PTA Always Knew He'd Be a Winner

When Playboy first interviewed director Paul Thomas Anderson for the February 1998 issue, he was only 27 years old and hot off the release of Boogie Nights. That alone is enough to make anyone feel a tinge of youthful jealousy, getting an installment in the “20 Questions” series at an age where most people are still figuring out who they even want to be when they grow up. That jealousy only rises when you learn that Boogie Nights, a film about a ridiculously well-endowed young man thrust into skeezy 70s porno stardom, was based on a short he wrote at only 17, and that the screenplay for it was nominated for an Academy Award. But as his career has continued, his wunderkind status has only seemed more deserved. Last night at the 98th annual Academy Awards, his most recent film One Battle After Another took home six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director.