The gold has gone to Mikey Madison.
The 25-year-old Anora actor appeared in disbelief when she won her first Academy Award at the 2025 Oscars event in Los Angeles on Sunday, March 2. She unexpectedly defeated frontrunner and fellow first-time contender Demi Moore.
Madison began her tearful speech by reminiscing about the “surreal” experience of growing up in Los Angeles, even though “Hollywood always felt so far away for me,” after reaching the stage at the Dolby Theatre and accepting the Best Actress statuette from Emma Stone, the winner from the previous year. Therefore, it is quite amazing to be here in this place today.”
She continued by thanking her crew, the people who made the movie, her family present, the sex-worker community, and her other Best Actress nominees, Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo, Emilia Pérez’s Karla Sofía Gascón, The Substance’s Moore, and I’m Still Here’s Fernanda Torres.
After acknowledging that everything seemed like a dream, Madison continued, “This is a dream come true; I’m probably gonna wake up tomorrow,” before expressing her gratitude to her Anora director Sean Baker: “I adore you.” All of this is due to you.
The title character, a sex worker going through a crazy Cinderella tale, is played by Madison in writer-director Baker’s Anora. The breakout star won at this year’s BAFTA Awards presentation after receiving nominations at many prior awards.
In a recent exclusive interview with PEOPLE for the 2025 Oscar Portfolio, she stated that since the highly acclaimed film’s premiere last year, she has “definitely” been receiving some fascinating proposals.
The Los Angeles native and first-time Oscar nominee said, “There are some things that I am really excited about and have my fingers crossed.”
