Michelle Yeoh Choo Kheng PSM is a Swiss-based Malaysian actress. Michelle Yeoh picked up the best actress Oscar for her role in Everything Everywhere All at Once. Yeoh is the first Asian woman to win the award, and the film was the night’s big winner, with seven awards.

“Don’t let anybody tell you you are ever past your prime,” Michelle Yeoh told the Oscars audience as she stepped onstage to accept her Best Lead Actress Academy Award tonight—only the second non-white woman, and first Asian woman, in the Oscars’ nearly 100-year history to do so. everything everywhere all at once was nominated for a total of 11 Oscars at the star-studded evening, and won several of the most illustrious awards, including Best Lead Actress and Best Picture.

Throughout the film’s remarkable run—since debuting at South by Southwest almost a year ago exactly—Yeoh has won over critics, fans, and Academy voters alike with her talent, grace, and storied Hollywood career. After gaining worldwide acclaim in the ’90s and early 2000s for her roles in films such as Supercop, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Tomorrow Never Dies, the Malaysian actress has since become one of the entertainment’s most consistent powerhouses. Tonight, she was finally awarded with the industry’s most coveted honor.

Thank you. Thank you.

“For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities. This is proof that dreams dream big and dreams do come true, and ladies, don’t let anybody tell you you are ever past your prime. Never give up”.