Directors Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert 'never thought' Oscar win was in the cards

By Yi-Jin Yu & Kelly Hagan

Fresh off their triumphant Oscar wins Sunday, "Everything Everywhere All at Once" directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert reflected on what the film has meant to them and what they first thought as they embarked on a yearslong journey to making the sci-fi adventure movie.

"As a filmmaker, we were so excited," Kwan told "GMA" co-anchor Lara Spencer backstage at the 95th Academy Awards.

"We never thought this would happen," he continued. "Because what we were making was not, I think for a long time, our culture has had a very narrow definition of what is awardsworthy and what is important filmmaking and so we knew what this was for us."

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Directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert pose with their Oscar for Best Picture for "Everything Everywhere All at Once" at the 95th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Mar. 12, 2023.

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Daniel Scheinert and Dan Kwan accept the Best Director award for "Everything Everywhere All at Once" onstage during the 95th Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, Calif.

Kwan and Scheinert -- known lovingly by the cast as "The Daniels" -- won for best directing, beating fellow nominees Martin McDonagh ("The Banshees of Inisherin"), Steven Spielberg ("The Fabelmans"), Todd Field ("Tár") and Ruben Östlund ("Triangle of Sadness").

"Everything Everywhere All at Once" also led the star-studded evening with the most nominations overall at 11. The film from the studio company A24 ultimately took home seven Oscars, including best picture, best original screenplay and best film editing.

"Everything Everywhere All at Once" actors Ke Huy Quan, Jamie Lee Curtis and Michelle Yeoh also won for best supporting actor, best supporting actress and best actress, respectively.

Yeoh made history with her win, becoming the first Asian woman to win an Oscar for best actress.