Best Actor Oscar Winners


Best Actor Oscar Winners All-Time List 🎬 2024 Academy Awards

On 25 April 2021 the 93rd Academy Awards ceremony, for films made during 2020, were presented at the Union Station and Dolby Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA. The best actor Oscar winners Academy Award is one of the most prestigious of all the Oscar awards so competition is fierce. Every year the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) presents the prestigious Academy Awards to Oscar winners at venues near Hollywood in California, USA. Since 1935, the awards have been presented for films released in the preceding year.

  • ADDucation’s best Oscar winners list was last updated on 05 Sep 2023
Top Best Actor Oscar Winners & Oscar Trivia Facts

7 Best Actor Oscar Winners Trivia Facts

  1. Most Best Actor Wins: Daniel Day-Lewis currently holds this with 3 Best Actor Oscars for My Left Foot in 1989, There Will Be Blood in 2007 and Lincoln in 2012.
  2. Most Nominated Best Actor: Laurence Olivier and Spencer Tracy are tied with 9 nominations each.
  3. Oldest Best Actor Winner: Anthony Hopkins, aged 83, for his leading role as Anthony in The Father in 2020.
  4. First Actor to Turn Down an Oscar: George C Scott turned down his best actor Oscar winners award, describing the ceremony as a “demeaning, two hour meat parade“. He was followed two years later by Marlon Brando who turned down his best actor Oscar winners award as part of a protest again Hollywood’s portrayal of native Americans in movies.
  5. Youngest Best Actor winner: Adrien Brody, aged 29, for his lead role in The Pianist in 2002.
  6. First Best Actor Posthumous Winner: Peter Finch for his role as Howard Beale in the 1976 film Network.
  7. Shortest Best Actor Oscar Winning Performance: David Niven, who appeared for just 15 minutes, 38 seconds in the 1958 film, Separate Tables.

