Top 10 Acting Oscar Wins of ALL TIME

What are the top 10 acting Oscar wins of ALL TIME? Here is my ranking! #oscars #academyawards #topten #bestactor #bestactress #alltime #brianrowevideo
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TOP 10 ACTING OSCAR WINS OF THE 1940s
1. Joan Crawford, Mildred Pierce
2. Ray Milland, The Lost Weekend
3. Ingrid Bergman, Gaslight
4. Olivia De Havilland, The Heiress
5. Greer Garson, Mrs. Miniver
6. Laurence Olivier, Hamlet
7. Gary Cooper, Sergeant York
8. James Stewart, The Philadelphia Story
9. Jane Darwell, The Grapes of Wrath
10. Edmund Gwenn, Miracle on 34th Street
TOP 10 ACTING OSCAR WINS OF THE 1930s
1. Vivien Leigh, Gone With the Wind
2. Claudette Colbert, It Happened One Night
3. Bette Davis, Jezebel
4. Clark Gable, It Happened One Night
5. Hattie McDaniel, Gone with the Wind
6. Robert Donat, Goodbye Mr. Chips
7. Katharine Hepburn, Morning Glory
8. Wallace Beery, The Champ
9. Luise Rainer, The Great Ziegfeld
10. Spencer Tracy, Captains Courageous

[@trediaz4012]

Kathy Bates win for Misery was one of a kind. She was a woman in her 40s, who was having a breakout role, in a horror film. Plus, she doesn't look like the "typical Hollywood beauty" that wins Best Actress. There was so much going against Kathy Bates but she won. Could not deny her.

[@deborahblackvideoediting8697]

It's amazing that she was able to become a household name in her 40s. Like you said, she definitely didn't look the part of a Hollywood starlet. But it's like she was born to play the role of Annie Wilkes. I was thrilled when she won her Oscar. She's such a great actress and has had an amazing career because of that role.

[@GirlfriendNinja]

It was years before anyone could convince me that Kathy Bates wasn’t batshit cray cray.

[@lefantomer]

Wish she could have received a double Oscar for Misery and Dolores Claiborne.

[@trediaz4012]

@@lefantomer Her performance in Dolores Claiborne was the best that year

[@lefantomer]

@@trediaz4012 Awesome. I like it much better than "Misery".

[@pnutbutrncrackers]

Could not agree more with regarding Jack Nicholson's portrayal in Cuckoo's Nest as one of cinema's all-time greatest, but would quickly add that that entire cast is so good in that picture it's astonishing. One of the best ensemble dramatic products ever captured on celluloid.

[@DarthVader-ig6ci]

Louise Fletcher as Nurse Ratchet was equally brilliant... I was hating her so much that if I was in the movie I would have killed her myself.

[@PhilipKoch-q4d]

Jack nicholson always gives a memorable performance. he's brilliant in Carnal knowledge.

[@JesusMagicPanties]

@pnutbutrncrackers@ True. And this is perhaps why people who have stayed as patients in such hospitals view it reluctantly. The film is just too damn painfully real to watch for them.

[@lilymarie4030]

I have only watched 'Sophie's Choice' one time. That scene where she had to choose between her children, absolutely tore me to shreds emotionally, so much that I don't ever want to see it again.

[@christineconroykristeller5221]

I can’t watch it again either. Just gut wrenching

[@ninamc6116]

I can’t watch it either

[@sunshineandwarmth]

Yes. Its not the nutcracker. You dont want to make it a Xmas tradition.😁

[@yvorfalcon3025]

Same here.

[@laureencriss8220]

I'm hoping no one who hasn't seen it reads the comments. But, yes, it's the most heartbreaking scene in film history.

[@pentameteriamb6196]

F. Murray Abraham's portrayal of Salieri in Amadeus was my favorite Oscar win.

[@madmoviemark]

Agreed, I came here to argue this point as well lol

[@luispt77]

One of the best performances and still is completely undervalued. He and Tom Hulce were outstanding but Murray was on a level few could ever reached.

[@SusieMullins-t6i]

It’s very disappointing not to see him on this list.

[@Cdimitriou1]

IT's amazing

[@skylark1250]

A great actor. Always worth watching.

[@SadhuBiochemist]

Tragically Vivian Leigh died too early. It was tuberculosis from what I read. Her short career showed enormous talent.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Love her!

