‘CODA’ Actor Troy Kotsur Says His Jeep And His Academy Award Were Both Stolen But Later Recovered

Back in March, during arguably the most shocking Oscars ceremony in its 94-year history, something very nice happened: Troy Kotsur, a supporting player in the Best Picture-winning CODA, became the first deaf man to score an Academy Award for acting. (Marlee Matlin was the first deaf person to win such an honor back in 1987.) He’s since gotten some more work, including the lead on a Disney+ show about a deaf football team. He also, alas, came awfully close to literally losing his trophy.

As per Deadline, Kotsur was being honored in his hometown of Mesa, Arizona when a vandal absconded with his jeep. The actor had brought his trophy with him to the ceremony, but it was in the vehicle at the time. Police were able to track down the jeep and return it, and his Oscar, to him.

Kotsur initially tweeted about the incident, claiming a “little kid” had taken off with his jeep. He also posted a picture of him alongside the officers, whom he thanked. Kotsur later deleted the tweet from his feed, leaving only reports of the ceremony honoring his milestone.

Kotsur was one of the first wins at this year’s Academy Awards, which bestowed him with the trophy for Best Supporting Actor, beating out Ciarán Hinds in Belfast, J.K. Simmons in Being the Ricardos, and Jesse Plemons and Kodi Smit-McPhee, both from The Power of the Dog. Then a couple hours later, something happened…