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Academy Awards Ceremony Best Actor Oscar Winners Country For his leading role in: Role / Character Oscar Trivia Born Died Film Year
1st Academy Awards 16 May 1929 Emil Jannings 🇩🇪 Germany The Way Of All Flesh / The Last Command August Schiller / Grand Duke Sergius Alexander The first and only time actors were eligible for more than one film made in a calendar year. 1884 1950 1927/8
2nd Academy Awards 3 April 1930 Warner Baxter 🇺🇸 USA In Old Arizona The Cisco Kid 1889 1951 1928/9
3rd Academy Awards 5 Nov 1930 George Arliss 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli 1868 1946 1929/30
4th Academy Awards 10 Nov 1931 Lionel Barrymore 🇺🇸 USA A Free Soul Stephen Ashe 1878 1954 1930/1
5th Academy Awards 18 Nov 1932* Wallace Beery 🇺🇸 USA The Champ Champ The first and last time two best actor Oscar winners were awarded. 1885 1949 1931/2*
5th Academy Awards 18 Nov 1932* Frederic March 🇺🇸 USA Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Dr Henry Jekyll / Mr Edward Hyde The first and last time two best actor Oscar winners were awarded. 1897 1975 1931/2*
6th Academy Awards 16 Mar 1934 Charles Laugthon 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England / 🇺🇸 USA The Private Life Of Henry VIII Henry VIII 1899 1962 1932/3
7th Academy Awards 27 Feb 1935 Clark Gable 🇺🇸 USA It Happened One Night Peter Warne 1901 1960 1934
8th Academy Awards 5 Mar 1936 Victor McLaglen 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England / 🇺🇸 USA The Informer “Gypo” Nolan 1886 1959 1935
9th Academy Awards 4 Mar 1937 Paul Muni 🇺🇦 Ukraine / 🇺🇸 USA The Story of Louis Pasteur Louis Pasteur 1895 1967 1936
10th Academy Awards 10 Mar 1938 Spencer Tracy 🇺🇸 USA Captains Courageous Manuel Fidello 1900 1967 1937
11th Academy Awards 23 Feb 1939 Spencer Tracy 🇺🇸 USA Boys Town Father Flanagan Spencer Tracy was the first to win consecutive best actor Oscar winners. He was joined by Tom Hanks in 1995 in the 67th academy awards. 1900 1967 1938
12th Academy Awards 29 Feb 1940 Robert Donat 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Goodbye, Mr Chips Mr Chips 1905 1958 1939
13th Academy Awards 27 Feb 1941 James Stewart 🇺🇸 USA The Philadelphia Story Macaulay “Mike” Connor 1908 1987 1940
14th Academy Awards 26 Feb 1942 Gary Cooper 🇺🇸 USA Sergeant York Sergeant Alvin C. York 1901 1961 1941
15th Academy Awards 4 Mar 1943 James Cagney 🇺🇸 USA Yankee Doodle Dandy George M. Cohan 1891 1986 1942
16th Academy Awards 2 Mar 1944 Paul Lukas 🇭🇺 Hungary / 🇺🇸 USA Watch On The Rhine Kurt Muller Paul Lukas is the first and only Hungarian to join the best actor Oscar winners list. 1895 1971 1943
17th Academy Awards 15 Mar 1945 Bing Crosby 🇺🇸 USA Going My Way Father Chuck O’Malley 1903 1977 1944
18th Academy Awards 7 Mar 1946 Ray Milland 󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Wales The Lost Weekend Don Birnam Ray Milland was the first of two Welsh best actor Oscar winners. See also Sir Anthony Hopkins. 1907 1986 1945
19th Academy Awards 17 Mar 1947 Fredric March 🇺🇸 USA The Best Years Of Our Lives Platoon Sergeant Al Stephenson 1897 1975 1946
20th Academy Awards 20 Mar 1948 Ronald Colman 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England A Double Life Anthony John 1891 1958 1947
21st Academy Awards 24 Mar 1949 Laurence Olivier, Sir 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Hamlet Hamlet 1907 1989 1948
22nd Academy Awards 23 Mar 1950 Broderick Crawford 🇺🇸 USA All The King’s Men Willie Stark 1911 1986 1949
23rd Academy Awards 29 Mar 1951 José Ferrer 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico / 🇺🇸 USA Cyrano De Bergerac Cyrano De Bergerac 1912 1992 1950
24th Academy Awards 20 Mar 1952 Humphrey Bogart 🇺🇸 USA African Queen Charlie Allnut Humphrey Bogart was the last man born in the 19th century to join the list of best actor Oscar winners. 1899 1957 1951
25th Academy Awards 19 Mar 1953 Gary Cooper 🇺🇸 USA High Noon Will Kane 1901 1961 1952
26th Academy Awards 25 Mar 1954 William Holden 🇺🇸 USA Stalag 17 J. J. Sefton William Holden’s best actor Oscar winners acceptance speech was one of the shortest ever: “Thank You” 1918 1981 1953
27th Academy Awards 30 Mar 1955 Marlon Brando 🇺🇸 USA On The Waterfront Terry Malloy Marlon Brando finally joined the best actor Oscar winners list after consecutive nominations the previous four years. 1924 2004 1954
28th Academy Awards 21 Mar 1956 Ernest Borgnine 🇺🇸 USA Marty Marty Piletti 1917 2012 1955
29th Academy Awards 27 Mar 1957 Yul Brynner 🇷🇺 Russia / 🇺🇸 USA The King And I King Mongkut of Siam 1920 1985 1956