[@angelbabysqueaky3985]

She was brilliant. She did die too soon. She had some mental problems and there was no cure for ,at that time.

[@KingChiJay91]

She got her flowers before she died. Which is all that matters. She was a brilliant actress.

[@brenoleitebrito2471]

It will be hard for someone to ever beat Meryl Streep's Sophie's Choice acting. It's simply perfect. There's no Meryl there, you only see Sophie.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Exactly!

[@Chefsandrajm]

That was a tough movie for sure and an amazing performance

[@Mntguy-nr9vl]

Meryl Streep's performance in Sophie's choice set the bar for acting. I saw it before I knew who she was and I thought it was a foreign film I've never seen a woman speak with a Polish accent,talk German. It was truly a master class and I think it set herself up for failure because it was so extraordinary that everything else she did was reductive.

[@joeburinskas8672]

She's over rated over acting and a ham. Unwatchable

[@joeburinskas8672]

Not putting Vivien Leigh at number one is criminal.

[@lenwelch2195]

Heath ledger performance in brokeback mountain was so moving, showing love is love- his walking away from his love spills into an alley and his heartbreak is crush8ng.

[@RickDesper-v8z]

The snub of Brokeback Mountain in favor of Crash remains a huge embarrassment for the Academy.

[@migueljuarez503]

Though he didn't live to receive it, Ledger eventually won the Oscar for his Joker portrayal.

[@donaldoneill2117]

Lenwatch would say that. Your anal muscles were twitching with anticipation huh😂

[@donaldoneill2117]

​@@RickDesper-v8zsome people didn't want a constant gay fly in the house looking for a window to go out!😮

[@donaldoneill2117]

Didn't have to be told the narrative told he has to tell us he is gay. Great. Waiting on the video he does about constipation and being gay helps..... Just drops his draws and bends over and a dump just falls out like a 2lb can of beans😂!

[@gidgitvonlarue9972]

Vivien Leigh in Gone with the Wind is one of the most deserving Oscars ever! No doubt you know the history of the studio changing directors mid filming from a 'womens' director to a more Clark Gable director that treated the women quite harshly. You cannot tell watching that movie. Vivien was just brilliant!

[@jodi2847]

I would argue Fleming's harshness contributed to that performance. He badgered her to play it one way (bitchy), and she fought for Scarlett's humanity. I doubt Cukor could have gotten from her that strong of a performance.

[@gidgitvonlarue9972]

@@jodi2847 I do agree with that too. Just like Stanley with Shelly - sometimes a 'hard men's director' can bring the best out in women.

[@lizziebkennedy7505]

Amen to this

[@lizziebkennedy7505]

@@jodi2847all her performances are strong

[@janavarrette9206]

Both of Vivien’s wins are so well deserved which is rare for repeat winners

[@chereecargill355]

I can't even watch Sophie's Choice again. The ending tore my heart out! I love all of her films but this one affected me the most.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Such a great performance!!

[@kristinholsapple2587]

That is one of my movies I just can't watch again, I have a few that are just so emotional I'm lucky I got through them one lol Oh and I close my eyes when it comes to the ankle scene in Misery, lol

[@jamesfreeman2258]

Of course Hattie McDaniel performance in GWTW is as powerful and heart wrenching as Ms. Leigh or Mr. Gables was. When McDaniel is climbing the steps with Melianie and telling her how the baby's death has affected Scarlett & Rhett, I remember crying along with Mammy as that scene played out. McDaniel played a small part in GWTW, somehow, someway with all her talent was a key character in GWTW. I have to mention The Whale and Brandon Fraser's performance. It is a stunning movie, and Fraser's performance is iconic.

[@windstorm1000]

Olivia said she knew Hattie was going to best her and get the award after she looked at that staircase scene.

[@SandraHudson-w2s]

I totally agree. Hattie was outstanding as Mammy. She had so much talent. Gone With the Wind is one of my all-time favourite movies

[@tateandemmy]

Vivien Leigh is just brilliant in those two roles!

[@angelbabysqueaky3985]

I agree with you. She is so amazing performances.

[@lonellfletcher]

I think its okay that Theron won't top Monster. It did its job; it changed our perception of her and what she was capable of as an actress, and her follow-ups have now cemented her as an ACTOR. Her legacy is set.

