Zoe Saldaña, an actress in some of the top-grossing films of all time, including the Avatar franchise and playing Gamora in the Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers movies, has won her first Academy Award, winning Best Supporting Actress for playing Rita in Emilia Pérez. Her category was stiff against actresses like Isabella Rossellini for Conclave, Felicia Day for The Brutalist, Monica Barbaro for A Complete Unknown, and Ariana Grande for Wicked. With this win, Saldaña becomes the first Dominican American to win an Academy Award.

In her speech, Saldaña says she was “floored” by the honor and says of her character, “Thank you to the academy for recognizing the quiet heroism and the power in a woman like Rita.” She goes on to praise her fellow nominees, saying “And talking about powerful women, my fellow nominees, the love and community that you have offered me is a true gift, and I will pay it forward. Thank you so much.”. She also praises the director of Emilia Pérez, Jaque Audiard, calling him “a beloved character in my life”

Saldaña also goes on to thank her family, saying “To my mom, my dad and my sisters … everything brave, outrageous and good that l’ve ever done in my life is because of you”, as well as adding “And to my husband … the biggest honor of my life is being your partner. You hung the moon in our beautiful, perfect sons Cy, Bowie, and Zen.”

Saldaña ends her speech by dedicating it to her grandmother and her Dominican heritage. “My grandmother came to this country in 1961. I am a proud child of immigrant parents with dreams and dignity and hardworking hands, and I am the first American of Dominican origin to accept an Academy Award, and I know I will not be the last.” She completes her speech with one final statement: “I hope the fact that I’m getting an award for a role where I got to sing and speak in Spanish, my grandmother, if she were here, she would be so delighted. This is for my grandmother.”