It's been a big week for Moonlight star Mahershala Ali with both a new baby and an Oscar win coming into his life within days of each other.
Mahershala won the Best Supporting Actor Award at Sunday's (February 26) 89th Academy Award for his acclaimed portrayal of the compassionate father figure to a bullied young boy in Moonlight.
"I want to thank my teachers, my professors – I had so many wonderful teachers," Mahershala said while tearing up in his acceptance speech.
"One thing they consistently told me... is that it's not about you. It's about these characters. You're in service to these stories and these character. I'm so blessed to have an opportunity – it's about [Moonlight characters] Chiron and Paula.
"The cast and crew, it's just such a wonderful experience... The rest of the cast who did wonderful work, any one of them could be up here."
Mahershala also had a message for one very special person: "I just want to thank my wife who was in her third trimester during award season. We just a daughter four days ago.
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"I want to thank her for being just such a soldier through this process and really carrying me through it all."
That big win came in a category pitting Mahershala against Jeff Bridges (Hell or High Water), Lucas Hedges (Manchester by the Sea), Dev Patel (Lion) and Michael Shannon (Nocturnal Animals).
This race was one of the more difficult to call since Golden Globe winner Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nocturnal Animals) ultimately wasn't even nominated for an Academy Award.
Mahershala Best Supporting Actor puts him in the same company as previous winners Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Denzel Washington, Cuba Gooding Jr, Heath Ledger and Jared Leto.
Not only that, he's a new father! Mahershala revealed that his wife Amatus Sami-Karim welcomed their first child last week in the run-up to the Oscars ceremony.
Congratulations, Mahershala!
Jimmy Kimmel hosted the 89th Academy Awards from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on Sunday. For a full list of the night's winners, click here.
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Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