[@paulvoorhies8821]

100%

[@mhawang8204]

I think it speaks more to the lack of meaty roles available to actresses. Her trajectory reminds me of Nicole Kidman. Viewed as a bombshell, actually a great actress who won an Oscar, but went on to do less artistically fulfilling roles. Kidman found more interesting projects in television. Theron genuinely enjoys action films so it’s fine. But it’s a shame that they don’t get more opportunities like Nicholson, DiCaprio, etc.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Very true!

[@Crookedlystrait]

​@@mhawang8204 Are you joking?? Both these actresses went on to do many other interesting roles after their wins . Nicole did Cold Mountain, the Human Stain , Dogville, Birth , the Interpreter, Fur., Margot at the wedding, The Golden Compass, Australia, Nine. And those are just from the 2000s ,( which also include pre Oscar films Moulin Rouge , The Others, and Birthday Girl). Charlize did Head in the Clouds, North Country, Aeon Flux, The Road, Young Adult, Prometheus Mad Max, Bombshell, etc.

[@spacecadet2172]

@@CrookedlystraitThe Golden Compass? Prometheus? Are you sure those are examples you want to be using??

[@kevinpoole6122]

Scarlett and Blanche are both tortured (in different ways) legends for the ages-they both share Ms Leigh’s cocked right eyebrow, after all, as well as her considerable private suffering which breathes life into both performances. Thank you!

[@psychokarloff]

It's so bizarre that the two most famous Southern belles in American literature were both portrayed by a sublimely talented Englishwoman.

[@KidFresh71]

Let's hope the Academy becomes more open to performances in horror films. Toni Colette getting snubbed for "Heredity" was an unforgivable snub, as was Anthony Perkins for "Psycho." The bias against the horror genre goes back decades.

[@lemoncrash1814]

Good list. You forgot Katherine Hepburn in The Lion in Winter. The “I could peel you like a pear, and God himself would call it justice” speech was a master class of acting.

[@Thadmotor1044]

Should expand the list

[@RickDesper-v8z]

O'Toole is also fabulous in The Lion in Winter, though he never won a Best Actor Oscar. Great a terrific cast altogether.

[@jamesfreeman2258]

Ditto

[@christopherstuve2511]

Katherine' s Elenore in Lion In Winter is one of the most amazing performances ever captured on film. It is used as one of the greatest examples of acting in almost every drama course, and rightfully so. Every single line was delivered to perfection. It is still mesmerizing to watch, even after dozens of viewings. All the other performers also stated that her skill was so high that they all had to push themselves to levels they had not reached before. O'Toole and Hopkins site it as the best performance by a costar of their careers. I am stunned that it didn't even make it the top ten list here. I can only imagine this is due to the poster had not seen the film.

[@Wotan123456789]

So very true. Both performances, The Lion in Winter and Guess who's coming for dinner, are just too good not to be mentioned.

[@lindamcgillin2263]

Thank you for recognizing so many incredible perfected female roles and actresses. Scarlett and Blanche are my iconic all time favorites. Archetypal

[@TheAwardsContender]

You’re very welcome!

[@dennisdelgado7350]

Marion Cotillard in LA VIE EN ROSE was stunning, too!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Absolutely! Just missed the runners up list!

[@isamn7319]

Agree, beautiful and heartbreaking .. Well deserved Oscar

[@shadykatie100]

Great choice!

[@aprilgrant1957]

She was more Piaf than Piaf.

[@dennisdelgado7350]

@@aprilgrant1957 hahaha! I agree!

[@JoanSmith-t7k]

In her autobiography, Elizabeth Taylor said that "Virginia Woolf" was her Hamlet, her top acting performance of them all.

[@davidanderson_surrey_bc]

So... Virginia Ham-let?

[@davidfowler4807]

I agree she was the BEST OVER EVERYONE

[@annetteelliott1494]

Liz can't act but she can yell.

[@robertwalker2052]

Her Hamlet was as Fred Flintstone's mom in "The Flintstones".

[@homegown1234]

To me the one which I hoped she would have won the Oscar was "Cat On a Hot Tin Roof." Everyone performances by all the entire cast were wonderful. The critics said that Elizabeth Taylor Southern accent was unbelievable because it was so "spot on" as the Southern belle she portrayed as "Maggie the Cat." However, she got the first Oscar for "Butterfly 8." She was wonderful in that role.

