Central New York resident Adrien Brody won his second Academy Award on Sunday night, but he didn’t win over everyone with his acceptance speech.
Brody, who owns a historical mansion in Vienna, N.Y., took home the Best Actor trophy for his performance in “The Brutalist.” It’s his second Oscar win, after previously becoming the youngest actor to win the category for “The Pianist,” another Holocaust film, in 2003.
Before he went onstage, however, Brody shocked viewers when he spit out his gum — and threw it to his girlfriend, Georgina Chapman. She caught it, helping him in an awkward moment.
“Gross,” one viewer wrote on X (formerly Twitter) afterwards.
“Who does that?” another tweeted.
“You’ve just won the Oscar; why not put that gum in the pocket of the tux?” a third asked.
“I would never degrade my partner like this,“ a fourth said. ”Georgina — you’re 0 for 2 in picking men. You deserve better.”
Brody had already irked some fans by beating out other actors Timothée Chalamet (“A Complete Unknown”), Colman Domingo (“Sing Sing”), Ralph Fiennes (“Conclave”) and Sebastian Stan (“The Apprentice”) for the 2025 Oscars statuette. If Chalamet won for his performance as Bob Dylan, he would have broken Brody’s record for youngest Best Actor winner by eight months.
Brody faced further criticism for his lengthy acceptance speech — more than six minutes long — including telling the Oscars to cut the wrap-up music.
“I’m wrapping up, please, please, please, I will wrap up,” he said when the orchestra began to play. “Please turn the music off. I’ve done this before, it’s not my first rodeo. Thank you.”
Adrien Brody accepts the award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for “The Brutalist” onstage during the 97th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California on March 2, 2025. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon | AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty Images
Brody thanked Chapman, not for catching his gum, but for her support and love, including her two “beautiful children.” Chapman, who reportedly first started dating Brody in 2019, shares India and Dash with her ex-husband, disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.
“Popsy’s coming home a winner!” Brody said, revealing the kids’ nickname for him.
Variety reports Brody is one of just a handful of actors to win Best Actor at the Academy Awards twice, joining Spencer Tracy, Jack Nicholson, Marlon Brando, Dustin Hoffman, Gary Cooper, Tom Hanks, Fredric March, Sean Penn and Anthony Hopkins. Daniel Day-Lewis is the only person to win Best Actor three times.
At the 2003 Oscars, Brody sparked a different kind of controversy when he surprised presenter Halle Berry by kissing her onstage when accepting his award. Berry later said she had no hard feelings about it, and proved it by kissing Brody Sunday night for “some payback.”
Brody, 51, has appeared in more than 75 movies and TV shows, including “King Kong,” “Houdini,” “Midnight in Paris,” “Peaky Blinders,” “Angels in the Outfield,” “Succession,” and Wes Anderson titles like “The Grand Budapest Hotel.” He also starred in “Clean,” shot in Utica, and “Manodrome,” filmed in Syracuse.
Since 2008, he’s owned what he calls an “architectural relic” commonly known in Central New York as “Stone Barn Castle.” He made a documentary about his renovations to the dairy barn that premiered at the SXSW Film Festival in 2015, but has never released the film commercially.
“It’s a place that is still dear to my heart – the seasonal shifts and hiking in the woods,” Brody recently told Condé Nast Traveler of the Oneida Lake-adjacent home. “I love New York City: it’s home, but the proximity of all that nature is really special. I run away all the time, as much as I can. I think solitude is good for creativity and contemplation.”
(L-R) Adrien Brody and Georgina Chapman attend the 2025 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 2, 2025 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)Getty Images
During Sunday’s speech, he spoke about the “fragile profession” of acting and his pride in “once again” representing the lingering traumas and the repercussions of war and systematic oppression, and of antisemitism and racism and othering.”
“I pray for a healthier and a happier and a more inclusive world, and I believe if the past can teach us anything, it’s a reminder to not let hate go unchecked,” Brody said. “I love you. I appreciate you all. Let’s fight for what’s right. Keep smiling, keep loving one another. Let’s rebuild together. Thank you.”
Watch Brody’s Oscars acceptance speech:
