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Oscars 2019: Best actress winner Olivia Colman reacts to her upset win over Glenn Close

5:10
Oscar best actress winner reacts to her upset win
Valerie Macon/AFP/Getty Images
ByKatie Kindelan
February 25, 2019, 2:22 PM

Olivia Colman had one of the most memorable speeches of the 2019 Oscars, but the best actress winner winged it -- because she had no idea she would actually win.

"I was pretty sure it wouldn’t be me," "The Favourite" star told "Good Morning America" co-anchor Lara Spencer backstage after her win. "I would have put money on Glenn [Close]."

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Colman took a moment in her speech to acknowledge Close. "The Wife" star has been nominated for an Oscar seven times and has yet to win.

"Because it should have been her," Colman said of why she chose to honor Close.

(MORE: Oscars 2019: 'Bohemian Rhapsody,' 'Green Book' lead the way with multiple awards)

Colman, who portrayed Queen Anne in "The Favourite," also called out her co-stars, Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz, in her acceptance speech.

She told Spencer that working on "The Favourite" with those two actresses was "the most amazing job."

"I was excited to wake up at four in the morning every day going to work, to work with those lovely people, amazing script, just a dream," she said. "That can empower you to not feel any embarrassment, to just do it."

Colman portrays another royal, Queen Elizabeth II, in "The Crown," taking over the role from Claire Foy in seasons three and four of the hit Netflix series about the British royal family.

Colman said there is no comparison between the two monarchs, but Queen Elizabeth II is "much harder to play."

(MORE: A look at the 25th Vanity Fair party, where celebrities flock post Oscars)

"I think there’s no rules with Queen Anne because no one can say she didn’t sound like that," Colman said of the monarch, who died in the early 1700s.

Colman's fellow best actress nominee Melissa McCarthy earned a thumbs-up review from Colman for her play on "The Favourite" during the Oscars. McCarthy presented an award covered in bunnies, which play a role in the film.

"I thought that was hilarious, trying to open the envelope," Colman said. "She was brilliant."

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