Michelle Yeoh makes history as 1st Asian woman to win Oscar for best actress
Yeoh won for her performance in "Everything Everywhere All at Once."
Michelle Yeoh won the Academy Award for best actress at the 2023 Oscars Sunday night for her performance in "Everything Everywhere All at Once."
Yeoh, who was born in Malaysia and is a legend in the Hong Kong action film world, also made history as the first Asian woman to win best actress in the 95-year history of the Academy Awards.
This was Yeoh's first Oscar nomination.
"For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities," Yeoh said in her acceptance speech, adding, "Dream big and dreams do come true."
The actress also gave a shout-out to women, saying, "And ladies, don't let anybody tell you you are ever past your prime. Never give up."
Yeoh dedicated the win to her 84-year-old mom, who she said was watching at home in Malaysia, as well as "all the moms in the world because they are really the superheroes and, without them, none of us will be here tonight."
WATCH: The best of Michelle Yeoh
Yeoh, who starred in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and 2018's "Crazy Rich Asians," played Evelyn Wang in "Everything Everywhere All at Once." The film was written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, aka "the Daniels."
The film follows Evelyn, a Chinese American immigrant woman who runs a laundromat and must connect with parallel versions of herself to save the multiverse -- all while being audited by the IRS and trying to connect with her family, including her husband Waymond Wang (Ke Huy Quan) and her daughter Joy Wang (Stephanie Hsu). The film also stars Jamie Lee Curtis and James Hong.
Yeoh, who also won best actress honors at the Golden Globes, the Independent Spirit Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards this season, came out on top Sunday night against fellow best actress nominees Cate Blanchett (Tár), Ana de Armas ("Blonde"), Andrea Riseborough ("To Leslie") and Michelle Williams ("The Fabelmans").
Headed into the 95th Academy Awards, "Everything Everywhere All at Once" led this year's pack of films with 11 total nominations in total, including Yeoh's best actress nod.
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