Who Is Wagner Moura? The Secret Agent Star Who Became First Brazilian Best Actor Nominee At Oscars 2026

The nominations for the 98th Academy Awards were officially announced on Thursday, and it brought weeks of global anticipation to a close. Brazil's The Secret Agent has become a big deal at Oscars 2026.

The country is now in the spotlight thanks to historic nominations. The political thriller has been nominated for Best Picture and Best Actor, which is a big deal for Brazilian movies on the biggest movie platform in the world.

All about Wagner Moura: First Brazilian actor nominee at Oscars 2026

Wagner Moura was up for Best Actor for his great work in The Secret Agent, which was directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho. Moura is the first Brazilian actor to be nominated in this category. As reported by Deadline, he is only the third Brazilian actor to be nominated for an Oscar. The first two were Fernanda Montenegro for Central Station and Fernanda Torres for I'm Still Here.

Moura is now up against a tough group of actors, including Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), and Michael B. Jordan (Sinners). The Secret Agent has been nominated for Best Actor, Best Picture, Best International Feature, and the new Casting category. This shows how popular it has been.According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film's nomination for Best Picture is especially important because it is Brazil's second in a row, after I'm Still Here last year. People all over the world are starting to like Brazilian stories more and more, as shown by this award, which comes right after another one.

About Wagner Moura's role in The Secret Agent

Mendonça Filho wrote and directed The Secret Agent, which is set in Brazil during the military dictatorship in 1977. Moura plays a political rebel who is on the run and goes back to Recife to look for his kid. Instead, he ends up living in fear and secrecy, like a spy. The Cannes Film Festival was the first place to show the movie, and it won the most awards there.

All About Wagner Moura

Moura, who also won Best Male Actor at the 2026 Golden Globe Awards, talked about the film's deeper themes in his acceptance speech. He said it was about remembering things, passing down trauma from one generation to the next, and sticking to your values when things get tough.Voting for the Oscars will end on March 5, 2026. On March 15, the event will take place.