Wagner Moura makes history as first Brazilian lead actor Oscar nominee

Wagner Moura made past Thursday greeting erstwhile helium was nominated for an Academy Award successful the class for histrion successful a starring relation for his show successful Kleber Mendonça Filho’s 2025 movie “The Secret Agent.”

This historical information makes Moura the archetypal Brazilian histrion nominated for an Oscar successful this field.

In the film, Moura plays Armando, a erstwhile prof forced into hiding portion trying to support his young lad during Brazil’s subject dictatorship during the 1970s.

Should helium triumph astatine the March 15 ceremony, Moura would go the archetypal Brazilian to triumph an Oscar successful an acting category.

Moura is the 3rd Brazilian nationalist to beryllium nominated for an acting Oscar, joining the mother-daughter duo of Fernanda Montenegro and Fernanda Torres — some of whom were nominated for histrion successful a starring role.

Montenegro became the archetypal Brazilian nominated successful the class for her relation arsenic Isadora “Dora” Teixeira successful the 1998 Walter Salles movie “Central Station.” The grant yet went to Gwyneth Paltrow for her show successful “Shakespeare successful Love.”

Torres received her Academy Award information for her portrayal of Eunice Paiva successful 2024’s “I’m Still Here,” which was besides directed by Salles. The Oscar that twelvemonth was awarded to Mikey Madison for her enactment successful “Anora.”

“The Secret Agent” prima has already made past doubly during this awards cycle.

He won the Golden Globe for pb histrion successful a question representation play earlier this period for the governmental thriller, becoming the 2nd Brazilian and archetypal Brazilian antheral to instrumentality location a Globes acting prize, aft Torres’ triumph past twelvemonth for “I’m Still Here.”

The 49-year-old histrion besides earned the histrion prize astatine past year’s Cannes Film Festival, making him the archetypal Brazilian performer to triumph that honor.

Moura’s information comes a twelvemonth aft “I’m Still Here” became the archetypal afloat Brazilian accumulation to triumph an Academy Award with its triumph successful the planetary diagnostic category.

The 1959 movie “Black Orpheus” — which retold the story of Orpheus and Eurydice successful the discourse of 1950s Rio de Janeiro and featured a mostly Brazilian formed — won the planetary diagnostic grant astatine the 32nd Academy Awards arsenic the French submission and was helmed by French manager Marcel Camus.

“The Secret Agent” represented a cinematic homecoming for the “Civil War” prima aft not starring successful a Brazilian movie for implicit a decade, helium told The Times past year. Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s oppressive right-wing administration, the COVID-19 pandemic and commitments overseas prevented him from taking connected a large acting occupation successful his location state and successful his autochthonal language.

Mendonça Filho told The Times that helium initially disquieted if Moura — aft truthful galore years moving distant from Brazil — would bring immoderate of the “Where’s my trailer?” cognition radical presume exists successful Hollywood. “He didn’t,” the manager said. “He’s intelligent capable to accommodate to each project.”

Even arsenic his vocation has been shaped by politically charged projects, Moura has been cautious not to fto that constituent specify him.

“I don’t privation to beryllium the Che Guevara of film,” Moura said. “I gravitate towards things that are political, but I similar being an histrion much than thing else.”