The 98th Academy Awards will be remembered as the night Jessie Buckley made history. The Kerry-born star became the first Irish woman to win Best Actress, delivering a performance in Hamnet that has officially cemented her status as a Hollywood A-lister.
Buckley turned heads on the red carpet in a stunning Chanel ensemble. Her elegant red and pink satin gown was a deliberate nod to the iconic dress worn by Grace Kelly at the 1956 Oscars. The look was completed with a Chanel diamond necklace, ring, and earrings, all crafted in 18-karat white gold.
Winning for her portrayal of Agnes Shakespeare in the Chloé Zhao-directed adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet, Buckley moved the audience by dedicating her win to "the beautiful chaos of a mother's heart" and jokingly telling her husband she wanted to "have 20,000 babies" with him.
It was a massive night for Irish talent, which secured 10 nominations across multiple categories:
Visual Effects: Dublin’s Richard Baneham won his latest Oscar for Avatar: Fire and Ash, alongside Eric Saindon, Daniel Barrett, and Joe Letteri.
Animated Short: Despite a strong showing for Retirement Plan (directed by John Kelly and voiced by Domhnall Gleeson), the award went to The Girl Who Cried Pearls.
Hosted by Conan O'Brien, the 2026 ceremony saw Michael B. Jordan win Best Actor for playing twins Smoke and Stack in Sinners. He is the first actor to win for a dual role since Lee Marvin in 1965.
Amy Madigan took home Best Supporting Actress for Weapons, exactly 40 years after her last nomination in 1986, and for only the seventh time in history, a tie was declared for Best Live Action Short, with both The Singers and Two People Exchanging Saliva taking home gold.
The evening was punctuated by emotional tributes, including Billy Crystal honouring Rob Reiner and Barbra Streisand singing for Robert Redford. History was also made in the technical branches: Cassandra Kulukundis won the first-ever Oscar for Casting, and Latvia secured its first-ever win as Flow took Best Animated Feature.
The night also a high-energy musical finish as HUNTR/X performed their winning Best Original Song, presented by the legendary Lionel Richie.
