I think I can safely say none of us saw that coming. From the moment Glenn Close took home the Golden Globe for Best Actress in A Motion Picture, Drama, it seemed like this category was going to be a lock. After seven nominations and no wins, she was finally going to win the Oscar for Best Actress for her stunning portrayal of a long-suffering spouse stifling her creativity in The Wife. And if by some insane upset someone else were to win, it would obviously be Lady Gaga, who so beautifully portrayed a burgeoning supernova in A Star Is Born.
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But as seems to be the trend this year, the Academy decided to throw expectations out the window. Instead, Olivia Colman's name was called by Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell. And you know what? It works.
Colman, who played the madcap, tragic real-life figure of Queen Anne in The Favourite, fully deserves this award. And in a fair world, she'd have been the obvious front-runner. But still, what an upset! Even she couldn't believe it.
"It's genuinely quite stressful," she half-sobbed, half-laughed when arriving on stage. "This is hilarious."
Her speech was everything you'd hope for from a woman playing someone who calls for lobsters to race in her palace: funny, touching, and a little quirky. But in a graceful moment, she also thanked her fellow nominees, including Close:"Glenn Close, you've been my idol for so long. This is not how I wanted it to be, and I think you're amazing."
Her last words were "Lady Gaga!" and honestly, same.
And if you, like me, can't ever get enough of Colman's performances, you're in luck. She'll be starring as Queen Elizabeth in the next season of The Crown, and in Them That Follow, which premiered at Sundance in January.
All hail the queen!
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