[@rickyestevez4698]

Meryl Streep's performance in Sophie's Choice is a masterclass in acting; a performance that I doubt will ever be surpassed. I agree with all of your choices but if I had to drop one performance from the list to replace with another, it would have to be Natalie Portman's in favor of Marion Cotillard's heartbreaking and explosive performance as Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose. Exquisite is the only word that comes to mind. Also, I would have added Hillary Swank's harrowing performance in Boys Don't Cry and in the best actor category, without question F. Murray Abraham as the tormented and guilt ridden Salieri in Amadeus.

[@2615ParkAvenueAssociates]

Thank you, thank you, thank you for recognizing the incredible talent of Vivien Leigh in two of the greatest performances of all time as well the personal sacrifice she gave TO BE Blanche DuBois! Your post is so much in sync with my own tastes it makes me grateful to have found you on KZbin. I saw the Seattle premiere of "Sophie's Choice." Meryl Streep's incredible performance had me walking around for three days----and I still vividly remember being bowled over by the power she brought to that performance.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Glad you enjoyed the video!

[@jslasher1]

Saw the film in Seattle as well by default because the next screening of “Tootsie” was booked out. Streep’s performance is one for the ages.

[@lynryall1317]

Yes oh yes amazing x

[@NicolePoliskey]

Amazing comment, I couldn't agree more! Vivian has my heart in those two performances and Meryl is always top tier xx

[@713davidh42]

When you announced Meryl Streep for Sophie's Choice as your #1 Oscar win, I immediately yelled "Yep!" She did everything in that movie but sell popcorn to the audience.

[@wsidechris]

After 40 years I still have to say Timothy Hutton in "Ordinary People" is one of the most earned wins of all time. He was only 19 years old and had only been in a few TV movies, but carried the immense weight of this film. He never sank into melodrama and he carried the tragedy, humor, awkwardness yet ordinary-ness of Conrad Jarrett. It's one of those performances that, like you describe with Charlize Theron, could never be topped no matter what he does.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Love that Hutton performance!

[@GetALifeMiley]

Ordinary People is brilliantly acted by all 4 main actors. Timothy Hutton definitely stands out.

[@wsidechris]

Absolutely, it was an incredible cast all the way down to the smallest parts.@@GetALifeMiley

[@maddy7]

IMO, Mary Tyler Moore was outstanding & should've won. The blank look on her face when Conrad hugs her as she & hubby return from Houston is burned into my head. Kudos to Hutton and honestly, I'm glad Ordinary People won over Raging Bull. DeNiro def earned his acting award.

[@Atomykpimp]

Louise Fletcher was absolutely well deserved and her speech was amazing and very heart felt!

[@jhhone]

Kathy Bates 100% deserved her spot on the list her performance is Operatic in her death scene at the end she make you feel as if she left it all on the film. So many emotions just brilliant! If "Sophie's Choice" had not been released that year Jessica Lange would have most definitely won Best Actress that year!

[@BFA100]

Well, she did win the Oscar that same year for Tootsie as Best Supporting Actress.

[@jhhone]

@@BFA100 Her performance was wonderful but I think it was a consolation Oscar.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Absolutely, yes!

[@BoBo-ti6jh]

Kathy Bates gave a TV movie performance in Misery. Not very good or believable.

[@Thadmotor1044]

Jessica Lange for Men Don't Leave

[@nadiakent4082]

I know she didn’t win, but looking back on Sigorney Weaver’s loss for best actress in Aliens, and how more and more iconic it becomes over the years. She has got to be on some kind of list. Changed the roles for women both in fiction and reality. Maybe she is on a list by herself.

[@fedfan3079]

One of my all time favorite performances/movies

[@riccee5242]

Thank you, I was just about to comment this same thing! That movie is and will always be #1. And it's because of Weaver's role as Ripley (really in _both_ Alien and Aliens but in the latter, it's just insane, her performance and what she goes through)

[@TheBeezusjones]

HELL. YES....

[@lenwelch2195]

Liz Taylor and Vivian Leigh both have a fire and passion that all of us feel represented with life’s ups and downs . They show feelings that very few peo0le would want to ever display but immediately relate too. They knew how to portray without over acting.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Thanks for watching!

[@SherrieMonica]

Couldn't stand Elizabeth Taylor's acting

[@MaureenStapletonFan]

A person's top 10 list is very personal. That is the one thing I've learned over the years. Performances hit individuals differently, ya know? Thrilled to see Vivian Leigh for Streetcar and Elizabeth Taylor for Virginia Woolf on your list.

