The 2025 Oscar Awards: Who won, and why they deserved it

Sean Baker, Anora
Brady Corbet, The Brutalist
James Mangold, A Complete Unknown
Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez
Coralie Fargeat, The Substance

WINNER: Sean Baker, Anora

Anora is the underdog winner this year, and Sean Baker’s win for Best Director had him going up on stage for the third time, having won earlier in the evening for Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing. 

Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown
Colman Domingo, Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes, Conclave
Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice

WINNER: Adrien Brody, ‘The Brutalist’

Adrien Brody earned his second Best Actor Oscar for his role as architect László Tóth in The Brutalist, a visionary who aims construct a utopian society in post-war America. This is his second Oscar win, having previously won for his role as Władysław Szpilman in The Pianist, which he won in 2003 at the age of 29, making him then the youngest actor to win the honour.

Cynthia Erivo, Wicked
Karla Sofía Gascón, Emilia Pérez
Mikey Madison, Anora
Demi Moore, The Substance
Fernanda Torres, I'm Still Here

WINNER: Mikey Madison, Anora

​Mikey Madison's portrayal of the titular character in Anora was not favoured to win the award, making this a significant upset. In the film Madison takes the role of Ani, a stripper and sex worker whose life takes an unexpected turn when she marries the son of a Russian oligarch. To prepare for the film, Madison learnt to speak Russian, visited strip clubs and mastered a Brooklyn accent. 

Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown
Ariana Grande, Wicked
Felicity Jones, The Brutalist
Isabella Rossellini, Conclave
Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez

WINNER: Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez

Zoe Saldaña took home the trophy for her performance in Emilia Pérez, her first nomination and her first Oscar. The first actor of Dominican descent to win an Academy Award, Saldaña expressed her joy at winning an award for a role that allowed her to speak and sing in Spanish.

Don’t miss: What to know about ‘Emilia Pérez, this season’s Oscar favourite

Yura Borisov, Anora
Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce, The Brutalist
Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice

WINNER: Kieran Culkin

Culkin took home the first Oscar of the evening—his first nomination and his first win—adding it to his trophy case that holds his trophies for the same role from the Screen Actors Guild and the Golden Globes.

Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
The Wild Robot
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl

WINNER: Flow

​Flow is a wordless animated film directed by Latvian filmmaker Gints Zilbalodis. It has made history by winning the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the 97th Academy Awards, marking the first time a Latvian film has been nominated for, and won, an Academy Award in this or any other category.

Sean Baker, Anora
Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold, The Brutalist
Jesse Eisenberg, A Real Pain
Moritz Binder, Tim Fehlbaum, and Alex David, September 5
Coralie Fargeat, The Substance

WINNER: Sean Baker, Anora

During his acceptance speech for Anora, which tells the story of a Russian stripper who impulsively marries the son of a Russian oligarch, Sean Baker thanked and voiced his respect for the sex worker community.

James Mangold and Jay Cocks, A Complete Unknown
Peter Straughan, Conclave
Jacques Audiard (in collaboration with Thomas Bidegain, Léa Mysius, and Nicolas Livecchi), Emilia Pérez
RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes, Nickel Boys
Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar; Story by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, and John "Divine G" Whitfield, Sing Sing

WINNER: Peter Straughan, Conclave

Peter Straughan is a distinguished British playwright, screenwriter and author, who was previously nominated for an Oscar for his work on his adaptation of John le Carré's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), co-written with his late wife, Bridget O'Connor.

I'm Still Here
The Girl With the Needle
Emilia Pérez
The Seed of the Sacred Fig
Flow

WINNER: I’m Still Here

I'm Still Here, a political biographical drama from Brazil, directed by Walter Salles, follows the true story of Eunice Paiva (Fernanda Torres), as she confronts the disappearance of her husband, Rubens Paiva (played by Selton Mello), during Brazil's military dictatorship in the 1970s.

Black Box Diaries
No Other Land
Porcelain War
Soundtrack to a Coup D'Etat
Sugarcane

WINNER: No Other Land

Directed collaboratively by Palestinian and Israeli filmmakers Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, and Rachel Szor, No Other Land provides a poignant look into the lives of Palestinian activists striving to protect their communities in the West Bank's Masafer Yatta region from demolition by Israeli forces. ​

A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Gladiator II
Nosferatu
Wicked

WINNER: Paul Tazewell, Wicked

Film and theatre costume designer Paul Tazewell won his first Academy Award for his work on Wicked, making him the first Black man to win an Oscar for the category. This is his first win and second nomination, first earning a nod for his work on West Side Story.

A Different Man
Emilia Pérez
Nosferatu
Wicked
The Substance

WINNER: Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli, The Substance

“El Mal”, Emilia Pérez, music by Clément Ducol and Camille; lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard
“The Journey”, The Six Triple Eight, music and lyric by Diane Warren
“Like a Bird”, Sing Sing, music and lyric by Abraham Alexander and Adrian Quesada
“Mi Camino”, Emilia Pérez, music and lyric by Camille and Clément Ducol
“Never Too Late”, Elton John: Never Too Late, music and lyric by Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Andrew Watt, and Bernie Taupin

WINNER: “El Mal” from Emilia Pérez

The rap-rock song “El Mal” from Emilia Pérezwas composed by Clément Ducol and Camille, with lyrics co-written by the film's director, Jacques Audiard. In the movie, the track is performed by Zoe Saldaña (portraying Rita Mora Castro), Karla Sofía Gascón (as Emilia Pérez), and Camille, who provides backing vocals. ​

Anora
The Brutalist
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Wicked

WINNER: Sean Baker, Anora

This recognition highlights Baker's multifaceted involvement in Anora, as he not only directed and wrote the screenplay but also took on the critical role of editor. ​In his acceptance speech, Baker joked, “God, if you saw that footage, I saved this film in the edit.” Trust me."

Death by Numbers
I am Ready, Warden
Incident
Instruments of a Beating Heart
The Only Girl in the Orchestra

WINNER: The Only Girl in the Orchestra

The documentary chronicles the life of Orin O'Brien, a pioneering double bassist who, in 1966, became the first female musician to join the New York Philharmonic under the direction of Leonard Bernstein. The film is directed by Orin’s niece, Molly O'Brien.

The Brutalist, Daniel Bloomberg
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Wicked
The Wild Robot

WINNER: Daniel Bloomberg, The Brutalist

Dune: Part Two
A Complete Unknown
Emilia Pérez
Wicked
The Wild Robot

WINNER: Dune: Part Two

Dune: Part Two
Alien: Romulus
Better Man
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Wicked

WINNER: Dune: Part Two

A Lien
Anuja
I'm Not a Robot
The Last Ranger
The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent

WINNER: I'm Not a Robot

Beautiful Men
In the Shadow of the Cypress
Magic Candies
Wander to Wonder
Yuck!

WINNER: In the Shadow of the Cypress

The Brutalist
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
Wicked

WINNER: Wicked

The Brutalist, Lol Crawley
Dune: Part Two, Greig Fraser
Emilia Pérez, Paul Guilhaume
Maria, Ed Lachman
Nosferatu. Jarin Blaschke

WINNER: The Brutalist

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