LOS ANGELES (REUTERS) - South Korean film icon Youn Yuh-jung won the best supporting actress Oscar on Sunday (April 25) for her role as a spirited and unconventional grandmother in Minari.

Youn, 73, is the first South Korean actor to win an Oscar and the first actor from that nation ever to clinch an Academy Award nomination.

"Me being here, I cannot believe it," Youn said.

She joked about people mispronouncing her name, adding, "Tonight you are all forgiven."

She was the front-runner for an Oscar after picking up dozens of trophies this year for her role in Minari, a tender story about a Korean immigrant family that starts a farm in Arkansas.

In the film, which is based partly on the life story of director Lee Isaac Chung, Youn's character travels from South Korea to help care for her two grandchildren.

Youn has been a sensation on Korean screens for decades, most often playing witty, thought-provoking characters.

Youn's fellow supporting actress nominees included Maria Bakalova for Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Glenn Close for Hillbilly Elegy, Olivia Colman for The Father, and Amanda Seyfried for Mank.

"I don't believe in competition," Youn said, acknowledging her fellow nominees in the category. "I have just a little bit luck, I think, maybe. I'm luckier than you."