[@jhhone]

Yes, Taylor's ability made all her performances something special! She became a parody of herself but she was something special as a performer and I feel that nothing can take that away from her.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Yay!

[@melisagalvalizi6982]

​@@jhhone what do You mean she became a parody?? She did great things after her acting career.

[@melisagalvalizi6982]

​@@jhhone when burton died she retires, she wasn't the same after his death.

[@melisagalvalizi6982]

​@@jhhone what do You mean parody?

ok we NEED a Annette Bening elusive Oscar video

[@TheAwardsContender]

❤️❤️❤️

[@NaticzkaKaminskaHenryDolphin]

As a Polish person, who has a Polish and Jewish family that survived the hell of WWII in Poland, during the brutal German occupation of Poland, and whose Polish and Jewish relatives both fought against the German Nazis since day 1, many paid the highest price for it - I respect Meryl's role as Sophie, but at the same time, I seriously hate the movie! Sophie's Choice is an extremely overrated movie - yes, I said what I said, sorry not sorry. Let me explain. Those of us, whose families still bear the scars of the apocalypse of WWII, and were directly affected by it, and directly experienced it all literally in the epicenter of it all, Poland, we can never be easily swayed by the Hollywood version of these historic events; and we are furious, when some fancy Hollywood director makes a trendy movie about our pain, our history, and our homeland, yet turns out, knows nothing about it! This is unfortunately the case of the Sophie's Choice director, Alan Pakula. Yes, I know - Pakula's parents were Polish Jews and even his surname 'Pakula', in the original, Polish language is Pakuła (and quite popular in Poland) but that doesn't give him a license to be an expert on what was exactly happening in Poland before and during the war, or about the Holocaust because he simply wrote awful lies about these topics in this movie, and made various historical mistakes. Also, his parents were already in the US, so it looks like the older generations of his family emigrated from Poland to the US decades earlier, long before he was born - he was born in 1928 - so his family was not in Poland already, the decades before WWII started. They didn't experience this tragedy in Poland at all! Yes, there is the possibility that they still had some relatives in Poland left during WWII, so maybe he was told some things by these relatives, but he still simply made terrible historical mistakes, so clearly he was not an expert. And since my own Jewish and Polish family did live in Poland at the time when WWII broke out, and some of them survived it, his not truthful version of our history made me very angry, when I watched it for the first time, and this anger still comes back to me every time I remember that this movie exists. The most glaring lie, for example, is that, as Sophie says in the movie, there was a ghetto in Cracow, Poland in 1938, so a whole year before the war! This is simply a lie. Yes, 'ghettos' for Jews, in the sense of a Jewish quarter, completely free and open, populated by Jews, like black 'ghettos' today in the US, were functioning in Western Europe since the Middle Ages, for example in Italy, France, etc. One of the reasons for their creation in the first place was the fact that Jews, in the majority, didn't want to blend in and assimilate with the local population, so they preferred to stay in their own circles and develop their culture in a particular country, as a separate culture from the culture of the locals. So that's why 'ghettos' as Jewish quarters, in part, were being created naturally. But by the time the 1900s arrived, it was simply called the Jewish quarter. However, there is a difference between this, and between ghettos created later, during the war, by the Germans. German ghettos were not normal, open districts populated by the Jewish minority, from which everyone could go and come back as they pleased and lived normally, but those were simply completely closed and patrolled prisons where terror, murder, crimes, and persecutions against the Jewish population were constantly present, and closed traps from which German Nazis were taking Jews, by force and violence, for the extermination in the concentration camps or simply killed Jews there. And the problem in The Sophie's Choice is, that Sophie is talking about the ghetto in Cracow, in 1938, in this sense - in a sense of closed, Nazi prison. And it's simply a lie: NO ghetto existed in Poland, in 1938, so before World War II, and certainly not in Cracow! Ghettos as prisons for Jews and places where extermination of Jews happened, were only built AFTER Germany defeated Poland, completely took over, and started to brutally occupy Poland. It was the German administration's decision, their rules, and their orders. Poles have nothing to do with this, yet Sophie in this movie says there was a ghetto in Cracow in Poland back in 1938. And it's extremely upsetting, for someone like me. And there are other, similar historical mistakes in this movie. But beyond historical inaccuracy, the movie also drags on later, becomes boring, and is not as brilliantly written as all the accolades suggested. I remember when I first watched it, years ago, I was very disappointed because I was expecting smth way better! As a Pole, I have to say that although Meryl is quite good with a Polish accent and speaking a little Polish in the movie, she still sometimes sounds more like a Russian not a Pole, as a Polish accent and language are extremely hard to capture because it's smth less soft than Russian, and more rustling, but at the same time, it's melodic like most Slavic languages. And to accurately capture all of this, and learn, being an English native speaker, is very hard. So overall - yes, Meryl did well in The Sophie's Choice, but certainly not the greatest as so many people and critics claim, and the main problem is, this movie is historically inaccurate in many places, and not the most brilliantly written at all. For me, personally, Meryl Streep has better roles.

