What film did Jessica Tandy win an Oscar for in 1989?

Jessica Tandy won the Oscar for Best Actress for Driving Miss Daisy in 1989. She played Daisy Werthan, an elderly Jewish widow in Atlanta whose relationship with her chauffeur, Hoke Colburn, develops over several decades.

The film was directed by Bruce Beresford and adapted by Alfred Uhry from his Pulitzer Prize-winning stage play. Morgan Freeman played Hoke, while Dan Aykroyd portrayed Daisy’s son, Boolie. The story explores race, class, aging, friendship, and changing social attitudes in the American South.

Tandy’s win was notable because she was 80 years old, making her the oldest competitive acting Oscar winner at that time. Driving Miss Daisy also won Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Makeup at the 62nd Academy Awards.

One date-related detail often causes confusion: the film was released in 1989, but the Oscars ceremony honoring that film took place in 1990. Tandy therefore won for a 1989 film at the following year’s ceremony. The title is sometimes shortened in casual references, but Driving Miss Daisy is the canonical answer.