Wagner Moura becomes first Brazilian man to win an acting Golden Globe

With his win for best drama actor, Wagner Moura is now the first Brazilian man to win a Golden Globe for acting.

At the 83rd annual ceremony on Sunday, Jan. 11, Moura took home the award for best film drama actor for his role in the Portuguese-language film "The Secret Agent." He took on a stacked category featuring the likes of Michael B. Jordan ("Sinners"), Joel Edgerton ("Train Dreams"), Dwayne Johnson ("The Smashing Machine"), Jeremy Allen White ("Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere") and Oscar Isaac ("Frankenstein").

"'The Secret Agent' is a film about memory or the lack of memory," Moura said during his acceptance speech, adding that if trauma could be generational, then so could values.

He then raised his Globe statue "to the ones that are sticking with their values in difficult moments."

It's a Golden Globe-winning era for Brazilian actors. Fernanda Torres became the first and only Brazilian actress to win the award when she took best drama actress for her role in "I'm Still Here" just last year.

"The Secret Agent" is also in the running for best drama at the Globes. The movie follows activist and ex-professor Armando (Moura), who is on the run from military dictatorship-run government forces in 1977 Brazil.

Moura, 49 – best known on TV for playing infamous kingpin Pablo Escobar on Netflix hit "Narcos" – won the best actor prize at Cannes Film Festival and the New York Film Critics Circle Awards for his performance in "The Secret Agent."

He was less successful at the Critics Choice Awards a week ago, losing out to Timothée Chalamet for best actor in "Marty Supreme." He lost to a young Owen Cooper for best supporting actor in a limited series or movie made for television in "Adolescence," where he was nominated for his role in Apple TV's "Dope Thief."

The actor is less than two weeks away from finding out if he is also an Oscar contender. Nominations for the 98th Academy Awards are set to be announced on Jan. 22.

Contributing: Patrick Ryan, Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY