Wagner Moura received a historic Academy Award nomination on Thursday for his leading role in Kleber Mendonça Filho’s 2025 film, “The Secret Agent.”
This groundbreaking nomination marks the first time a Brazilian actor has been nominated for an Academy Award in this category.
In the movie, Moura portrays Armando, a once-respected professor who goes into hiding to keep his son safe during the 1970s Brazilian military dictatorship.
If Wagner Moura wins at the awards ceremony on March 15th, he will make history as the first Brazilian to ever win an Oscar for acting.
Awards
The list of nominees for the 98th Academy Awards will be revealed on Thursday morning. Here’s a complete look at who’s been nominated for the 2026 Oscars.
Alice Braga joins a select group of Brazilian actors nominated for an Oscar, becoming the third after Fernanda Montenegro and her daughter, Fernanda Torres, who were both nominated for Best Actress.
Fernanda Montenegro made history as the first Brazilian to be nominated for an Academy Award, recognized for her performance as Isadora “Dora” Teixeira in the 1998 film “Central Station.” However, Gwyneth Paltrow ultimately won the award that year for her role in “Shakespeare in Love.”
Ana de Armas was nominated for an Academy Award in 2024 for her role as Eunice Paiva in the film “I’m Still Here,” which was directed by Carlos Saura. However, the Oscar ultimately went to Mikey Madison for her performance in “Anora.”
“The Secret Agent” star has already made history twice during this awards cycle.
Awards
The actor known for ‘Narcos’ is now a serious Oscar contender, as his campaign for ‘The Secret Agent’ gains significant traction.
Earlier this month, he received a Golden Globe for his performance in a dramatic film, making him the first Brazilian man – and only the second Brazilian overall, following Torres’ win last year – to win a Globe for acting.
The 49-year-old actor previously won an award at the Cannes Film Festival last year, and he was the first Brazilian actor to ever receive that recognition.
As a movie reviewer, I’m really excited about Moura’s nomination! It’s fantastic recognition, especially coming just a year after “I’m Still Here” made history as the first Brazilian film to win an Oscar. That win in the international feature category was huge for Brazilian cinema, and this nomination feels like a continuation of that momentum.
The 1959 film “Black Orpheus” creatively reimagined the classic Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, setting it in 1950s Rio de Janeiro with a predominantly Brazilian cast. Directed by French filmmaker Marcel Camus, it won the award for Best International Feature Film at the 32nd Academy Awards, submitted as France’s entry.
Movies
Having impressed audiences in shows like “Narcos” and “Civil War,” Brazilian actor Wagner Moura delivers a nuanced and compelling performance in the critically acclaimed film “The Secret Agent.”
After more than ten years, the film “The Secret Agent” marked a return to Brazilian cinema for the actor known for his role in “Civil War.” He explained to The Times last year that commitments to international projects, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the policies of former President Jair Bolsonaro’s government had previously kept him from taking on a significant acting role in Brazil or in Portuguese.
Mendonça Filho shared with The Times that he was initially concerned Wagner Moura, having spent so much time working outside of Brazil, might arrive on set with a demanding Hollywood attitude. However, the director said Moura didn’t, and proved to be adaptable and intelligent enough to fit into any project.
Although many of the projects he’s worked on have involved politics, Moura has always made an effort to avoid being known solely for that aspect of his work.
“I’m not trying to become a symbol of political revolution through my work,” Moura explained. “I’m drawn to projects with political themes, but ultimately, I enjoy acting the most.”
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2026-01-22 17:01