Oscars 2021: Nomadland is the Big Winner at an Unusual Academy Awards | Festivals & Awards

Nope. Frances McDormand! She bellowed, “I have no words, my voice is my sword and my sword is in my work!” McDormand now is in range of tying Katharine Hepburn’s four lead acting Oscars (although she has technically has four trophies with her pair this evening). She also joins an elite club of five other actors who collected three acting Oscars: Ingrid Bergman, Walter Brennan, Daniel Day-Lewis, Jack Nicholson, and Meryl Streep. It’s also the first time in 16 years that a Best Picture and its lead actress both triumphed. The last time it happened was when Hilary Swank won her second lead prize for 2004’s “Million Dollar Baby.”

But the biggest surprise of the evening was delivered by Joaquin Phoenix, who won Best Actor last year for “Joker,” as he closed the show by declaring the absent Anthony Hopkins as his successor. Most Oscarologists placed their bets on Chadwick Boseman to become the third actor to receive a posthumous Oscar after Heath Ledger in 2010’s “The Dark Knight” and Peter Finch in 1976’s “Network.” But it was not in the cards. As for Hopkins, given that the onetime Hannibal Lecter is now the oldest acting winner ever at age of 83, the Welshman deserves to take the night off.

THE WINNERS

BEST PICTURE: “Nomadland”

BEST DIRECTOR: Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland”

BEST ACTOR: Anthony Hopkins, “The Father”

BEST ACTRESS: Frances McDormand, “Nomadland”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Daniel Kaluuya, “Judas and the Black Messiah”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Yuh-jung Youn, “Minari”

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: “The Father”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: “Promising Young Woman”

BEST ANIMATED FILM: “Soul”

BEST DOCUMENTARY: “My Octopus Teacher”

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM: “Another Round”