Best Picture 2026: One Battle After Another Wins Oscar — Full Story

Published: March 16, 2026  |  Entertainment  |  98th Academy Awards  |  9 min read

The Best Picture winner at the 2026 Oscars is One Battle After Another — directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and produced alongside Sara Murphy. The film claimed Hollywood’s most prestigious prize at the 98th Academy Awards on March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, closing out one of the most celebrated Oscar nights in recent memory.

With six Academy Awards in total — the most of any film on the night — One Battle After Another beat out a field that included the record-breaking Sinners (16 nominations) and nine other highly acclaimed films. For director Paul Thomas Anderson, it ended a 28-year wait and 11 previous nominations without a single win.

🎬 Best Picture 2026: One Battle After Another  |  Director: Paul Thomas Anderson  |  Total Wins: 6  |  Ceremony: 98th Academy Awards, March 15, 2026

Best Picture 2026 Winner — One Battle After Another

🏆 Best Picture — 2026 Winner

One Battle After Another

Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson  |  Produced by Paul Thomas Anderson & Sara Murphy

One Battle After Another — Key Facts

What Is One Battle After Another About?

One Battle After Another is a thriller drama about aging left-wing ex-revolutionaries — a story of ideology, loyalty, betrayal, and what happens to people who devoted their lives to a cause when the world around them has moved on. The film is adapted from a novel, with Anderson writing the screenplay himself.

The film features a powerhouse ensemble cast led by Leonardo DiCaprio, who received a Best Actor nomination for the film, and Sean Penn, who won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance. Benicio del Toro also received a Best Supporting Actor nomination for the film — meaning PTA’s movie claimed two of the five spots in that category alone.

Critics praised its intricate character work, slow-burn tension, and Anderson’s distinctive visual language — long-held shots, overlapping dialogue, and the kind of emotionally precise filmmaking that has defined his career since Boogie Nights in 1997. Producer Sara Murphy, accepting the Best Picture Oscar onstage, said making the film had been ‘the greatest filmmaking experience I can fathom.’

‘Getting to make this film with this cast and this crew and Paul has already been the greatest filmmaking experience I can fathom, so receiving this award is just beyond — my heart is exploding with gratitude.’ — Sara Murphy, Best Picture acceptance speech

All Six Oscars Won by One Battle After Another

The six-win total made One Battle After Another the runaway winner of the night. The film also placed two actors — Leonardo DiCaprio (Best Actor nominee) and Benicio del Toro (Best Supporting Actor nominee) — in acting categories, and received a Best Production Design nomination, confirming its status as one of the most complete and technically accomplished films of the year.

Paul Thomas Anderson — Finally Wins His First Oscar

For many, the biggest story of the night was not the film itself — it was the man behind it. Paul Thomas Anderson is widely regarded as one of the greatest filmmakers of his generation, responsible for some of the most celebrated American films of the past three decades. And yet, heading into the 98th ceremony, he had never won a single Academy Award.

1997

Boogie Nights — first major critical success. No Oscar nominations.

1999

Magnolia — three Oscar nominations. No wins.

2007

There Will Be Blood — eight nominations including Best Picture and Best Director. No win for PTA.

2012

The Master — three nominations. No wins.

2017

Phantom Thread — six nominations including Best Picture and Best Director. No win.

2026

One Battle After Another — Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay. His first Oscars. Ever. 🏆

On winning Best Director, Anderson dedicated his award to his late collaborator Adam Somner: ‘He’s in a really big bar up in the sky right now, having a gin and tonic, and he is so happy.’ He also acknowledged his partner, actress Maya Rudolph, and offered one of the most quietly honest acceptance speeches of the night: ‘There will always be some doubt in your heart that you deserve it. But there is no question the pleasure of having it for myself.’

When collecting Best Picture, he closed the entire ceremony with seven words that became the most quoted line of the night: ‘What a night, you guys. Let’s have a martini.’

‘What a night, you guys. Let’s have a martini. This is amazing. Cheers.’ — Paul Thomas Anderson, closing the 98th Academy Awards

For his Adapted Screenplay, Anderson dedicated the win to his children: ‘I wrote this movie for my kids, to say sorry for the housekeeping mess that we left in this world we’re handing off to them — but also with the encouragement that they will be the generation that hopefully brings us some common sense and decency.’

