February 22, 2015 10:17 PM EST
A s had been widely predicted, Patricia Arquette won the Best Supporting Actress trophy at the Oscars for her role in Boyhood . Arquette played the protagonist’s mother, a role that grew in importance and emotional sweep over the running time of the film. Arquette, a veteran actress who rose to prominence in films like True Romance and Ed Wood , had never been nominated for an Oscar previously; over the course of Boyhood ‘s 12-year filming period, she won an Emmy for her role in the TV procedural Medium.
In her speech, Arquette dedicated her Oscar to American women, and ended with a powerful call to action. “To every woman who gave birth to every citizen and taxpayer of this nation, we have fought for everybody else’s equal rights,” she said. “It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America.”
Meryl Streep got out of her seat to cheer for Arquette, and Twitter exploded with support for the newly minted Oscar winner.
Oscars 2015: Celebrities on the Red Carpet Emma Stone attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Scarlett Johansson attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Chris Pratt and Anna Faris attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images Jessica Chastain attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Chris Pine attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Reese Witherspoon attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Anna Kendrick attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Frazer Harrison—Getty Images Rosamund Pike attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Bradley Cooper attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images Neil Patrick Harris, right, and David Burtka attendsthe 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images Lupita Nyong'o attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images Gwyneth Paltrow attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images Eddie Redmayne attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. 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Jeff Kravitz—FilmMagic/Getty Images Margot Robbie attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Joanna Newsom, left, and Andy Samberg attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Common attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Karolina Kurkova attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Jamie Chung attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Patricia Arquette attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images Michael Strahan attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Michael Buckner—WireImage/Getty Images Mario Lopez attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. 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Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images Chloe Grace Moretz attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Viola Davis attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images Chiwetel Ejiofor attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Steve Granitz—WireImage/Getty Images Kerry Washington attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images Sienna Miller attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Ansel Elgort attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. Jason Merritt—Getty Images Ed Norton and Shauna Robertson attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 22, 2015 in Hollywood, Calif. 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