[@lisapierce-goldstein81]

Great list. Agree with everything except for Black Swan. For actors I'd add F. Murray Abraham for Amadeus, Jeremy Irons for Reversal of Fortune and Daniel Day Lewis for My Left Foot (he's great in Lincoln too), Philip Seymour Hoffman in Capote and Sean Penn in Milk.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Thanks, great pics!

[@jslasher1]

Daniel Day Lewis for me. He's the best of the actors working today.

[@RickDesper-v8z]

@@jslasher1 Another vote for Day-Lewis.

[@normanleach5427]

Lewis retired from acting.

[@jslasher1]

@@normanleach5427 Did he now? News to me.

[@kellie-nd1yp]

I would put Meryl Streep in Sophie's Choice,Vivien Leigh in A Streetcar Named Desire,Robert De Niro in Raging Bull and Marlon Brando for On The Waterfront in the category of for the ages it's hard to compare thenm to others because all else is measured against them fair or not .But t's not what I would say are honorable mentions althought they are fab too. Some of my favorites Charlize Theron for Monster, Bette Davis in Jezabel,Sophia Loren in Two Women ,Judy Holliday for Born Yesterday ,Michelle Yeoh in EEAAO, Frances McDormand in Fargo,Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins ,Liza Minnelli in Cabaret Jane Fonda in Klute and Ellen Burstyn in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore,Patrica Neal in Hud Supporting actress Catherine Zeta Jones in Chicago, Octavia Spencer in The Help, Youn-yuh jung in Minari,Marcia Gay Harden in Pollock,Olympia Dukakis in Moonstruck,Tilda Swinton in Michael Clayton, Mo'Nique in Precious ,Viola Davis in Fences Supporting actor Joel Grey in Cabaret ,Christoph Waltz Django Unchained ,Burl Ives The Big Country Daniel Kaluuya Judas and The Black Messiah ,Edmund Gwenn in Miracle on 34th Street , Best Actor Jamie Foxx in Ray ,Sidney Poitier in Lillies in The Field ,Jack Lemmon in Save The Tiger , Daniel Day Lewis in Lincoln and My Left Foot Eddie Redmayne The Theory of Everything, Humphry Bogart The African Queen Sorry I could not keep it at ten over all and at that I left a number of favorites off .

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great picks!

[@imagine_name1256]

I missed Ledger and Hopkins in the top 10 so im very happy you included them in the runners-up. This list is great and I will definitely be catching up on the vivienne leigh performances

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great!

[@JamesLintonwriter]

Roger Ebert also said that Charlize Theron's performance in Monster was the performance of the century. He was damn right about that.

[@jeffronci1063]

Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice in “Funny Girl” - one of the greatest, most original, most dazzling, bravura film performances of all time.

[@darrensmith4932]

Someone else who loves Joan Crawford. She’s terrific and gave the better performance in Baby Jane IMO

[@TheAwardsContender]

Yay, love her!

[@BoBo-ti6jh]

Crawford was so much better than Davis in Baby Jane.

[@BuffMuscleSoCal]

All great actresses and well deserved Oscars. I'd switch Vivien Leigh in "Gone With The Wind" for Marion Cotillard in "La Vie En Rose". Still can't get over the fact that Glenn Close has not won at least 2 Oscars, for "Fatal Attraction" and "Dangerous Liaisons". SMH

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great picks!

[@camicooper4115]

yes to kathy bates!!!! one of my absolute favorite performances of all time!!!!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Same!

