Michelle Yeoh scripted history on Sunday by becoming the first Asian woman to win the best actress Oscar. The Malaysian-born actor won the award for her multifaceted performance in the multiversal Everything Everywhere All at Once.
Yeoh’s victory is remarkable as it comes almost 90 years after Luise Rainer, a white actor, won the same category for donning “yellowface” to play a Chinese villager in “The Good Earth,” reports The Associated Press.
Michelle Yeoh wins best actress oscar
Yeoh beat out past Oscar winner Cate Blanchett (Tár), as well as Michelle Williams (The Fabelmans), Ana de Armas (Blonde) and Andrea Riseborough (To Leslie).
She became globally famous after playing a Chinese spy opposite Pierce Brosnan in the James Bond instalment Tomorrow Never Dies' (1997). Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and 'Memoirs of a Geisha' are her other massively successful films. Yeoh is also popularly known for her role in Crazy Rich Asians as Eleanor Young, the matriarch of a wealthy Singaporean family.
In her acceptance speech, Yeoh said, “For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibility. This is proof that dreams dream big and dreams do come true,” she said. “And ladies, don’t let anyone ever tell you you’re past your prime.”
“Ladies, don’t let anyone tell you you are ever past your prime.” – Michelle Yeoh in her #Oscars speech pic.twitter.com/hUBkBNGPPZ
— Complex Pop Culture (@ComplexPop) March 13, 2023
Dedicating her Oscar to her mother who was accompanying Yeoh to the Oscars event, Yeoh said, “All the moms in the world, because they really are the superheroes and without them, none of us would be here tonight.” “I’m bringing this home! Thank you to the Academy, this is history in the making!” she finished.
Suggested Reading: RRR’s Nattu Naatu Wins At Oscars: What Does It Mean For Indian Cinema