Whether or not Parasite wins Best Picture at Sunday's Oscars, it's already made history.
Bong Joon-ho's acclaimed thriller just won the Oscar for Best International Feature Film, becoming the first South Korean movie to ever take that prize. Believe it or not, it was also the first South Korean movie to ever be nominated for Best International Feature Film. Burning seemed likely to make that history last year, but it was surprisingly snubbed. Earlier in the night, Parasite also won Best Original Screenplay.
In his acceptance speech, Bong said "I applaud and support the new direction" symbolized by the Academy changing the name of this Oscar, which used to be Best Foreign Language Film.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"I'm ready to drink tonight," Bong added to massive applause.
There have been plenty of Parasite firsts throughout this awards season, as the film previously became the first South Korean movie to win Best Foreign Language Film at the Golden Globes. It also won Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, becoming the first foreign-language film to win that prize, and it became the first South Korean movie to win the Palme d'or at the Cannes Film Festival.
Parasite is also up for Best Picture at Sunday's Oscars, where it's looking to pull off an upset over the favorite, 1917. Were it to do so, it would become the first foreign-language movie to ever win Best Picture.
-
Panspermia: the theory that life was sent to Earth by aliensUnder The Radar New findings have resurfaced an old, controversial idea
-
What's a bridge loan and how could it make buying your next home possible?The Explainer This type of loan has both pros and cons
-
The Week contest: Phone riskPuzzles and Quizzes
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposesspeed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wifespeed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
