History was made on the Oscar stage Sunday evening when industry veteran Paul Tazewell became the first Black man to win the Academy Award for costume design, earning him an extended ovation on the Dolby Theater stage.
“This is the pinnacle of my career,” Tazewell said backstage after accepting the award for his work on “Wicked.”
“I’ve been designing costumes for over 35 years. Much has been on Broadway and now into film. And the whole way through there was never a Black male designer that I saw that I could follow, that I could see as inspiration. And to realize that that’s actually me, it becomes a `Wizard of Oz’ moment. You know, it’s like no place like home.
“So to come back to the inspiration being inside of me was, is really remarkable.”
Tazewell, 60, previously won Primetime Emmy, Tony and British Academy Film awards. His Tony Award came for designing costumes for Broadway’s “Hamilton.” He also worked on Broadway productions including “In the Heights,” “A Streetcar Named Desire” and “The Color Purple.”
He was previously nominated for an Oscar for 2021’s “West Side Story.”
Tazewell gave thanks to his entire costume team who worked on the film, noting, “There’s no way for me to do it alone.”
“And that also is my greatest joy, is to be collaborating with other very talented artists, so I respect what that artistry is, and … I share this with them,” he said.
Despite his work on the film, he said he was still “absolutely blown away” when he saw the finished product on screen.
“It wasn’t until I actually saw a pretty complete cut that I actually experienced the journey that we have created for audiences. And so, to experience that was, I was beside myself. And it defined why I do costume design.”