While defending one record, Adrien Brody inadvertently set another one. Brody won best actor at the Oscars for The Brutalist, and kept his stiffest competition Timothée Chalamet from breaking the record Brody himself had set over 20 years ago when he became the youngest best actor winner in Oscar history. Who knew that while accepting his second Oscar, Brody would make history once again by delivering the longest speech in Oscar history.
According to Guinness World Records, Golden-Age actress and seven-time Oscar nominee Greer Garson previously held the record for longest Oscar speech of all time after speaking for five minutes and 30 seconds when she accepted the Oscar for best actress for Mrs Miniver in 1943. (Sadly, there’s no existing footage of Garson’s speech in its entirety.) But Brody spoke for 5 minutes and 40 seconds, besting Garson and setting a new record for longest Oscar speech some 80-plus years later.
Perhaps Brody went so long because he knew from experience how elusive a moment like this can be. The 51-year-old actor spent a fair amount of his speech referencing how he thought he’d never accept another Oscar. “Acting is a very fragile profession,” he said. “It looks very glamorous and in certain moments it is, but the one thing that I’ve gained having the privilege to come back here is to have some perspective. No matter where you are in your career, no matter what you’ve accomplished, it can all go away.”
At least one reason why Brody’s speech went so long is because he was almost cut off before it was finished. Approximately two-thirds of the way into his speech, the orchestra began playing him off. “I’m wrapping up, please, please, please, I will wrap up,” he said as the orchestra grew louder. “Please turn the music off. I’ve done this before, it’s not my first rodeo. Thank you.” Ironically, this is not the first time Brody was almost played off mid Oscar speech. The first time Brody won an Oscar in 2003, he planted an unexpected kiss on presenter Halle Berry—don’t worry, at the 2025 Oscars Berry revenge-kissed Brody on the red carpet—and was instructed by the orchestra to wrap up before he was completely finished. “One second, please. One second. Cut it out. I got one shot at this,” said Brody during his 2003 speech. “I didn’t say more than five names, I don’t think.”
This time, Brody left no name unsaid. He thanked his partner, Georgina Chapman, who dutifully held his recently chewed gum as he went up to accept his Oscar. He thanked The Brutalist director Brady Corbet, and Corbet’s wife, The Brutalist co-screenwriter Mona Vastfold, for “what you’ve done for independent film and for your beautiful spirit and for giving your space to existence this triumph of a work.” He thanked CAA, A24, Focus Features, and Universal.
While he certainly rambled, Brody at least ended his speech on a sincere and heartfelt note, referencing both The Pianist and The Brutalist and their ties to the Holocaust: “I’m here once again, to represent the lingering traumas, and the repercussions of war and systematic oppression, and of anti-semitism, and racism.” he said.
When he was finally finished, Brody seemed to realize he’d been up there for quite some time. “Okay, I’ll get out of here, I love you, I appreciate you all,” he said, wrapping up. “Let’s fight for what’s right, keep smiling, keep loving one another, let’s rebuild together. Thank you.” So, congrats to Brody on his best actor win, and the new record he set in the process. May it last another 80 years, at the very least.
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