Oscars 2025 Winners: ‘Anora’ Triumphs With 5 Wins, ‘The Brutalist’ Earns 3

With five honors—including Best Picture—the 2025 Oscars named Anora the evening’s top winner. Under Sean Baker’s direction, the drama of a sex worker marrying the son of a Russian oligarch captivated audiences and critics alike. Baker made history as the first person to win Best Director, Original Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Picture for one film. Anora’s victory emphasises, despite hardly grossing $40 million worldwide, the growing dominance of indie film at the Oscars. Its win parallels the success of other indie triumphs like Parasite and underlines Neon’s dominance in awards season.

Acting Honors: ‘The Brutalist’ and ‘Anora’ Shine

The acting categories showed great success as Adrien Brody (The Brutalist) and Mikey Madison (Anora) claimed the top acting prizes. Madison’s victory was a surprise, beating out The Substance’s Demi Moore. Overwhelmed with emotion, Madison expressed her gratitude and pledged her support to the sex worker community.

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Brody, a previous Oscar winner for The Pianist, delivered a heartfelt speech acknowledging the struggles of sustaining a career in Hollywood. His win marked a significant comeback after years of setbacks in the industry. Supporting actor trophies went to Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain) and Zoe Saldaña (Emilia Pérez). Saldaña, in a moving speech, celebrated her Dominican heritage and expressed hope for future Latino representation at the Oscars.

Major Wins Across International and Animated Categories

With I’m Still Here, a moving family drama set against the military dictatorship of Brazil, the country received its first-ever Best International Feature victory. Latvia’s Flow, meantime, triumphed against heavyweights including Inside Out 2 and The Wild Robot to win Best Animated Feature.

Notwithstanding distribution difficulties, No Other Land, a moving documentary on Palestinian displacement, won in the Best Documentary category. Emphasising optimism for a better future, co-director Basel Adra presented the trophy to his newborn daughter.

Conan O’Brien’s Debut as Oscars Host

Conan O’Brien replaced Jimmy Kimmel in hosting duties and brought his trademark humour to the Oscars stage. Sharp comedy in his introductory monologue covered the early start date of the performance and social media issues.

O’Brien also delighted the viewers with a musical performance on the typically protracted event. Unlike past Oscar events, Donald Trump’s name was conspicuously lacking from the gags of the evening. Rather, the evening was dotted with subdued hints of political tensions and world concerns.

Tributes and Industry Shifts

With a montage of films made in Los Angeles, the event highlighted the city’s cinematic past and honoured Los Angeles firemen who battled recent wildfires. A special tribute was also paid to the James Bond franchise, following Amazon MGM’s recent acquisition of creative control.

Filmmaker Sean Baker used his moment on stage to champion traditional moviegoing, urging audiences to support independent theaters. “We are losing a vital part of our culture,” Baker warned, emphasizing the importance of keeping films on the big screen.

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Full List of Oscars 2025 Winners

• Best Picture
  Anora (Neon)
• Best Director
  Sean Baker (Anora)
• Best Actor
  Adrien Brody (The Brutalist)
• Best Actress
  Mikey Madison (Anora)
• Best Supporting Actor
  Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain)

• Best Supporting Actress
  Zoe Saldaña (Emilia Pérez)
• Best Original Screenplay
  Anora – Sean Baker
• Best Adapted Screenplay
  Conclave – Peter Straughan
• Best International Feature Film
  I’m Still Here (Brazil)
• Best Animated Feature Film
  Flow (Latvia)
• Best Documentary Feature
  No Other Land
• Best Film Editing
  Anora – Sean Baker
• Best Cinematography
  The Brutalist – Lol Crawley
• Best Production Design
  Wicked
• Best Costume Design
  Wicked
• Best Original Score
  The Brutalist – Daniel Blumberg
• Best Original Song
  El Mal (Emilia Pérez)
• Best Sound
  Dune: Part Two
• Best Visual Effects
  Dune: Part Two
• Best Makeup and Hairstyling
  The Substance

With independent films driving the change in Hollywood, the 97th Academy Awards acknowledged this change in the business. Anora’s all-encompassing triumph heralds a fresh chapter for indie film as it shows that, regardless of funding, narrative still rules most.