The first-ever Oscar for achievement in casting was handed out Sunday, with Cassandra Kulukundis winning for her work on One Battle After Another.
Kulukundis thanked the academy for adding the category and the “casting directors that fought tirelessly to make it happen despite everything in their way.”
She also dedicated the award to “casting directors who never got a chance to get up here, who didn’t even get a chance to get their name on the movie.”
Addressing the film’s director, Paul Thomas Anderson, Kulukundis noted that they’ve worked together on 10 movies in the span of more than 30 years. She added, “I have one before you, which is also crazy. … I hope you get one tonight.”
The achievement in casting category is the first new competitive award at the Oscars in 24 years.
Each nominee in the category was introduced by a member of the film’s cast: Paul Mescal for Nina Gold (Hamnet), Gwyneth Paltrow for Jennifer Venditti (Marty Supreme), Wagner Moura for Gabriel Domingues (The Secret Agent), Delroy Lindo for Francine Maisler (Sinners) and Chase Infiniti for Kulukundis (One Battle After Another).
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
