The heartfelt film “CODA” overpowered “The Power of the Dog” to win best picture at Sunday’s Academy Awards, making history as the first movie with a predominantly deaf cast to win the illustrious honor.
“CODA,” a coming-of-age drama centering on a child of deaf adults, features deaf actors Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin and Daniel Durant among its main cast members.
The acclaimed film won each of the three honors it was nominated for Sunday. Kotsur took home the trophy for best supporting actor for his portrayal of the family patriarch, while the movie also won best adapted screenplay.
“I really want to the thank the Academy for recognizing a movie of love and family in this difficult time that we need today,” producer Patrick Wachsberger said in an acceptance speech.
“CODA” gained momentum in the Oscars best picture race in recent weeks, winning the top honors at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Producers Guild of America Awards.
“The Power of the Dog,” a dark Western drama about a domineering cattle rancher, received 12 Oscar nominations to lead all films.
Other high-profile nominees in the best picture race included Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the musical “West Side Story”; Kenneth Branagh’s semiautobiographical “Belfast,” a coming-of-age story set during the social unrest of Northern Ireland in the late 1960s; and the sports biopic “King Richard,” which stars Will Smith as the eccentric father of tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams.
With his win, Kotsur became the second deaf performer to win an Oscar, and the first male actor to do so. Matlin was the first, winning best supporting actress in 1987 for the drama “Children of a Lesser God.”
“This is dedicated to the deaf community, the CODA community, and the disabled community,” Kotsur said after his win. “This is our moment. To my mom, my dad and my brother, Mark; they’re not here today, but look at me now. I did it.”
“CODA,” which is an Apple TV+ film, is the first streaming movie to win best picture.
