Michelle Yeoh has won the 2023 Oscar for Best Actress for her work in Everything Everywhere All At Once, after a long and storied career.
The Malaysian star, 60, was surrounded by her cast and crew - who also won Best Picture moments later - after her name was read out by Jessica Chastain and Halle Berry, before she made her way to the stage.
"For all the little boys and girls who look like me, this is proof that dreams do come true," she said, "And ladies don't let anyone tell you [that] you are past your prime."
"I have to dedicate this to my mom, all the moms in the world, they sare the real superheroes. She is 84, and I am taking this home to her... I am bringing this home to you."
"This is a historic moment, I have to thanks the Academy for embracing true represenation," she continued in the press room later in the evening.
"We have been working towards this for such a long time, and tonight we broke the fricking glass ceiling. We shattered it."
MORE: Why Everything Everywhere All At Once has already made Oscar history
Michelle won Best Actress
Cate Blanchett, Ana de Armas, Andrea Riseborough and Michelle Williams were all also nominated for Best Actress. Michelle was the first actress of Southeast Asian descent to be nominated - and to win - for Best Actress
The celebration came after an evening of joyful wins for the likes of Michelle's co-stars Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis.
Ke first shot to fame back in 1984, when he was only thirteen years old and starred as Short Round alongside Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, later starring as Data in 1985's The Goonies, both of which had Steven Spielberg behind them. He did not work for almost 30 years before he was offered the role in The Daniels' Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Jamie also won for her work in EEAAO, and the star delivered a moving speech as the auditorium erupted in applause, surrounded by A-listers in their best glitz and glam.
In its almost 100-year history less than 20 Asian actors have been nominated at the Academy Awards; 2023 has the highest number of Asian actors ever nominated across the acting categories.
All Quiet on the Western Front swept the below the line categories, picking up five awards, while Sarah Polley won Adapted Screenplay for Women Talking.
The evening, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, was a roaring success - with no incidents - although he referenced the infamous 2022 slap, quipping: "If anyone commits any act of violence, you will be awarded best actor and permitted to give a 19-minute long speech. But seriously, if anything unpredictable or violent happens do what you did last year; nothing. Maybe give the assailant a hug."
Jimmy 'parachuted' onto the Oscars stage in a homage to Top Gun: Maverick, before launching into his opening monologue where he teased Nicole Kidman's movie theatre advert, questioned Seth Rogan about his drug use and celebrated Stephen Spielberg's incredible achievement of being nominated at least once over six decades.
The full list of winners can be read here.
