The first Black man to win an Oscar for Best Costume Design is the costume designer from “Wicked”
Paul Tazewell made history on Sunday at the Oscars.
As the first Black man to win the “very significant” Best Costume Design award, the 60-year-old costume designer won for his work on “Wicked.”
On stage at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, he declared: “This is simply amazing. Thank you for this important honor, Academy.
My work on “Wicked” earned me the costume design award, making me the first Black man to do so. I’m really proud of it.
Paul continued by thanking “Ozian muses” Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, along with the rest of the “Wicked” ensemble, who were nominated in the same category for “West Side Story” in 2022.
“I am grateful that you trusted me to make your characters come to life,” he continued. This is crucial.
Paul’s victory, which was in a category that also included Linda Muir (‘Nosforatu’), Janty Yates and David Crossman (‘Gladiator II’), Lisy Christl (‘Conclave’), and Arianne Phillips (‘A Complete Unknown’), follows Ruth E. Carter’s becoming the first Black person to win Best Costume Design for 2018’s ‘Black Panther. For the movie’s 2022 sequel, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” she once again received the honor.
Thanks to his work on more than 1,000 costumes for “Wicked,” Paul has won multiple prizes this season, including the BAFTAS, Critics’ Choice, and Costume Designers Guild honors.
With his earlier Emmy for “The Wiz Live” and Tony Award for “Hamilton,” this Academy Award brings him three quarters of the way to the coveted EGOT. In addition to an Oscar, a Grammy is given to complete the EGOT.
