Oscars 2025 live: Anora sweeps awards with best picture, best director and best actress for Mikey Madison – BBC.com
Independent film Anora sweeps the Oscars, winning five awards including best picture and best actress for lead star Mikey Madison “This is very surreal,” says Madison, who plays a sex worker who has a whirlwind romance with a Russian oligarch’s sonThe film’s director Sean Baker – the first person to win four Oscars for one film, including best director – tells the BBC: “It’s crazy, I’m going to be processing it forever”Meanwhile, Adrien Brody won his second best actor gong for The Brutalist, Zoe Saldaña was honoured with best supporting actress for Emilia Pérez, and Kieran Culkin was named best supporting actorAriana Grande – who wore a sculptural Schiaparelli gown that got lots of people talking – performed a duet with Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo, while Morgan Freeman paid tribute to Gene HackmanWicked took out costume gongs and Brazilian historical epic I’m Still Here won the best international film- read the winners and nominees in fullThis video can not be playedWatch: Best director winner Sean Baker speaks to BBCEdited by Frances Mao, with Noor Nanji reporting from the winners roomThanks for joining us, that’s a wrap on the Oscars for this year – Hollywood’s biggest night.Independent film Anora was the big winner, coming away with Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress for Mikey Madison.Adrien Brody won his second Oscar, his first in two decades, for his performance in The Brutalist.You can read a full recap of the night as well as:Read the full list of the Oscar winners.Mikey Madison winning Best Actress for AnoraDemi Moore was the favourite for much of this campaign. Things did shift after Madison’s Bafta win, but the race remained incredibly tight.In the end, it was Madison’s night. It marked an incredible moment for a 25-year-old actress who was relatively unknown before her role in Anora.This is exactly the type of rags-to-riches story that awards ceremonies love – and the film itself celebrates.In the winners room, the 25-year-old Madison called it “surreal” and a “dream come true”.“No Other Land” won the Best Documentary Oscar – the film was made by (l-r) Basel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Yuval AbrahamDespite no US distributor picking up the film, No Other Land won best documentary award.The film was a collaboration between Palestinian and Israeli film-makers about Israeli displacement of a Palestinian community in the occupied West Bank.”We made this film, Palestinians and Israelis, because together, our voices are stronger,” said co-director Yuval Abraham.The pay-back kissIn a moment that sent shockwaves across the red carpet, Halle Berry ran up to Adrien Brody and gave him a big kiss.It recreated a moment at the 2003 Academy Awards, when Brody – having just won best actor for his performance in The Pianist – turned and kissed Berry, who had presented the award to him.She told Variety, external: “I had to pay him back,” later telling press that his girlfriend Georgia Chapman had been “fine” with it.Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande perform onstage during the 97th Annual OscarsWe all knew it was coming but Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande belting out Wicked’s anthem Defying Gravity was even better than we could have hoped for.As Erivo, in a white gown, hit that final iconic note, the audience stood in applause.Adrien Brody gave an Oscar acceptance speech of more than five minutes – well over the 45-seconds allocated. At one point he even shushed the play off music, saying “please turn the music off” – before continuing.”Winning an award like this is, it signifies a destination. Something my character references in the film, but to me it also, beyond the pinnacle of a career, it is a chance to begin again,” he said.He also noted that both his Oscars (The Pianist 2003 and now The Brutalist 2024) had come in roles where he had portrayed Holocaust survivors. “I’m here once again to represent the lingering traumas and the repercussions of war and systematic oppression, and of antisemitism and racism and othering,” he said. “I believe if the past can teach us anything, it’s a reminder to not let hate go unchecked”.Morgan Freeman speaks about the late Gene Hackman during the Oscars showIn case you missed it, one of the special moments of the ceremony was the tribute to Gene Hackman. The 95-year-old and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 65 were found dead at home at New Mexico last week.The Hollywood legend won two Oscars – Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor – in a career that saw more than 100 films.Morgan Freeman delivered the emotional tribute to his “dear friend”, and co-star on Under Suspicion and Unforgiven.He said Hackman had just wanted people to remember him as someone who tried to do good work.”Gene, you’ll be remembered for that and so much more,” Freeman said.Gints ZilbalodisCertainly a bit more lowkey than Vanity Fair but no less celebratory.Gints Zilbalodis was the creator behind Flow which won Best Animated Feature, beating out the better known Inside Out 2, Wallace and Gromit and The Wild Robot contenders.The Latvian filmmaker took to X, posting photos of himself and his crew celebrating their win at In-N-Out Burger – burger in one hand, Oscar in another.Citing another Hollywood classic (The Godfather), he quipped: “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!”Flow is an animated story without dialogue about a cat who lives in a flooded world without humans.It’s the first Latvian film to win an Oscar.Gints Zilbalodis, Matīss Kaža, Ron Dyens, and Gregory Zalcman, winners of the Best Animated Feature Film for “Flow” pose for picturesColin PatersonEntertainment Correspondent, BBC NewsAnd we had to ask Anora director Sean Baker about that now award-winning use of the song Greatest Day by Take That in his film.The 2000s pop hit memorably scores the film’s opening scene in a strip club.And it was played every time Baker won an award tonight – including for Best Director.”They are amazing and I want to thank them so much for letting us use their incredible track,” the four-time Oscar-winner said. Probably the greatest day for BakerIt’s the small independent film everyone’s talking about now. So what is Anora about?Well the film’s title character – played by Mikey Madison in her first lead role – is a stripper and occasional sex worker who meets her Prince Charming, Ivan, at work.But in this modern take on a fairy tale, it’s unfortunate that Ivan is the spoiled son of a Russian oligarch, played by Mark Eydelshteyn.After he spontaneously proposes, and they marry in Las Vegas, Anora fights hard for the happy ending she so desperately wants.Madison told the BBC it was a dream role, where she got to display everything from steely strength to delicate fragility.Noor NanjiReporting from the OscarsI’ve finished up at the press room now – in fact, they threw us out (not personal, I’m told it happens every time).It was a whirlwind of a night, and a very exciting vibe, as star after star came in clutching their trophies.For us, things are winding down, but for the A-listers, the night goes on, with afterparties going on across the city into the early hours.Our reporters are going through some of the highlights from the ceremony – Adrien Brody’s five-minute long speech, the Anora Oscars and the performances of the night. Click on the stream above to watch.Colin PatersonEntertainment Correspondent, BBC NewsThis video can not be playedBest director winner Sean Baker speaks to BBCWe just spoke to Anora director Sean Baker at the Vanity Fair party. He is the man of the moment – the first person to win four Oscars for one film, including Best Director.Baker says he feels “over the moon”.”It’s crazy, I’m going to be processing it forever,” he adds, before showering praise on Mikey Madison, the star of the film.She took home the Best Actress award, beating other front-runner Demi Moore.”Mikey’s win is so important to me. It’s something that I was really hoping for,” he says. “I’m so happy that the industry and the academy are recognising her incredible talent.” Baker had quite a journey as an independent filmmaker. He used to have to make and edit wedding videos in his 20s – and a dizzy wedding scene features in Anora.Asked about his early roles, he says: “You have to take gigs when you’re coming up right. I wanted to take gigs that kept me doing something that felt like filmmaking… I actually think it helped me a lot, it gave me hours on that machine understanding editing and look it worked somehow!”Zoe Saldana, winner of the Best Supporting Actress poses with Clement Ducol and Camille, winners for Best Original SongAriana Grande, who plays Glinda in big-screen musical Wicked, takes a selfie with fansElle Fanning speaks to her A Complete Unknown co-star Timothée Chalamet and Kylie JennerEmma Stone hugs Kieran Culkin during the ceremony. Stone was a producer on A Real Pain, the film Culkin won for.Noor NanjiReporting from the OscarsEdie Turquet, one of the young female dancers and strippers in the film, has just texted me to say it was “insane” that a film about sex workers could win best picture at the Oscars.“I hope that maybe people who previously held judgement towards our community will have connected with the movie in some way, and that may shift or at least challenge their perspective,” she said.Luna Sofia Miranda, who acts as Lulu, Anora’s best friend in the film, said she was “so grateful” to the film, and director Sean Baker.”It truly was a rare gift that came to me,” she told me.“I feel so blessed and I am so happy to represent all of the folks out here who are working hard to make their dreams come true.” Read more about the strippers, dancers and actresses at the heart of the now-Oscar sweeping film.Mikey Madison in AnoraAnora, the indie darling made on a $6m (£4.7m) budget, has swept the Oscars, winning five awards including Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for its creator Sean Baker and Best Actress for its lead Mikey Madison.It was beloved by critics – winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes last summer. But usually, what wins the prestigious prize doesn’t translate to Oscar success 10 months later.The last film to do it was Korean thriller Parasite five years ago, and before that Marty (1955), and The Lost Weekend (1945).Kieran Culkin with his wife Jazz Charton- she’s holding the OscarIt drew one of the biggest laughs of the night… Kieran Culkin used his acceptance speech to jokingly remind his wife that she had promised him a fourth child if he won an Oscar.It’s a bit of an ongoing joke – Culkin gushed about his wife and asked for more babies at the 2023 Emmys when he won Best Actor for his role in Succession. He recalled this on stage on Sunday, saying that night Jazz had promised him a fourth if he won an Oscar. “I held my hand out and she shook it,” Culkin told the audience, calling Charton “the love of my life … ye of little faith”.”No pressure” the actor jested to his wife as the audience erupted in laughter, adding: “Let’s get cracking on those kids. What do you say? I love you. I love. I love you”.The couple currently have two children.Culkin dominated the Best Supporting Actor category throughout the awards season – the Oscar caps off Bafta, Golden Globe and SAG wins.Adrien Brody, Mikey Madison, Zoe Saldaña, and Kieran CulkinA quick recap of who took away the acting Oscars:A magnitude 3.9 earthquake hit Hollywood just as stars began celebrating after the awards ceremony.The earthquake’s epicentre was measured in North Hollywood, just miles from the Dolby Theatre where the ceremony was being held.There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The quake struck just after 22:00 local time as guests were arriving for the Vanity Fair afterparty.Those in the area reported a sudden jolt of energy. The US Geological Survey said the earthquake was felt miles across Los Angeles. Read more here.Demi MooreZoe Saldana arrived with the best accessory – her new OscarHailey BieberNick Kroll and Billy Crystal arriveed together – Billy presented the biggest award of the night with When Harry Met Sally co-star Meg RyanJeff Bezos and his wife Lauren SanchezKaty Perry strikes a poseRachel FlynnLive reporterMikey Madison won Best ActressWinnersLosersTimothee Chalamet and the film he starred in, A Complete Unknown, didn’t receive any gongsMeg Ryan and Demi Moore embrace at the ceremonyHelen BushbyCulture reporterAnd now the stars can head off to parties to relax… with yet more photographers waiting for them outside the Vanity Fair party. Smile please… Rita OraSir Ben Kingsleyand his wife Daniela LavenderLaverne CoxCopyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
