Frances McDormand wins Best Actress at the Oscars 2021

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Frances McDormand has taken home the Oscar for Best Actress at the 2021 Academy Awards

Frances McDormand in Nomadland
(Image credit: Searchlight Pictures)

Frances McDormand has won the Best Actress award at the 2021 Oscars for her performance in Nomadland. She beat Viola Davis (Ma Rainey's Black Bottom), Andra Day (The United States vs. Billie Holiday), Vanessa Kirby (Pieces of a Woman), and Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman).

McDormand portrayed Fern in Chloé Zhao's Nomadland, which follows the character's nomadic life on the road, living out of her van following financial disaster. Nomadland was nominated for multiple other Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Zhao, and won both of those categories. 

"We should have had a karaoke bar," McDormand said while accepting her third acting Oscar, having previously won for both Fargo and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. She added: "My voice is in my sword."

Meanwhile, in the Best Actor category, Anthony Hopkins was a surprise winner, beating Chadwick Boseman's performance in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Boseman had long been the bookies' favorite to win the award.

Molly Edwards
Molly Edwards
Deputy Entertainment Editor

I'm the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.