BREAKING: Anthony Hopkins has won the Oscar for Best Actor at the 93rd Academy Awards.
Honoured for his performance as an elderly man with dementia in The Father, it is Hopkins second Best Actor win, following his 1994 portrayal of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs. Now 83, today’s acclaim also makes Hopkins the oldest actor in history to succeed the category.
Hopkins wasn’t in attendance at the Los Angeles ceremony, and there was no acceptance speech (despite some hype surrounding one from Olivia Colman on his behalf).
The category was one under much speculation in the lead up to the Academy Awards, with the late Chadwick Boseman a favourite for his part in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Other nominees included Gary Oldman for Mank, Riz Ahmed for The Sound of Metal and Steven Yuen for Minari.
The Father followed Anthony as an 80-year-old man whom rejects care despite his deteriorating mental state. As his dementia progresses, we witness his daughter, Anne, grapple with the impending loss of her father. This, intertwined with the idea of family, love, identity and memory come together to put forward something that is simultaneously warm and heart-breaking, all whilst echoing real life.
Watch The Father trailer here:
See every other winner from the 2021 Oscars here.
