16 years later, Renée Zellweger scores her 2nd Oscar


Renée Zellweger is back, and the Academy is giving her a warm welcome.
As expected, Zellweger on Sunday won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as Judy Garland in Judy. This was her second Oscar win after taking Best Supporting Actress in 2004 for Cold Mountain, but it's her first win in the Best Actress category. She was also nominated for Chicago and Bridget Jones's Diary.
Zellweger was the frontrunner to win Best Actress going back several months, and she previously swept the Golden Globe Awards, the Screen Actors Guild Awards, the Critics' Choice Movie Awards, and the British Academy Film Awards. She was competing against Cynthia Erivo, Scarlett Johansson, Saoirse Ronan, and Charlize Theron.
Subscribe to 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.
Judy was seen as a return to form for Zellweger, who took a hiatus from acting for six years before returning with Bridget Jones's Baby in 2016. The Academy loves nothing if not a comeback narrative and on Sunday was eager to reward Zellweger for her widely-praised, transformative performance.
In her acceptance speech, Zellweger paid tribute to Garland, calling her "among the heroes who unite and define us."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
June 1 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include Donald Trump's golden comb-over, brain drain in America, and a new TACO presidential seal.
-
5 cartoons about the TACO trade
Cartoons Political cartoonists take on America's tariffs, Vladimir Putin waiting for taco Tuesday, and a new presidential seal
-
A city of culture in the high Andes
The Week Recommends Cuenca is a must-visit for those keen to see the 'real Ecuador'
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster show
Speed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
-
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar take top Grammys
Speed Read Beyoncé took home album of the year for 'Cowboy Carter' and Kendrick Lamar's diss track 'Not Like Us' won five awards
-
The Louvre is giving 'Mona Lisa' her own room
Speed Read The world's most-visited art museum is getting a major renovation
-
Honda and Nissan in merger talks
Speed Read The companies are currently Japan's second and third-biggest automakers, respectively
-
Taylor Swift wraps up record-shattering Eras tour
Speed Read The pop star finally ended her long-running tour in Vancouver, Canada
-
Drake claims illegal boosting, defamation
Speed Read The rapper accused Universal Music of boosting Kendrick Lamar's diss track and said UMG allowed him to be falsely accused of pedophilia