle Yeoh
By Alex Y. Vergara
Photos from aframe.oscars.org
Heavily favored to win the Academy’s top acting plum for lead actress when awards season opened in January, Cate Blanchett’s bid for a third Oscar trophy for her role in Tar was thwarted by Michelle Yeoh, who ran away with the Best Actress award for her role as Evelyn, the guilt-stricken mother and frazzled owner of a laundromat, in the genre-defying sci-fi comedy Everything, Everywhere All at Once.
Yeoh, a Malaysian of Chinese descent, made history for being the first Asian actress to win a Best Actress Oscar. She also edged out Ana de Armas (Blonde), Andrea Riseborough (To Leslie) and Michelle Williams (The Fabelmans).
“For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities. This is proof that, dream big, and that dreams do come true. And, ladies, don’t let anyone tell you you’re past your prime. Never give up,” a triumphant Yeoh, 60, said in her acceptance speech.
Yeoh’s co-star, Vietnamese-American Ke Huy Quan, who played her husband Waywond in the film, also won as Best Supporting Actor.
Everything, Everywhere All at Once, which scored seven wins out of 11 nominations, also won Best Picture, Best Director for Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Best Producer, Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing and Best Supporting Actress for Jamie Lee Curtis.
Like Yeoh and Quan, it was Curtis’ first-ever Oscar nomination and win after a checkered career playing various lead and supporting roles.
Come-backing actor Brendan Fraser, 54, also defied oddsmakers when he edged out odds-on favorite Austin Butler (Elvis) for Best Actor for his performance in The Whale. Fraser, a former heartthrob who was absent for a number of film seasons after gaining considerable weight due to depression, played the role of Charlie, a down-and-out 600-pound gay recluse with only less than a week to live and put his affairs in order, including making amends with his estranged teenaged daughter.
“So, this is what the multiverse looks like,” an emotional Fraser, his voice quivering, said during his acceptance speech. “My goodness! I thank the Academy for this honor and my studio H24 for making such a bold film…I started in this business 30 years ago. Things didn’t come easily to me but there was a facility I didn’t appreciate at the time until it stopped.”
The show, aired live at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, ran for 3 hours and 40 minutes.
Best Picture
Everything Everywhere All at Once — Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert and Jonathan Wang, Producers
Best Directing
Everything Everywhere All at Once — Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Brendan Fraser in The Whale
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Michelle Yeoh in Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Ke Huy Quan in Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Jamie Lee Curtis in Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Costume Design
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever — Ruth Carter
Best Sound
Top Gun: Maverick — Mark Weingarten, James H. Mather, Al Nelson, Chris Burdon and Mark Taylor
Best Original Score
All Quiet on the Western Front — Volker Bertelmann
Best Adapted Screenplay
Women Talking — Screenplay by Sarah Polley Best Original Screenplay
Everything Everywhere All at Once — Written by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
Best Live-Action Short Film
An Irish Goodbye — Tom Berkeley and Ross White
Best Animated Short Film
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse — Charlie Mackesy and Matthew Freud
Best Animated Film
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio — Guillermo del Toro, Mark Gustafson, Gary Ungar and Alex Bulkley
Best Adapted Screenplay
Women Talking — Screenplay by Sarah Polley
Best Original Screenplay
Everything Everywhere All at Once — Written by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
Best Live-Action Short Film
An Irish Goodbye— Tom Berkeley and Ross White
Best Animated Short Film
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse — Charlie Mackesy and Matthew Freud
Best Animated Film
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio — Guillermo del Toro, Mark Gustafson, Gary Ungar and Alex Bulkley
Best Cinematography
All Quiet on the Western Front — James Friend
Best Visual Effects
Avatar: The Way of Water — Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon and Daniel Barrett
Best Documentary Feature
Navalny — Daniel Roher, Odessa Rae, Diane Becker, Melanie Miller and Shane Boris
Best Documentary Short Film
The Elephant Whisperers — Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga
Best Film Editing
Everything Everywhere All at Once — Paul Rogers
