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Your 2021 Oscar Winners: Chloe Zhao's Nomadland and Pixar's Soul Stand Tall

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Chloe Zhao double fisting her two new Oscar statuettes, the characters of Soul.
Chloe Zhao double fisting her two new Oscar statuettes, the characters of Soul.
Image: Chris Pizzello-Pool/Getty Images, Disney/Pixar.

Even though most everything about this year’s Oscars was quite different than normal, the Academy delivered when it came to making some history and surprising everyone who tuned in. You knew the nominees, and now, here are the winners of the 2021 Academy Awards.

While there was once again no singular host for this year’s Oscars, Watchmen’s Regina King kicked off the socially distanced night of feting the film industry’s power players with Chloé Zhao—director of Marvel’s Eternalsbecoming the first woman of color (and only second woman overall) to win Best Director for Nomadland. Frances McDormand’s winning Best Actress in a Leading Role for the same project made clear just what an impression the film and its characters made upon the Academy, and spoke to really what sort of films stood out at this year’s awards.

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In a rather surprising move, Sir Anthony Hopkins became the oldest male performer to win an Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role, a win many thought would posthumously go to Chadwick Boseman. This upset was made that much odder by the fact that an NFT of Boseman was one of the gifts given away in swag bags to the ceremony’s attendees. Unsurprisingly, though very questionably, Disney and Pixar’s Soul cleaned up well in the Best Original Score and Best Animated Features categories. Meanwhile, Christopher Nolan’s Tenet wound up taking home the award for Best Visual Effects. 

Daniel Kaluuya embarrassing the hell out of his family during his Best Supporting Actor acceptance speech where he explained how his existence was the byproduct of his parents having sex came close to being the night’s most shining moment. In the end, though, Best Supporting Actress winner Yuh-Jung Youn stole the whole damn show by telling the world to stop pronouncing her name incorrectly. Here’s the full list of the nominees, with last night’s winners in bold:


Best Actress in a Supporting Role

Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm

Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy

Olivia Colman, The Father

Amanda Seyfried, Mank

Winner: Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari


Best Costume Design

Emma

Mank

Winner: Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Mulan

Pinocchio


Best Original Score

Da 5 Bloods

Mank

Minari

News of the World

Winner: Soul


Best Adapted Screenplay

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (Peter Baynham, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jena Friedman, Anthony Hines, Lee Kern, Dan Mazer, Erica Rivinoja & Dan Swimer)

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Winner: The Father (Christopher Hampton & Florian Zeller)

Nomadland (Chloé Zhao)

One Night in Miami (Kemp Powers)

The White Tiger (Ramin Bahrani)


Best Original Screenplay

Judas and the Black Messiah (Will Berson, Shaka King, Keith Lucas & Kenny Lucas)

Minari (Lee Isaac Chung)

Winner: Promising Young Woman (Emerald Fennell)

Sound of Metal (Derek Cianfrance, Abraham Marder & Darius Marder)

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Aaron Sorkin)


Best Animated Short Film

Burrow

Genius Loci

Winner: If Anything Happens I Love You

Opera

Yes-People


Best Live-Action Short Film

Feeling Through

The Letter Room

The Present

Winner: Two Distant Strangers

White Eye


Best Actor in a Supporting Role

Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Winner: Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah

Leslie Odom, Jr., One Night in Miami

Paul Raci, Sound of Metal

LaKeith Stanfield, Judas and the Black Messiah


Best Documentary Feature

Collective

Crip Camp

The Mole Agent

Winner: My Octopus Teacher

Time


Best Documentary Short Subject

Winner: Colette

A Concerto Is a Conversation

Do Not Split

Hunger Ward

A Love Song for Latasha


Best International Feature Film

Winner: Denmark, Another Round

Hong Kong, Better Days

Romania, Collective

Tunisia, The Man Who Sold His Skin

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Quo Vadis, Aida?


Best Sound

Greyhound

Mank

News of the World

Winner: Sound of Metal

Soul


Best Production Design

The Father

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Winner: Mank

News of the World

Tenet


Best Film Editing

The Father

Nomadland

Promising Young Woman

Winner: Sound of Metal

The Trial of the Chicago 7


Best Cinematography

Judas and the Black Messiah

Winner: Mank

News of the World

Nomadland

The Trial of the Chicago 7


Best Visual Effects

Love and Monsters

The Midnight Sky

Mulan

The One and Only Ivan

Winner: Tenet


Best Animated Feature Film

Onward

Over the Moon

A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon

Winner: Soul

Wolfwalkers


Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Emma

Hillbilly Elegy

Winner: Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Mank

Pinocchio


Best Original Song

“Husavik” from Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga

Winner: “Fight For You” from Judas and the Black Messiah

“lo Sì (Seen)” from The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se)

“Speak Now” from One Night in Miami

“Hear My Voice” from The Trial of the Chicago 7


Best Actor in a Leading Role

Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal

Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Winner: Anthony Hopkins, The Father

Gary Oldman, Mank

Steven Yeun, Minari


Best Actress in a Leading Role

Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Andra Day, The United States vs. Billie Holiday

Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman

Winner: Frances McDormand, Nomadland

Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman


Best Director

Thomas Vinterburg, Another Round

Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman

David Fincher, Mank

Lee Isaac Chung, Minari

Winner: Chloé Zhao, Nomadland


Best Picture

The Father

Judas and the Black Messiah

Mank

Minari

Winner: Nomadland

Promising Young Woman

Sound of Metal

The Trial of the Chicago 7


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