Oscar’s Most-Nominated: Best Actor (Part I)

Today I’m continuing my look back at the actors with the most Academy Award nominations in my lead-up to the Oscars ceremony toward the end of the month, this time in the leading category. This list is much longer than the supporting one, so I’m splitting the list into two parts. So for this post, the actors listed have received four to five acting nominations, with more or all performances for a lead role.

Note: This list is in descending order, ending with the actor who’s received the most nominations. Titles that are italicized designate the movies they won an Oscar for and titles marked with an asterisk are for supporting role nominations.

Warren Beatty in Reds (1981)

WARREN BEATTY (4 nominations):
Bonnie and Clyde
Heaven Can Wait
Reds
Bugsy

Charles Boyer in Gaslight (1944)

CHARLES BOYER (4 nominations):
Conquest
Algiers
Gaslight
Fanny

Montgomery Clift in A Place in the Sun (1951)

MONTGOMERY CLIFT (4 nominations):
The Search
A Place in the Sun
From Here to Eternity
Judgment at Nuremberg*

Bradley Cooper in A Star Is Born (2018)

BRADLEY COOPER (4 nominations):
Silver Linings Playbook
American Hustle*
American Sniper
A Star Is Born

George Clooney in Michael Clayton (2007)

GEORGE CLOONEY (4 nominations, 1 win):
Syriana*
Michael Clayton
Up in the Air
The Descendants

Ronald Colman in A Double Life (1947)

RONALD COLMAN (4 nominations, 1 win):
Condemned!
Bulldog Drummond
Random Harvest
A Double Life

Alec Guinness in The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

ALEC GUINNESS (4 nominations, 1 win):
The Lavender Hill Mob
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Star Wars*
Little Dorrit*

Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

ANTHONY HOPKINS (4 nominations, 1 win):
The Silence of the Lambs
The Remains of the Day
Nixon
Amistad*

William Hurt in Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985)

WILLIAM HURT (4 nominations, 1 win):
Kiss of the Spider Woman
Children of a Lesser God
Broadcast News
A History of Violence*

Ben Kingsley in Gandhi (1982)

BEN KINGSLEY (4 nominations, 1 win):
Gandhi
Bugsy*
Sexy Beast*
House of Sand and Fog

Burt Lancaster in Elmer Gantry (1960)

BURT LANCASTER (4 nominations, 1 win):
From Here to Eternity
Elmer Gantry
Birdman of Alcatraz
Atlantic City

Geoffrey Rush in Shine (1996)

GEOFFREY RUSH (4 nominations, 1 win):
Shine
Shakespeare in Love*
Quills
The King’s Speech*

George C. Scott in Patton (1970)

GEORGE C. SCOTT (4 nominations, 1 win):
Anatomy of a Murder*
The Hustler*
Patton
The Hospital

Jon Voight in Coming Home (1978)

JON VOIGHT (4 nominations, 1 win):
Midnight Cowboy
Coming Home
Runaway Train
Ali*

Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society (1989)

ROBIN WILLIAMS (4 nominations, 1 win):
Good Morning, Vietnam
Dead Poets Society
The Fisher King
Good Will Hunting*

Albert Finney in Tom Jones (1963)

ALBERT FINNEY (5 nominations):
Tom Jones
Murder on the Orient Express
The Dresser
Under the Volcano
Erin Brockovich*

Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant (2015)

LEONARDO DICAPRIO (5 nominations, 1 win):
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape*
The Aviator
Blood Diamond
The Wolf of Wall Street
The Revenant

Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

MORGAN FREEMAN (5 nominations, 1 win):
Street Smart*
Driving Miss Daisy
The Shawshank Redemption
Million Dollar Baby*
Invictus

Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

GREGORY PECK (5 nominations, 1 win):
The Keys of the Kingdom
The Yearling
Gentleman’s Agreement
Twelve O’Clock High
To Kill a Mockingbird

James Stewart in The Philadelphia Story (1940)

JAMES STEWART (5 nominations, 1 win):
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
The Philadelphia Story
It’s a Wonderful Life
Harvey
Anatomy of a Murder

Gary Cooper in High Noon (1952)

GARY COOPER (5 nominations, 2 wins):
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Sergeant York
The Pride of the Yankees
For Whom the Bell Tolls
High Noon

Tom Hanks in Philadelphia (1993)

TOM HANKS (5 nominations, 2 wins):
Big
Philadelphia
Forrest Gump
Saving Private Ryan
Cast Away

Fredric March in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)

FREDRIC MARCH (5 nominations, 2 wins):
The Royal Family of Broadway
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
A Star Is Born
The Best Years of Our Lives
Death of a Salesman

Sean Penn in Milk (2008)

SEAN PENN (5 nominations, 2 wins):
Dead Man Walking
Sweet and Lowdown
I Am Sam
Mystic River
Milk

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