Nazi-era satire Jojo Rabbit has won the Oscar for best adapted screenplay at the Academy Awards. Directed by Taika Waititi, the film had to see off strong competition in the category from the likes of gangster epic The Irishman, supervillain origins story Joker and literary adaptation Little Women.
Jojo Rabbit tells the story of a 10-year-old German boy in the 30s, a fervent member of the Hitler Youth who discovers a Jewish girl is hiding in his house. It is based on Caged Skies, a 2008 novel by Christine Leunens, with Waititi credited for the script. The film stars Roman Griffin Davis as the boy, Jojo, Thomasin McKenzie as the girl, and Waititi himself as Jojo’s imaginary friend, Hitler.
In his speech, Waititi thanked his mother for giving him the book on which the film was based and dedicated the award to “all the indigenous kids in the world who want to do art and write and dance and who are the original storytellers.”
Having won the audience award at the 2019 Toronto film festival, Jojo Rabbit has had a strong awards season run, with its script winning a number of accolades, including a Bafta and Writers Guild award for best adapted screenplay.
