One of the night’s most poignant moments occurred early in the Oscars 2025 telecast, when Paul Tazewell won the Academy Award for best costume design for his work on Wicked.
As Tazewell accepted his trophy, he said, “This is absolutely astounding. Thank you, Academy, for this very significant honor. I’m the first Black man to receive a costume design award for my work on Wicked.”
It’s not clear that others in the audience were aware that Tazewell would be breaking a barrier as the first Black man to win this Oscar category, but the moment he mentioned it, Rachel Zegler, Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande and others leapt to their feet, quickly inspiring a standing ovation among the rest of the audience.
“I’m so proud of this,” Tazewell continued, also mentioning the costume design crafts people he worked with in London, where Wicked was filmed. “Thank you everyone in the U.K. for all your beautiful work. And to my Oz-ian muses, Cynthia and Ariana, I love you so much.” Tazewell also thanked the rest of the cast “for trusting me with bringing your characters to life.”
Holding the Oscar aloft, Tazewell added, “This is everything.”
Unlike other Oscar categories that have been awarded since 1929, the Academy Award for best costume design was not declared an official category until 1949. Tazewell now stands alongside icons that include Edith Head, the record holder of eight Oscars for best costume design, Orry-Kelly and Ruth E. Carter, who became the first Black woman to win the category when she was awarded the Oscar in 2019 for Black Panther.
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