Jessie Buckley Wins Oscar for Best Actress

“Sure things” were in short supply this Oscars season, particularly as they pertained to the acting categories. Well, they were mostly in short supply, as “Hamnet” star Jessie Buckley long ago established herself as the favorite in the Best Actress category, and proceeded to rack up a raft of early, predictive wins to keep her firmly in frontrunner position.

And, on Sunday night, she did indeed take home the big prize, winning her first Oscar for her role in Chloé Zhao’s unspeakably devastating Shakespeare fanfic as Agnes Shakespeare, the wife of the Bard and the mother of the film‘s titular son Hamnet. The Irish star was previously nominated for Best Supporting Actress for “The Lost Daughter” in 2022.

The Oscar is a capper on Buckley’s pitch-perfect awards run for the nuclear grade tearjerker about grief, mysticism, and the power of motherhood. Over the course of the last few months, Buckley also picked up Best Actress honors at the Actor Awards, the BAFTA Film Awards, the Critics Choice Awards, and the Golden Globes. While a fleet of stellar nominees joined her in the category, including fellow Oscar nominees Rose Byrne, Kate Hudson, Renate Reinsve, and Emma Stone, Buckley’s immensely powerful and deeply felt turn was hard to beat from the start.

As Zhao told IndieWire late last year, Buckley was an early favorite for the role of Agnes. “I knew her work. I had a feeling that she wouldn’t be afraid. There was no vanity in her, which is what Fran McDormand had,” the filmmaker told our Anne Thompson. “I’m neurodivergent, and when there’s dissonance, I can’t function. I can’t look at the person. So I need that authenticity, and vanity is the number-one enemy of authenticity. Actors, their greatest blessing they can give to the world is their authenticity and their humanness.”

“Hamnet” was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Casting, Best Production Design, and Best Costume Design at this year’s Oscars.

The 98th Academy Awards took place at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday, March 15, with Conan O’Brien returning as host. The ceremony was broadcast live on ABC starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. Check out the full list of winners right here.