97th Academy Awards · 2025
Anora
Directed byCooked up by Sean Baker
“Love is a hustle.”
“Vegas wedding speedrun, in-laws said absolutely not 💍”
The storyThe lore 📖
A young sex worker from Brooklyn gets her chance at a Cinderella story when she meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. Once the news reaches Russia, her fairytale is threatened as his parents set out to get the marriage annulled.
Ani, a dancer from Brooklyn, meets Vanya, the super-rich son of a Russian oligarch, and they impulsively get married in Las Vegas. It's giving fairytale... until his parents find out and send their goons to undo the wedding ASAP. What follows is a chaotic, funny, and lowkey heartbreaking chase across New York 💍🏃♀️
What critics & audiences sayThe receipts 🧾
Tomatometer
93%
Fresh
#38 of 98 winnersFamous linesLines living rent free
When you give me health insurance, workers' comp, and a 401K, then you can tell me when I work.
Galina: And you are a disgusting hooker.
Ani: And your son hates you so much, he married one to piss you off.
I don't like this. I'm not being paid enough for this.
I don't have Instagram. I'm an adult, man.
Oh, stay jealous, babe. Stay jealous, honey. Jealousy is a disease, remember that, Diamond. I'm just gonna go chill in my mansion or whatever, you know, no big deal!
Diamond: Caught your whale?
Ani: Seems I did, didn't I?
Galina: Is this my scarf?
Ani: Yeah, you want... There, go get your little scarf, sweetie.
I give it two weeks, bitch.
Quotes via Wikiquote
Filming locationsWhere they shot it 📍
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Brighton Beach
Brooklyn, New York City
Principal photography began here in February 2023 as part of the southern Brooklyn shoot.
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2458 National Drive
Mill Basin, Brooklyn
A mansion once owned by oligarch Vasily Anisimov played the Zakharov family home.
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Rosewood Theater and HQ KONY
Near Hudson Yards, Manhattan
A pair of connected gentlemen’s clubs played Headquarters, the club where Ani works.
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Coney Island
Brooklyn, New York City
Among the Brooklyn neighborhoods where principal photography took place.
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Sheepshead Bay
Brooklyn, New York City
Another southern Brooklyn neighborhood used during principal photography.
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Palms Casino Resort
Las Vegas, Nevada
The Las Vegas casino resort was one of the film’s Vegas shooting locations.
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Fremont Street
Las Vegas, Nevada
The downtown Las Vegas street was also used for the film’s Vegas scenes.
Fun factsFacts that go hard 🤓
- Sean Baker won four Oscars in one night for Anora, tying Walt Disney's record for the most Academy Awards won by one person in a single year. He is the only person to win all four for the same film.Wikipedia · Accolades
- The Zakharov family mansion is a real Mill Basin home once owned by Vasily Anisimov, an oligarch with ties to Russia. Baker found it by searching Google for "the biggest and best mansion in Brighton Beach."Wikipedia · Production
- The 25-minute home invasion scene took 10 of the film's 37 shooting days.Wikipedia · Production
- Sean Baker cast Mikey Madison without an audition after seeing her in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and Scream. She learned Russian, visited strip clubs, and studied the Brooklyn accent to prepare.Wikipedia · Production
- Mikey Madison turned down an intimacy coordinator. At Cannes she said Baker and producer Samantha Quan, his wife, acted out the sex positions themselves to show the actors what they wanted.Wikipedia · Production
- Anora was the first American-produced film to win the Palme d'Or since The Tree of Life in 2011, and the fifth Palme d'Or winner in a row released in the US by Neon.Wikipedia · Release
- Ani's signature red scarf was inspired by Jesús Franco's 1970 film Vampyros Lesbos, and the end credits give special thanks to Franco and actress Soledad Miranda.Wikipedia · Production
- Sean Baker said the film was partly inspired by his work in 2000 and 2001 editing wedding videos, including ones for Russian-Americans in New York.Wikipedia · Production
- Sean Baker admitted to Josh Safdie that he edited Anora while high. As with his previous films, he cut it himself in Adobe Premiere Pro.Wikipedia · Production
- Made for just $6 million, Anora grossed $59.3 million worldwide and became Sean Baker's highest-grossing film. Neon's awards and marketing campaign reportedly cost $18 million.Wikipedia · Box office