MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

‘One Battle after Another’ leads the Oscars with six wins in a ceremony with few direct references to war

Paul Thomas Anderson’s film finished ahead of Sinners

The 98th Academy Awards crowned One Battle after Another as the night’s dominant winner, taking six Oscars including best picture, best director, best adapted screenplay, best supporting actor for Sean Penn, best film editing and the new award for casting. The ceremony was held Sunday in Los Angeles with Conan O’Brien as host.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s film finished ahead of Sinners, which won four awards: best actor for Michael B. Jordan, best original screenplay for Ryan Coogler, best cinematography for Autumn Durald Arkapaw, and best original score for Ludwig Göransson. Arkapaw also became the first woman and first Black cinematographer to win in that category, one of the ceremony’s notable firsts.

Frankenstein collected three awards, all in craft categories: makeup and hairstyling, costume design and production design. In the acting races, Jessie Buckley won best actress for Hamnet, while Amy Madigan took best supporting actress for Weapons. Elsewhere, Sentimental Value won best international feature and Mr. Nobody Against Putin won best documentary feature.

Animated feature KPop Demon Hunters won both best animated feature and best original song for “Golden,” while F1 won best sound. Spain’s Sirât, nominated for both sound and international feature, left empty-handed. The Academy also recorded a tie in best live action short film, shared by The Singers and Two People Exchanging Saliva.

Although the ceremony unfolded against the backdrop of multiple international conflicts, it largely avoided direct engagement with current geopolitics. There were still a few pointed moments: Javier Bardem said “No to war and free Palestine” onstage, and AP noted that the ceremony included some advocacy around human rights and Gaza, even if it made fewer direct references to the Iran war than some had anticipated. Reuters likewise described the political notes as present but secondary to the broader celebratory tone of the night.