All 10 Best Picture Nominees — 2026

One Battle After Another 🏆 WINNER

Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson

Sinners

Dir. Ryan Coogler — 16 nominations (record)

Hamnet

Dir. Chloé Zhao

Sentimental Value

Dir. Joachim Trier (Norway)

Marty Supreme

Dir. Josh Safdie

Frankenstein

Dir. Guillermo del Toro

The Secret Agent

Dir. — Brazil

F1

Won Best Sound

Bugonia

—

Train Dreams

—

The field was headlined by Sinners — Ryan Coogler’s supernatural horror epic which entered the night with a record-breaking 16 nominations, the most in Oscar history — but ultimately the Academy gave its top prize to Anderson’s film. Sinners still had an outstanding night, winning four Oscars including Best Actor (Michael B. Jordan), Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, and Best Cinematography.

The Best Picture Race — How It Unfolded

Heading into the 98th ceremony, the Best Picture race was considered one of the most competitive in years. Two films dominated the conversation throughout awards season: One Battle After Another and Sinners.

Sinners had the momentum of history — its 16 nominations had shattered the all-time record, and Ryan Coogler’s film was being spoken about as a once-in-a-generation cultural event. One Battle After Another, meanwhile, had swept the guild awards — the traditional bellwether of Oscar success — collecting prizes from the Producers Guild, Directors Guild, and Writers Guild, all strong indicators of Best Picture success.

In the end, the Academy’s preference for craftsmanship, thematic depth, and the weight of a filmmaker’s legacy proved decisive. One Battle After Another won — and with six total prizes, it was not a close finish.

How This Best Picture Win Compares Historically

Sean Penn — Best Supporting Actor

One of the major subplots of One Battle After Another‘s Oscar night was the win for Sean Penn as Best Supporting Actor — who was notably absent from the ceremony to accept his award. Penn’s win was one of six for the film, and his performance had been widely praised as one of the best of his career.

Other nominees in the Best Supporting Actor category were also drawn from the film itself: Benicio del Toro received a nomination for One Battle After Another, alongside Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Delroy Lindo (Sinners), and Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value).

Cassandra Kulukundis — Wins Inaugural Best Casting Oscar

One of the most historic wins connected to One Battle After Another was the inaugural Best Achievement in Casting award — the first new Oscar category since Best Animated Feature was introduced in 2001. Cassandra Kulukundis won for her work on the film, becoming the first person ever to hold this Oscar.

In her acceptance speech, Kulukundis dedicated the award to all the casting directors ‘who never got a chance to get up here, who didn’t even get a chance to get their name on the movie’ — a moving tribute to a craft that had gone unrecognised by the Academy for its entire history. Other nominees in the category included Nina Gold (Hamnet), Jennifer Venditti (Marty Supreme), Gabriel Domingues (The Secret Agent), and Francine Maisler (Sinners).

The Full 2026 Oscars Picture — Other Major Winners

While One Battle After Another dominated the headline categories, the 98th Oscars delivered a night of historic wins across the board:

*Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the first woman and first Black person ever to win Best Cinematography.

Frequently Asked Questions — Best Picture 2026

Q: What won Best Picture at the 2026 Oscars?

One Battle After Another, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, won Best Picture at the 2026 Oscars. The film won six Academy Awards in total — the most of any film on the night of the 98th Academy Awards, held March 15, 2026.

Q: Who directed the 2026 Best Picture winner?

Paul Thomas Anderson directed One Battle After Another. He also won Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay on the same night — his first three Oscar wins after 11 nominations spanning 28 years.

Q: How many Oscars did One Battle After Another win?

Six Oscars: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor (Sean Penn), Best Film Editing (Andy Jurgensen), and Best Casting (Cassandra Kulukundis — the inaugural winner of this brand new category).

Q: What were all 10 Best Picture nominees at the 2026 Oscars?

The 10 nominees were: One Battle After Another (winner), Bugonia, F1, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sinners, and Train Dreams.

Q: What is One Battle After Another about?

One Battle After Another is a thriller drama about aging left-wing ex-revolutionaries, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, and Benicio del Toro.

Q: Did Sinners win Best Picture 2026?

No. Despite entering the night with a record-breaking 16 nominations — the most in Oscar history — Sinners did not win Best Picture. It won four Oscars: Best Actor (Michael B. Jordan), Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, and Best Cinematography.

Q: How many Oscar nominations did Paul Thomas Anderson have before winning?

Paul Thomas Anderson had 11 Oscar nominations over 28 years before winning his first at the 2026 ceremony. He won three Oscars on the same night: Best Picture (as producer), Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.

Q: Who hosted the 2026 Oscars?

Conan O’Brien hosted the 98th Academy Awards for the second consecutive year, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 15, 2026.