[@newtonduck1]

Great to see Vivien Leigh twice on the list. Because of her smaller film list, she doesn't always get the focus many of her contemporaries get. She was put on earth to play Scarlett and got the double whammy with Blanche. She's incredible.

[@suzannequinson8439]

she is enchanting to watch, even though she was really a stage actress more than film

[@bernardliu8526]

Vivien Leigh is the most sublime actress ever born !

[@lindacoolbaugh962]

Great List. One I would add is Anne Bancroft for The Miracle Worker. That performance still brings tears to my eyes.

[@scottfarrar3463]

You're right!

[@timreding4364]

Also, Patty Duke did a great job!!! Best Supporting Actress, but I think she was the REAL star in that movie, not Anne Bancroft.

[@dpf5939]

​@@timreding4364Bette Davis was robbed! Period. Why not a tie like for Hepburn and Streisand?

[@TheNightBadger]

I think one of the best years for head-to-heads at the Oscars, was when Gloria Swanson, Bette Davis and Judy Holliday were competing (Sunset Boulevard, All About Eve and Born Yesterday). Holliday won - which wouldn't have been my choice, but damn - that's a tough decision!

[@TheNightBadger]

@@Alexis47620 True, she was great. Although, she had 9 nominations and two wins at the Academy Awards, so I think she got lots of recognition. Gloria got three Academy Award nominations in her career. I think Judy just had the one win, but her performance in Born Yesterday was really great. What a tough year to be a judge!

[@biancabermudez9517]

Bette and Gloria are so iconic in their respective roles that year.

[@tyronesoares3268]

Great list! Nice surprise with Kathy Bates, iconic performance. Some other ones worth mentioning, Daniel Day Lewis in My Left Foot and Hilary Swank in Boys Don't Cry. Have you done a segment for actors who should have won but didn't or the race was so close it was difficult to call?

[@TheAwardsContender]

No, good idea!

[@j.d.andrew-nv2oh]

How about a list ranking nominee's whether they won or not? Ha ha!

[@marieuzes]

Daniel Day Lewis is one of the greats and has rarely been appreciated by Americans

[@tyronesoares3268]

He's won three Oscars, if he did not retire, he would probably win a fourth. What else do Americans have to do? Build him a temple?

[@thomashavard-morgan8181]

My top two at the time of writing Meryl Streep in Sophie's Choice and Charlize Theron in Monster. Transformative, captivating and at times truly harrowing. Two performances that hunker down at the human experience and pose some very difficult questions and performances that have stuck with me, those two performances truly show the power of acting.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great performances!

[@scottfarrar3463]

My order is Theron, then Streep, but I agree with your top two!!!

[@itsybitsy999]

Great video and list, Brian! My number one is Vivien Leigh in Gone with the Wind. I watched that film over and over when I was younger, I just adore her.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great choice!

[@traceydobesh5446]

Same!!!!!

[@douglaswhite9524]

Vivien Leigh is simply the best in both GWTW and A Streetcar Named Desire!

[@TheAwardsContender]

She’s incredible!

[@davidbiddle3257]

Joan Crawford as Mildred Pierce is such an unbelievable performance to ever win any award.

[@Jared_Wignall]

Jack Nicholson winning for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was well deserved. I also liked when Christian Bale won for The Fighter as well as Gary Oldman for Darkest Hour. Both should have more Oscar’s than the ones they have as well as more nominations. Great video Brian, have a great weekend!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Thanks so much!

[@fordad101024]

Thank you for acknowledging Meryl Streep’s performance in Sophie’s Choice. In recent times, it is almost a cliche to celebrate her performances because she always delivers! Brava Ms. Streep, you are the best ever male or female.

[@johnpickford4222]

I am so grateful that Vivien Leigh is remembered for GWTW and A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. It is as tragedy that financing for a film of MacBETH w/Olivier couldn’t be found or that she wasn’t cast in LONG DAY’S INTO NIGHT instead of Katherine Hepburn (who was too strong.) For those who say GWTW hasn’t aged well, read the book. It’s not about the history of slavery in the south or how African Americans were portrayed. Yes, the story is about glorifying the succession of southern states and the Civil War, but that only occupies 4 of the 12 years the story covers. It is really s story of how an event cuts across the path of everyone in a country with a parallel of a romance of two characters who never get their act together at the same time until it’s too late. Nearly 85 years later that still happens.

[@biancabermudez9517]

GWTW still is the best movie ever made.

