Cillian Murphy made Irish history by winning the Best Actor award, the first for his country, as the film Oppenheimer dominated the Oscars.

Cillian Murphy made Irish history by winning the Best Actor award, the first for his country, as the film Oppenheimer dominated the Oscars. The movie took home top honors, winning Best Picture, Best Director for Christopher Nolan, and Best Supporting Actor for Robert Downey Jr. Murphy earned the Best Leading Actor award for his remarkable performance as physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer.

The day after Murphy won his first Oscar for Best Actor in Oppenheimer, people at his old school, including staff, parents, and kids, were celebrating his success. “When we woke up this morning there was such a buzz of excitement,” Sean Lyons, principal of the all-boys Catholic school, told AFP. Murphy, aged 47 now, attended St. Anthony’s in the well-kept Cork neighborhood of Ballinlough from 1982 to 1988.

We thought can this be real, that this man from Ballinlough in Cork actually won the Oscar, a global award!” said the beaming bespectacled teacher. He has set the seed now for many students not just here in Ballinlough and St Anthony’s but all around Ireland that they can achieve on the global stage,” said Lyons.

Murphy explored acting during his school and university days in Cork. In 1996, after persistently reaching out to a local director, Murphy landed a leading role in the energetic play “Disco Pigs,” written by fellow Cork resident Enda Walsh.

At the Oscars, Cillian’s outfit was an ode to his native Irish roots. Styled by Rose Forde, Cillian looked dapper in the custom-made Versace tuxedo suit which was tastefully paired with a crisp white shirt, black trousers and a black silk bow tie. The entire outfit was tailored to perfection and looked impeccable on Cillian. He also wore a bespoke 18-karat yellow gold brooch with the ensemble.