Oscars 2026 winners: 'One Battle After Another' triumphs, record-breaking wins and surprise twists on Oscars night
What a night at the Dolby Theatre! The 98th Academy Awards are now history, and they delivered exactly what every film fan hopes for: clear winners, historic moments, and the odd twist nobody saw coming. Paul Thomas Anderson's epic 'One Battle After Another' was the undisputed king of the night, scooping a whopping six trophies, including the really big ones. But 'Sinners' and 'Frankenstein' also had plenty to celebrate, bagging multiple gold awards themselves.
The big winner: 'One Battle After Another'
Director Paul Thomas Anderson, long regarded as one of the greats for decades, finally took home a richly deserved Oscar for Best Director. His film also claiming the night's most prestigious prize, Best Picture, was the logical culmination of a triumphant awards season run. But it didn't stop there: the picture also secured awards for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Casting – a newly introduced category – and Sean Penn picked up the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. For Penn, this marks his third acting Oscar, placing him in the illustrious company of Jack Nicholson and Daniel Day-Lewis.
The cream of the acting crop: Jordan and Buckley shine
In the acting categories, there were no real surprises, but plenty of well-deserved applause. Michael B. Jordan won a thoroughly deserved Oscar for Best Actor for his dual role in Ryan Coogler's vampire drama 'Sinners'. He saw off stiff competition from the likes of Timothée Chalamet and Leonardo DiCaprio. In the female category, Jessie Buckley came out on top. For her intense performance in 'Hamnet', she was awarded the Oscar for Best Actress – a choice that, following her triumphs at the major awards ceremonies this season, came as no surprise.
In the supporting roles, alongside Sean Penn, there was another memorable moment: Amy Madigan was honoured as Best Supporting Actress for her role in the horror film 'Weapons', crowning a decades-long career.
Historic wins and a quirky tie
But the evening had much more to offer than just the major winners. There was double the reason to celebrate over at 'Sinners'. Not only did the film win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (Ryan Coogler), but Autumn Durald Arkapaw made history as the first woman to win the Oscar for Best Cinematography. A long-overdue milestone in this category! Composer Ludwig Göransson rounded off the triumph for 'Sinners' with the Oscar for Best Original Score.
One of the most emotional moments came courtesy of Guillermo del Toro's 'Frankenstein'. This reimagining of the classic dominated the technical categories and deservedly won Oscars for Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling.
'KPop Demon Hunters' was also a phenomenon. The Netflix animated hit not only won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, but the catchy tune 'Golden' also triumphed in the Best Original Song category – the first K-pop song to do so. And then there was the first tie in a category for 14 years: in the Live Action Short Film category, 'The Singers' and 'Two People Exchanging Saliva' had to share the statue – a quirky but lovely moment that sparked laughter and applause in the hall.
The winners of the 98th Academy Awards at a glance
Here is the complete list of the 2026 Oscar winners in the key categories:
- Best Picture: One Battle After Another
- Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another)
- Best Actor: Michael B. Jordan (Sinners)
- Best Actress: Jessie Buckley (Hamnet)
- Best Supporting Actor: Sean Penn (One Battle After Another)
- Best Supporting Actress: Amy Madigan (Weapons)
- Best Original Screenplay: Sinners
- Best Adapted Screenplay: One Battle After Another
- Best International Feature Film: Sentimental Value (Norway)
- Best Animated Feature: KPop Demon Hunters
- Best Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw (Sinners)
- Best Original Score: Ludwig Göransson (Sinners)
- Best Original Song: "Golden" (KPop Demon Hunters)
- Best Visual Effects: Avatar: Fire and Ash