One Battle After Another Dominates 98th Academy Awards with Six Wins

The 98th Academy Awards ceremony took place on March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, with the drama "One Battle After Another" claiming Best Picture and a total of six awards to dominate the evening. The animated film "KPop Demon Hunters" won Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song for the track "Golden," marking a notable moment for the genre. The documentary "Mr. Nobody Against Putin" took home Best Documentary Feature, a win that drew reactions in Russia. The ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, handed out awards across 24 categories. The night also produced off-screen talking points, from a near-wardrobe mishap on the red carpet to a record-breaking streak of losses by a veteran songwriter.

"Mr. Nobody Against Putin" win echoes in Moscow The Best Documentary Feature award went to "Mr. Nobody Against Putin," a film offering an unvarnished portrait of Russia, and Russian media covered the win with limited detail, according to reporting from Polish outlets. The documentary beat out four other nominees, including "Come See Me in the Good Light," "Cutting Through the Rocks," "The Alabama Solution," and "The Perfect Neighbor," according to web search results. The film's subject matter — a critical examination of Russian political reality — made the Oscar recognition a sensitive topic in Russia. Polish outlet edgp.gazetaprawna.pl reported on the film's background, describing it as a look at Russia without retouching. The reaction in Russia, as reported by o2.pl, was muted, with state-aligned media providing sparse coverage of the win. The award drew attention in Poland, where the documentary's themes resonated with ongoing public interest in Russian affairs.

K-pop's long journey from mockery to Oscar gold "KPop Demon Hunters" claimed two awards on the night, winning Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song for "Golden," a result that Polish outlet WP Kultura framed as a vindication for a genre long dismissed by Western entertainment circles. The win was described as a cultural milestone, with the publication noting that the world once laughed at K-pop and is now rewarding it with the industry's highest honor. Jessie Buckley won Best Actress for her role in "Hamnet," according to web search results, while Amy Madigan took the first award of the evening, winning Best Supporting Actress. The ceremony at the Dolby Theatre drew the full complement of Hollywood's prominent figures, with the red carpet generating its own share of attention alongside the competitive categories. The Academy Awards have been presented annually since 1929, making the 98th ceremony part of one of the longest-running traditions in the entertainment industry. K-pop, the South Korean popular music genre, has seen its global cultural footprint expand significantly over the past decade, with South Korean productions gaining increasing recognition at major Western awards ceremonies. The documentary category has frequently served as a platform for politically charged filmmaking, with films critical of authoritarian governments earning nominations and wins in past years.

Diane Warren extends her record of Oscar losses Songwriter Diane Warren extended her record for the most Oscar losses without a competitive win, according to rozrywka.radiozet.pl, which described the milestone as an "unflattering record." Web search results from Variety and Deadline confirm that Warren had already lost the Best Original Song Oscar for the 16th time at the previous year's ceremony, meaning her latest loss at the 98th ceremony pushed that total further. The financial backdrop of the ceremony offered its own contrasts: according to well.pl, each Oscar statuette carries a nominal value of just one dollar, even as studios spend millions on awards campaigns. On the red carpet, actress Gwyneth Paltrow came close to a wardrobe mishap due to a daring outfit choice, as reported by Jastrząb Post. Polish journalist Grażyna Torbicka was absent from the ceremony, with Rozrywka Do Rzeczy reporting that she described the trip to the United States as a "risky roulette," a reference to current travel uncertainties. The combination of record-breaking losses, a one-dollar statuette, and a near-mishap on the carpet gave the 98th Oscars a set of storylines that extended well beyond the winners' podium.