In February 2021, Variety published a report pointing out that Zhao had received a total of 54 awards in directing, screenplay, and editing categories, which exceeded Alexander Payne’s previous record of 42 wins for Sideways following the comedy’s 2004 release.
There is still a good deal of time before the 2021 award season wraps up with the 93rd Academy Awards in April, but Chloé Zhao has already made history by becoming the most awarded person in a single season, with more than 50 trophies for her work on Nomadland.
Amazingly enough, this 54 number doesn’t include the 23 additional trophies Chloé Zhao currently has for serving as a producer on Nomadland, nor does it include her wins at the Golden Globes, which would bring her directing/screenplay/editing total to 55, and the grand total to 79, with several awards shows still on the way.