AceShowbiz - Sir Anthony Hopkins was fast asleep when he was announced as the winner of the Best Actor Oscar at the Academy Awards, held in Los Angeles on Sunday night, April 25.

The 83-year-old screen legend became the oldest person to receive an Oscar in the category for his part in "The Father", however, there was no one there to accept the honor on the night.

Hours after the ceremony aired, the actor's agent, Jeremy Barber, issued a statement in which he explained that his client was getting some shut-eye at 4 A.M. when he phoned him to inform him that he had made history with his win.

When he answered the call, Hopkins said the Oscar "means so much to him" as the film, in which he plays the dementia-stricken titular patriarch, is his "proudest achievement."

His agent told People, "Tony was in Wales, where he grew up, and he was asleep at 4 in the morning when I woke him up to tell him the news. He was so happy and so grateful."

"After a year in quarantine, and being double-vaccinated, he was finally able to return to Wales, and age 83, it was a great relief after such a difficult year. But he loved the role in 'The Father' - it's his proudest performance - and to be the oldest living actor to win in the category means so much to him."

Hopkins beat off stiff competition from Riz Ahmed ("Sound of Metal"), the late Chadwick Boseman ("Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"), Gary Oldman ("Mank") and Steven Yeun ("Minari") in the coveted category.

It marks his second Best Actor win, having previously scooped the accolade for "The Silence of the Lambs" in 1992.

The "Solace" star was also awarded the Best Leading Actor gong for "The Father" at the BAFTAs earlier this month.