Oscars 2022: CODA's Troy Kotsur makes history as first deaf male actor to win an Academy Award

CODA's Troy Kotsur has become the first deaf male actor to win an acting award at the Oscars. He's the second deaf actor after his co-star Marlee Matlin (Best Actress for Children of a Lesser God in 1986) to receive this accolade. 

The award was presented to Kotsur by Youn Yuh-jung, who was the Best Supporting Actress for Minari in 2020. 

In CODA, plays Frank Rossi, a fisherman in Gloucester, Massachusetts who lives with his deaf wife Jackie and deaf son Leo (Damien Durant). The only hearing member of their family is daughter Ruby (Emilia Jones). 

CODA, which is streaming on Apple TV+ is about how Ruby is drawn to her passion for singing and has to choose between her family obligations and her dreams. 

"I cannot believe I’m here. Thank you so much to all the members of the Academy for recognizing my work," signed Kotsur in his winners' speech and thanked director Sian Heder. 

The actor beat Kodi Smit-McPhee, Jesse Plemons, Ciaran Hinds, and J.K. Simmons to emerge as the winner.

The actor mentioned being invited to the White House for a screening of the film, and cheekily added that he wanted to teach the Bidens "some dirty sign language" before co-actor Matlin asked him to "behave myself." He assured Matlin in his speech he won't "drop any F-bombs in my speech today."

The Oscars ceremony is being live-streamed on the Academy's official YouTube channel featuring American Sign Language interpreters for the first time. 

Watch his acceptance speech here: