Jordan Peele Dedicates Original Screenplay Oscar To Those “Who Raised My Voice”

UPDATED with speech video: Jordan Peele stood on the stage of the Dolby Theatre and admitted he feared his critically acclaimed horror film Get Out would never get made.

“I stopped writing this movie about 20 times because I thought it was impossible. I thought it wasn’t going to work. I thought no one would ever make this movie. But I kept coming back to it because I knew if someone let me make this movie, that people would hear it and people would see it,” said Peele, who became the first black writer to win an Oscar for original screenplay.

“I want to dedicate this to all the people who who raised my voice and let me make this movie,” Peele added.

Shortly after he took the stage, Peele tweeted about the Oscar win. His remark became the most retweeted post of the night, according to Twitter.

The directorial debut for the comedian best-known for his sketch comedy work was the heavy favorite for best original screenplay, having received wide critical acclaim for its savvy treatment of racism in America.

Peele has collected plenty of acknowledgement before receiving the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ biggest prize: collecting best feature and best director at the Independent Spirit Awards; and the Writers Guild of America award for best original screenplay, the Directors Guild award for outstanding directorial achievement for a first-time feature film director.

The director came into the night with nominations for best director and screenwriter. The film, which brought in $255 million in worldwide box office, also received a best picture nomination.