30th Academy Awards 26 Mar 1958 Alec Guinness, Sir 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Bridge On The River Kwai Lieutenant Colonel Nicholson 1914 2000 1957
31st Academy Awards 6 Apr 1959 David Niven 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Separate Tables Major David Angus Pollock The only host in Oscar history to win an academy award at the same ceremony. Shortest on-screen time of all the best actor Oscar winners performances at 15 minutes, 38 seconds. 1910 1983 1958
32nd Academy Awards 4 Apr 1960 Charlton Heston 🇺🇸 USA Ben Hur Judah Ben-Hur 1923 2008 1959
33rd Academy Awards 17 Apr 1961 Burt Lancaster 🇺🇸 USA Elmer Gantry Elmer Gantry 19013 1994 1960
34th Academy Awards 9 Apr 1962 Maximilian Schell 🇦🇹 Austria Judgment At Nuremberg Hans Rolfe 1930 2014 1961
35th Academy Awards 8 Apr 1963 Gregory Peck 🇺🇸 USA To Kill A Mockingbird Atticus Finch 1916 2003 1962
36th Academy Awards 13 Apr 1964 Sidney Poitier 🇺🇸 USA Lilies Of The Field Homer Smith Sidney Poitier was the first of four black best actor Oscar winners along with Denzel Washington, Jamie Foxx and Forest Whitaker. 1927 1963
37th Academy Awards 5 Apr 1965 Rex Harrison, Sir 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England / 🇺🇸 USA My Fair Lady Professor Henry Higgins 1908 1990 1964
38th Academy Awards 18 Apr 1966 Lee Marvin 🇺🇸 USA Cat Ballou Kid Shelleen / Tim Strawn 1924 1987 1965
39th Academy Awards 10 Apr 1967 Paul Scofield 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England A Man For All Seasons Sir Thomas More 1922 2008 1966
40th Academy Awards 10 Apr 1968 Rod Steiger 🇺🇸 USA In The Heat Of The Night Police Chief Bill Gillespie 1925 2002 1967
41st Academy Awards 14 Apr 1969 Cliff Robertson 🇺🇸 USA Charly Charlie Gordon 1923 2011 1968
42nd Academy Awards 7 Apr 1970 John Wayne 🇺🇸 USA True Grit Rooster Cogburn 1907 1979 1969
43rd Academy Awards 15 Apr 1971 George C. Scott 🇺🇸 USA Patton General George S. Patton () One of two best actor Oscar winners to decline the award, see also Marlon Brando. 1927 1999 1970
44th Academy Awards 10 Apr 1972 Gene Hackman 🇺🇸 USA French Connection Detective Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle 1930 1971
45th Academy Awards 27 Mar 1973 Marlon Brando 🇺🇸 USA Godfather Vito Corleone 1924 2004 1972
46th Academy Awards 2 Apr 1974 Jack Lemmon 🇺🇸 USA Save The Tiger Harry Stoner 1925 2001 1973
47th Academy Awards 8 Apr 1975 Art Carney 🇺🇸 USA Harry And Tonto Harry Coombes 1918 2003 1974
48th Academy Awards 29 Mar 1976 Jack Nicholson 🇺🇸 USA One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest Randle Patrick McMurphy 1937 1975
49th Academy Awards 28 Mar 1977 Peter Finch 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England / 🇦🇺 Australia / 🇺🇸 USA Network Howard Beale 1916 1977 1976
50th Academy Awards 3 Apr 1978 Richard Dreyfuss 🇺🇸 USA The Goodbye Girl Elliot Garfield 1947 1977
51st Academy Awards 9 Apr 1979 Jon Voight 🇺🇸 USA Coming Home Luke Martin 1938 1978
52nd Academy Awards 14 Apr 1980 Dustin Hoffman 🇺🇸 USA Kramer Vs. Kramer Ted Kramer 1937 1979
53rd Academy Awards 31 Mar 1981 Robert De Niro 🇺🇸 USA Raging Bull Jake LaMotta 1943 1980
54th Academy Awards 29 Mar 1982 Henry Fonda 🇺🇸 USA On Golden Pond Norman Thayer Jr. 1905 1982 1981
55th Academy Awards 11 Apr 1983 Ben Kingsley 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Gandhi Mahatma Gandhi 1943 1982
56th Academy Awards 9 Apr 1984 Robert Duvall 🇺🇸 USA Tender Mercies Mac Sledge 1931 1983
57th Academy Awards 25 Mar 1985 F. Murray Abraham 🇺🇸 USA Amadeus Antonio Salieri 1939 1984
58th Academy Awards 24 Mar 1986 William Hurt 🇺🇸 USA Kiss Of The Spider Woman Luis Molina 1950 1985
59th Academy Awards 30 Mar 1987 Paul Newman 🇺🇸 USA The Color Of Money “Fast Eddie” Felson 1925 2008 1986
60th Academy Awards 11 Apr 1988 Michael Douglas 🇺🇸 USA Wall Street Gordon Gekko 1944 1987
61st Academy Awards 29 Mar 1989 Dustin Hoffman 🇺🇸 USA Rain Man Raymond Babbit 1937 1988
62nd Academy Awards 26 Mar 1990 Daniel Day-Lewis 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England My Left Foot Christy Brown Daniel Day-Lewis currently tops the best actor Oscar winners list with three wins: My Left Foot in 1989, There Will Be Blood in 2007 and Lincoln in 2012. 1957 1989
63rd Academy Awards 25 Mar 1991 Jeremy Irons 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Reversal Of Fortune Claus von Bülow 1948 1990
64th Academy Awards 30 Mar 1992 Anthony Hopkins, Sir 󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Wales The Silence Of The Lambs Dr. Hannibal Lecter Anthony Hopkins is the second of two Welsh best actor Oscar winners. See also Ray Milland. 1937 1991
65th Academy Awards 29 Mar 1993 Al Pacino 🇺🇸 USA Scent Of A Woman Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade 1940 1992
66th Academy Awards 21 Mar 1994 Tom Hanks 🇺🇸 USA Philadelphia Andrew Beckett 1956 1993
67th Academy Awards 27 Mar 1995 Tom Hanks 🇺🇸 USA Forrest Gump Forrest Gump Tom Hanks joined Spencer Tracy as one of only two consecutive best actor Oscar winners. 1956 1994
68th Academy Awards 25 Mar 1996 Nicolas Cage 🇺🇸 USA Leaving Las Vegas Ben Sanderson 1964 1995
69th Academy Awards 24 Mar 1997 Geoffrey Rush 🇦🇺 Australia Shine David Helfgott 1951 1996
70th Academy Awards 23 Mar 1998 Jack Nicholson 🇺🇸 USA As Good As It Gets Melvin Udall 1937 1997
71st Academy Awards 21 Mar 1999 Roberto Benigni 🇮🇹 Italy Life is Beautiful Guido Orefice 1952 1998
72nd Academy Awards 26 Mar 2000 Kevin Spacey 🇺🇸 USA American Beauty Lester Burnham 1959 1999
73rd Academy Awards 25 Mar 2001 Russell Crowe 🇳🇿 New Zealand Gladiator General Maximus Decimus Meridius 1964 2000
74th Academy Awards 24 Mar 2002 Denzel Washington 🇺🇸 USA Training Day Alonzo Harris Denzel Washington was the second of four black best actor Oscar winners along with Sidney Poitier, Jamie Foxx and Forest Whitaker. 1954 2001
75th Academy Awards 23 Mar 2003 Adrien Brody 🇺🇸 USA The Pianist Władysław Szpilman 1973 2002
76th Academy Awards 29 Feb 2004 Sean Penn 🇺🇸 USA Mystic River Jimmy Markum 1960 2003
77th Academy Awards 27 Feb 2005 Jamie Foxx 🇺🇸 USA Ray Ray Charles Jamie Foxx was the third of four black best actor Oscar winners along with Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington and Forest Whitaker. 1967 2004
78th Academy Awards 5 Mar 2006 Philip Seymour Hoffman 🇺🇸 USA Capote Truman Capote 1967 2014 2005
79th Academy Awards 25 Feb 2007 Forest Whitaker 🇺🇸 USA The Last King Of Scotland Idi Amin Forest Whitaker was the last of four black best actor Oscar winners along with Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington and Jamie Foxx. 1961 2006
80th Academy Awards 24 Feb 2008 Daniel Day-Lewis 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England There Will Be Blood Daniel Plainview Daniel Day-Lewis currently tops the best actor Oscar winners list with three wins: My Left Foot in 1989, There Will Be Blood in 2007 and Lincoln in 2012. 1957 2007
81st Academy Awards 22 Feb 2009 Sean Penn 🇺🇸 USA Milk Harvey Milk 1960 2008
82nd Academy Awards 7 Mar 2010 Jeff Bridges 🇺🇸 USA Crazy Heart Otis “Bad” Blake 1949 2009
83th Academy Awards 27 Feb 2011 Colin Firth 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England The King’s Speech King George VI 1960 2010
84th Academy Awards 26 Feb 2012 Jean Dujardin 🇫🇷 France The Artist George Valentin 1972 2011
85th Academy Awards 24 Feb 2013 Daniel Day-Lewis 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Lincoln Abraham Lincoln Daniel Day-Lewis currently tops the best actor Oscar winners list with three wins: My Left Foot in 1989, There Will Be Blood in 2007 and Lincoln in 2012. 1957 2012
86th Academy Awards 2 Mar 2014 Matthew McConaughey 🇺🇸 USA Dallas Buyers Club Ron Woodroof 1969 2013
87th Academy Awards 22 Feb 2015 Eddie Redmayne 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England The Theory of Everything Stephen Hawking 1982 2014
88th Academy Awards 28 Feb 2016 Leonardo DiCaprio 🇺🇸 USA The Revenant Hugh Glass 1974 2015
89th Academy Awards 26 Feb 2017 Casey Affleck 🇺🇸 USA Manchester by the Sea Lee Chandler 1975 2016
90th Academy Awards 4 Mar 2018 Gary Oldman 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England Darkest Hour Winston Churchill 1958 2017
91st Academy Awards 25 Feb 2019 Rami Malek 🇺🇸 USA Bohemian Rhapsody Freddie Mercury 1981 2018
92nd Academy Awards 9 Feb 2020 Joaquin Phoenix 🇺🇸 USA Joker The Joker The Joker made his first appearance in DC Comics Batman #1 in 1940. 1974 2019
93rd Academy Awards 25 Apr 2021 Anthony Hopkins 󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Wales The Father Anthony Anthony Hopkins, aged 83, is currently the oldest Best Actor Oscar winner. 1937 2020

See also: Oscar Winning Actresses… | Most Famous Actors Roles…

* Although Frederic March gained one more vote than Wallace Beery, rules at the time declared this a tie. Today only exactly the same number of votes results in a tie. Important! ADDucation is neither endorsed nor affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The Oscar® and Academy Awards® and Oscar® design mark are the trademarks and service marks and the Oscar© statuette the copyrighted property, of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

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