Ireland's First
Jessie Buckley won Best Actress for Chloe Zhao's Hamnet, a biographical drama about Shakespeare's wife Agnes and the death of their son. Buckley became the first Irish-born actress to win Best Actress in Oscar history.
The Competition
| Nominee | Film | IMDb | RT Critics | Worldwide Gross |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jessie Buckley (WINNER) | Hamnet | 7.9 | 87% | $92M |
| Rose Byrne | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Kate Hudson | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Renate Reinsve | Sentimental Value | 7.8 | 96% | $22M |
| Emma Stone | Bugonia | 7.4 | 87% | $43M |
The Film's Profile
Hamnet was directed by Chloe Zhao (Nomadland) with a screenplay co-written by Zhao and novelist Maggie O'Farrell, based on O'Farrell's 2020 novel. The film stars Buckley as Agnes and Paul Mescal as William Shakespeare, with Emily Watson, Joe Alwyn, and Noah Jupe in supporting roles.
Budget was approximately $35.7M, and the film grossed $92.4M worldwide. Produced by Steven Spielberg and Sam Mendes, distributed by Focus Features/Universal.
The Data Story
Hamnet's 7.9 IMDb rating is the highest among all five Best Actress nominees' films. That is significant: it is also the highest IMDb rating for any Best Actress winner's film since Frances McDormand's Nomadland (7.3, but that one won Best Picture too).
The 87% RT score is the lowest among the top contenders (Reinsve's Sentimental Value had 96%), but the audience score of 93% suggests the film connects more strongly with general viewers than critics.
Hamnet also won two Golden Globes: Best Motion Picture - Drama and Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama. That double Globe win is historically a strong predictor for Oscar success.
The ROI
At $92M on $35.7M, Hamnet returned roughly 1.6x its budget at the box office. That is modest but respectable for a period literary adaptation with no franchise IP. It outperformed most comparable prestige dramas.
Data Verdict
Buckley's win is supported by the highest IMDb rating in the field and strong audience reception (93% audience score). The Golden Globe double win provided institutional momentum. The 87% RT critics score is lower than Reinsve's Sentimental Value (96%), which means the Academy chose audience resonance over critical consensus here. A defensible pick backed by solid numbers.