Paul Thomas Anderson admitted it was a "pleasure" and a "wonderful gift" to receive his first Best Director Oscar on Sunday (15.03.26).

The 55-year-old filmmaker - who has received 14 Oscar nominations over the years - picked up his second award of the night for One Battle After Another, and dedicated his win to late producer Adam Somner.

He said: "I share this with a friend of mine on the other side of the shadows named Adam Somner who is up there in a really big bar in the sky having a gin and tonic, and he is so happy for me and our crew. I want to thank the Academy for finding my work worthy of this highest honour."

Paul then praised the work of his fellow nominees, "classmates" Chloe Zhao (Hamnet), Ryan Coogler (Sinners), Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value) and Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme) - but admitted he was happy to have taken the prize for himself.

He said: "My classmates, Chloe, Ryan, Joachim, and Josh. I couldn't ask for a better class. It's an honour to be counted amongst you guys.

"There will always be some doubt in your heart that you deserve it but there will be no question of the pleasure having it for myself.

"I'm here because of people's faith in me, they give me their faith and their time and that's the best part of being on a film crew, being with people. We need each other.

"This is a wonderful gift and I'm so happy to call the movies home,t his is really terrific. Thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Earlier in the evening, Paul won his first ever Academy Award when he picked up the Best Adapted Screenplay award for One Battle After Another ahead of Bugonia' Will Tracy, Frankenstein's Guillermo del Toro, Hamnet' Chloe Zhao and Maggie O'Farrell, and Train Dreams' Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar.

Speaking on stage at Los Angeles' Dolby Theatre, he said: "Thank you very, very much. I'm incredibly honoured to be part of this history. This is an adaptation so I owe a huge debt of admiration and love to Thomas Pynchon.

"Any writer knows you either beg for forgiveness or your special thanks is really to your family and the people you share a roof with who put up with what it means to be a writer…

"I wrote this movie for my kids to say sorry for the housekeeping mess we left this world in that we're handing off to them but also the encouragement that they will be the generation that hopefully brings us some common sense and decency."