Oscars 2026: One First-Timer After Another

Paul Thomas Anderson (left) and Ryan Coogler (right), now official Oscar-winners, for One Battle After Another and Sinners, respectively. (Source: Facebook) 

The 98th Academy Awards ceremony had a collective evening with a lot of diverse films and projects from 2025 collecting at least one Oscar statue. Veteran actress Amy Madigan picked up the first win of the night (a big surprise) for her chilling supporting role in Zack Cregger’s horror hit Weapons (a rare thing for the genre). The Norwegian drama Sentimental Value was recognized as the year’s Best International Feature, with director Joachim Trier inviting the cast present that night on stage (including nominees Renate Reinsve, Elle Fanning, and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas). Blockbuster releases like F1 and Avatar: Fire and Ash won for their sound and visual effects, respectively, while Guillermo del Toro's version of Frankenstein picked up technical awards for its makeup and hairstyling, production design, and costume design. And I couldn’t be happier for lead actress Jessie Buckley, who deservedly won for her raw and remarkable performance in Chloe Zhao’s adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet. 

But this year’s ceremony had a fairly-even streak between two of the year’s most acclaimed films. Both were original and ambitious projects from two respective filmmakers, and backed by Warner Brothers, who should be commended for pushing for daring and original flicks last year. I’m talking about Paul Thomas Anderson and Ryan Coogler. (Anderson had been nominated 14 times before, while Coogler had been nominated a total of 5 times, including their respective categories for the evening.) Each generation-defining auteur picked up their first-ever wins for their respective screenplays for One Battle After Another (adapted) and Sinners (original). 

Anderson’s dark political comedy picked up an additional six, including a surprise win for Supporting Actor Sean Penn (who was absent at the ceremony, but is now an official three-time winner), Film Editing, Anderson’s directing, and Best Picture. It also became the inaugural winner of the Best Casting award introduced this year. (The statue was awarded to Casting Director Cassandra Kulukundis.) Meanwhile, Coogler’s film (the most nominated in the Academy's history) picked up three additional statues, including Ludwig Goransson’s score, Autumn Durald Arkapaw's cinematography (making her the first woman to win in that category), and Michael B. Jordan’s lead performances. The latter marks another first in the show's history, with a lead actor winning for dual roles. (Previous nominees who’ve been recognized for such feats include Peter Sellars and Nicolas Cage.) Jordan is also the six African-American to win for a leading performance. 

I do have to point out a few elephants in the room. After all, returning host Conan O'Brien did warn the audience, during his cold open, that things could get political. And that certainly turned out to be the case with co-presenters Jimmy Kimmell (who took a few subtle jabs at First Lady Melania Trump), Javier Bardem (who made a pro-Palestinian statement), and Sentimental Value director Joachim Trier (who called out certain politicians who apparently ignore certain, serious issues). But the biggest upset this evening, I would argue, was the fact that a few acceptance speeches got cut off. (Excuse me?) Plus, I'm curious why certain figures were highlighted more during the "In Memorial" segment. (To be fair, Rob Reiner and Robert Redford make sense. But where was Gene Hackman?) 

(L-r) Jessie Buckley (lead actress for Hamnet), Michael B. Jordan (lead actor for Sinners), and Amy Madigan (supporting actress for Weapons) are now official Oscar-winners. (Source: Reddit) 

On a different note, a few films went home empty-handed, particularly Josh Safdie’s table tennis dramedy Marty Supreme. (Lead actor Timothee Chalamat’s recent comments in the media about the arts may have reportedly hurt his chances. But that's just a theory.) This was arguably the most joked-about nominee of the night. Other films that didn’t pick up awards included the Brazilian drama The Secret Agent, the period piece Train Dreams, and the dark comedy Bugonia. Still, it’s worth noting that being recognized and commended is just as (if not more) important as winning. 

A few cinematic reunions were in order for some of the presenters. These included Chris Evans & Robert Downey Jr. (commemorating the 14th anniversary of The Avengers), most of the main cast of Bridesmaids (Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Rose Byrne, Ellie Kempler, and Maya Rudolph, celebrating 15 years), and Ewan McGregor & Nicole Kidman (25 years since Moulin Rouge). It was also nice hearing filmmakers' commentary for most of the Best Picture nominees, while representatives for each of the Best Casting nominations personally acknowledged each of the recipients on stage. The latter included presenters Chase Infiniti (One Battle After Another), Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Paul Mescal (Hamnet), Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent), and Gwyneth Paltrow (Marty Supreme). "Tonight, we are celebrating the invisible, exquisite architecture that you built," remarked Paltrow. On a different note, it was fun seeing fake YouTube ads with Jane Lynch, as well as presenters like Bill Pullman & Lewis Pullman, and Will Arnet & Channing Tatum. 

I also appreciated it when certain winners thanked those who've supported and helped them throughout their respective careers, including Madigan and Arkapaw. Likewise, Buckley thanked her parents and family "for teaching us never to be defined by expectation." The filmmakers behind the Netflix/Sony Animation sensation KPop Demon Hunters (which won for Animated Feature of the Year) acknowledged the milestone their film made for Korean stories and characters on screen. "For those of you who look like me," said co-director/recipient Maggie Kang, "I'm so sorry it took us so long to see us in a movie like this." The film's hit song, "Golden," became the first KPop track ever to win Best Original Song. (The performance of this song, along with "I Lied to You" from Sinners, was one of the show's highlights.) Artist/co-writer EJAE declared that the song's message (and win, for that matter) wasn't about success, but about resilience. On that same note, one of Redford’s quotes was displayed on stage during the “In Memorial,” and it reads, “The glory of art is that it can not only survive change, it can lead it.” And it goes without saying that many of the recipients this evening have displayed different forms of resilience up to this point. Here's hoping they continue to, and for the right reasons. 

A note to the Academy: Don't cut the acceptance speeches next time.