Michelle Yeoh has made history by becoming the first Asian person to win an Academy Award for best lead actress. She received the prestigious accolade for her performance in “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” Yeoh’s win follows her long and celebrated career in martial arts and action movies, including “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon” and “Yes, Madam.”
Directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the sci-fi adventure centres around Yeoh’s character Evelyn Wang, a middle-aged laundromat owner who connects with versions of herself from parallel universes to prevent cataclysmic destruction.
Yeoh dedicated her award to her mother and all the mothers in the world, calling them “real superheroes.” She encouraged all women to never give up and reminded them that they are never past their prime. Yeoh’s win makes her only the third Asian woman to win an acting prize at the Oscars, following Yuh-Jung Youn for “Minari” and Miyoshi Umeki for “Sayonara.”
Yeoh’s win at the Oscars adds to her already impressive record awards season for “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” The film scored a leading 11 nominations and won best picture and six other trophies at the ceremony.
