Oscars 2016: Mark Rylance Beats Sylvester Stallone For Best Supporting Actor Oscar

Actor Mark Rylance took home the Oscar for his role as the Soviet sleeper agent Rudolf Abel in the Cold War drama Bridge of Spies. Rylance beat out fan favorite, Sylvester Stallone.

Tom Hardy (The Revenant), Christian Bale (The Big Short) and Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight ) were the other nominees. This was Rylance’s first nomination and first win at the Oscars.

“It’s a wonderful time to be an actor and I’m proud to be part of it,” said Rylance, as he clutched his award.

“I don’t know how they separate my acting from all of you,” the actor concluded.

In a recent interview with EW, Rylance spoke of acting as a way to express himself: “I think I reveal more of myself when I pretend to be someone else,” he said.

He also noted similarities between him and his character: “There is something alike in the objective of our two businesses,” he said. “The twofold consciousness that actors and spies work with: pretending to be one thing while being fully aware you’re another.”

Stallone took home a Golden Globe this year for his role in Creed. This would have been his first Oscar win.