'This is the greatest honour. I can't even believe it': Kerry star Jessie Buckley wins Best Actress at Oscars 

Buckley has become the first Irish woman in history to win Best Actress, joining Brenda Fricker, who won Best Supporting Actress for My Left Foot in 1989, writes Esther McCarthy

Jessie Buckley, winner of the award for actress in a leading role for "Hamnet," poses in the press room at the Oscars on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Picture: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

It’s a long way from Killarney’s Mangerton Mountain to the Hollywood Hills - but Jessie Buckley has become the toast of Tinseltown following her triumphant, history-making win at the Oscars.

An emotional Buckley took to the stage after winning Best Actress for Hamnet, her performance going into the record books as the first Irish woman to win Best Actress.

“My family, my Irish family, they're all here. Mum, dad, thank you for teaching us to dream and to never be defined by expectation, but to carve from your own passion,” said Buckley, who went on to thank her husband and baby daughter.

“Fred. I love you, man, I love you. You're the most incredible dad. You're my best friend, and I want to have 20,000 more babies with you. And Isla, my little girl, who is eight months, who has absolutely no idea what's going on and is probably dreaming of milk, but this is kind of a big deal, and I love you, and I love being your mum, and I can't wait to discover life beside you.”

Adding that today was Mother’s Day, Jessie said: “I would like to dedicate this to the beautiful chaos of a mother's heart. Thank you for recognising me in this role. This is the greatest honour. I can't even believe it. Go raibh míle míle maith agat. Slán.” 

What a remarkable first Mother’s Day it has been for Buckley, who became a mum last year, and who plays a mum struggling with grief in the powerful drama.

Among the A-listers cheering her on at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre were her own mother, Marina, and father Tim, proudly looking on as their daughter was awarded the greatest accolade in film. 

Her Hamnet co-star Paul Mescal, co-writer Maggie O’Farrell and director and co-writer Chloé Zhao were among the colleagues and friends who took to their feet in celebration. Based on the award-winning novel by Northern Irish writer O’Farrell, Hamnet tells how a huge personal loss helped inspire one of William Shakespeare’s greatest plays.

Irish actress Jessie Buckley accepts the award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, for Hamnet onstage during the 98th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Picture: Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images

Buckley has become the first Irish woman in history to win Best Actress, joining Brenda Fricker, who won Best Supporting Actress for My Left Foot in 1990. 

Both Saoirse Ronan and Ruth Negga have previously been nominated for Best Actress, while Maureen O’Hara was presented with an honorary Oscar in 2014.

Buckley’s Oscar win followed a remarkable third Oscar for Tallaght filmmaker Richard Baneham - a graduate of the highly successful animation school in Ballyfermot - for Best Visual Effects. They have all been for his collaboration with filmmaker James Cameron on the hugely successful Avatar series of films.

Celebrations took place in the Arbutus Hotel at a private gathering hosted by the Buckley family in Killarney. Jessie's aunts, uncles and first cousins, her Godfather Sean Buckley, 3rd left, (3rd generation owner of the Arbutus Hotel & Buckley's Bar), Her uncles Mike Fuller, Kieran Kavanagh, Jessie's aunts, Mary Fuller, Una Kavanagh and Carol Dempsey and first cousins celebrating . Picture: Valerie O'Sullivan.

This year’s big winners at the Oscars included Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, which took home six Oscars, including Best Picture, and Sinners, which won four, including Best Actor for Michael B Jordan.

For Buckley, a love of drama and music fostered by her family, embraced by the long-established Killarney Musical Society, and evident from when she competed as a youngster at Cork’s Feis Maitiú, has echoed from her home community to the world stage.

From her roles in independent dramas, including Wild Rose and Beast, to an Oscar nomination for The Lost Daughter, to her music collaboration with Bernard Butler on the 2022 album For All the Days That Tear the Heart, hers has been no whirlwind success. But this is Jessie Buckley’s time.

Daniel Barrett, from left, Eric Saindon, Richard Baneham, and Joe Letteri, winners of the award for visual effects for "Avatar: Fire and Ash," pose in the press room at the Oscars on Sunday. Picture: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP.

It was a busy night for Irish nominees who had a strong showing at the awards this year. Element Pictures’ long-established run of success at the Oscars saw it receive four nominations, including Best Picture for Bugonia, along with Best Adapted Screenplay for Will Tracy, Best Actress for Emma Stone and Best Original Score.

Irish nominees John Kelly and Andrew Freedman were nominated in the Best Animated Short category for Retirement Plan. Narrated by Domhnall Gleeson, it follows Ray, who dreams of the adventures he’ll find when work finally ends.

Irish production company Wild Atlantic Pictures Blue Moon, which was filmed on location here, was nominated for Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor.