Jessie Buckley jokes of having ‘20,000 more babies’ in best actress Oscars speech

Jessie Buckley had a heartfelt and humorous moment as she won the Best Actress award at the 98th Academy Awards.

The Irish actor took home the Oscar for her performance in Hamnet at the ceremony held March 15 in Los Angeles. While thanking the many people who supported her throughout the project, Buckley gave a special shout-out to her husband, Freddie, and their young daughter.

“You, Fred. I love you, man. I love you. You’re the most incredible dad. You’re my best friend and I want other have 20,000 more babies with you! I do, I do,” Buckley said in her emotional speech.

She further gushed, “And Isla, my little girl who is eight months who is absolutely no idea what’s going on and is probably dreaming of milk, but this is kind of a big deal, and I love you and I love being your mom and I can’t wait to discover life beside you.”

Buckley and her husband, who prefers to stay out of the spotlight, married in 2023. The couple welcomed their first child in the fall of 2025. They reportedly met on a blind date in London that was arranged by music executive Marc Robinson.

The actor’s award-winning role in Hamnet saw her portray Agnes, the wife of William Shakespeare, in director Chloé Zhao’s adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s novel of the same name.

Buckley’s fellow nominees for Best Actress also included Rose Byrne for If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, Kate Hudson for Song Sung Blue, Renate Reinsve for Sentimental Value and Emma Stone for Bugonia.