[@kengrout6835]

Great list! Thank you. Agree about Streep in Sophie. Love the Vivien Leigh love…deserved. And Kathy Bates and Elizabeth Taylor and Theron. As far as Best Actress goes, I would suggest Hilary Swank for “Boys Don’t Cry,” but I would go to the mat for Anna Magnani in “The Rose Tattoo.” Great video…thank you!

[@TheAwardsContender]

You’re welcome!

[@kengrout6835]

The other add I would include is Marion Cotillard for “La Vie en Rose.” She and Magnani are right up there for me. Also Hepburn in “The Lion in Winter.” Love what you’re doing!!

[@aagold76]

Vivien Leigh played the Streetcar part on the London stage before the film- when they had to choose between the 2 actress- box office sort of demanded Leigh

[@TheAwardsContender]

Yes, good point!

[@arontamas5639]

Sophie's choice is unbeatable. That's the proof the acting can be also objective when it comes to performances like these. Pure perfection!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Agreed!

[@joeburinskas8672]

Awful movie, hammy actress

[@Jose-sx4ql]

Amazing choices! On my list I would've included Hilary Swank for Boys Don't Cry, wow that performance shook me to the core in ways I can't even describe.

[@Spinner331]

It was great to see someone else who has the respect for Joan Crawford like I do. No matter what movie - even when she wasn't pleased with the script quality - Joan would put 110% effort into her part. "Mildred Pierce" is the best example of her efforts. She's one of my favorites

[@russelconor8704]

Heath Ledger as Joker was amazing, don't get me wrong, but I also think that he is a little overrated, and if not for his unexpected death, he would not be praised for this role to the extreme, like he is today. Also, Ledger's Joker popularity overshadows other, key, and absolutely fantastic acting performances in this movie, which is annoying and not fair! Christian Bale as Bruce and Batman was brilliant as well, Gary Oldman as Gordon was perfect, Michael Caine as Alfred - excellent, and Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent/Two-Face was genius! So I wish people talk more about these other actors and performances too!

[@nosir1479]

I think he’s spoken about so much because of how unique his performance was. Nobody has played a comic book character and dropped an Oscar worthy performance up until that point. It really hit home for fans.

[@doctorj6030]

I agree with your choices, especially Vivian Leigh, she plays Southern so well. No one could have played Scarlett O'Hara like her & no one could play Blanche DuBois like her. Very few movies shock me or make me cry, but Sophie's Choice did & it was Meryl Streep who was so believable. So glad you had Joan Crawford, Mildred Pierce was great , as was Elizabeth Taylor, who stopped being beautiful & became Martha. Kathy Bares was great in Misery, but I like her better in Dolores Claiborne.

[@GjpgrD]

Al Pacino's courageous & heart-wrenching performance in Dog Day Afternoon ran circles around Nicholson playing Crazy Jack yet again. Google the word "robbed" & there's a clip of Al screaming "Attica!" The work HE did in the '70s is indeed ASTONISHING!!

[@RickDesper-v8z]

Those were great years for movies. And, most years, Pacino should win in a rout. Dog Day Afternoon is a tremendous movie, but so is One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. For Pacino, the shame is that he eventually won for a performance that certainly isn't even in his top five.

[@GjpgrD]

@@RickDesper-v8z I find that it's rare when an actor wins for their best performance.

[@GjpgrD]

Jack is Jack. Al is whomever the script calls for him to be.

[@nicholasschroeder3678]

Both Al and Jack became caricatures of themselves as they aged, but in Cuckoos Nest Jack was extraordinary.

[@GjpgrD]

@@nicholasschroeder3678 In Dog Day, Al was extraordinary.

[@atlantistdc1976]

An excellent list. And I totally agree with number one. The scenes where Sophie is struggling to speak English words from her Polish background are absolutely unbelievable. But for number two I would have to have Gregory Peck in To Kill A Mockingbird. His understated and restrained performance was the perfect counterpoint to the ignorance and poverty of the 1930's South. Everyone wanted Him to be your Dad. (Except when he refused to play for the Methodists...)

[@lexkanyima2195]

But O'Toole was robbed by Peck

[@TheAwardsContender]

Thank you!

[@angelwingz892]

Charlize was totally amazing in Monster. I was appalled and so saddened...She really delivered. I love her work.

[@dianemoore6526]

Jean smart was also excellent in this role on the tv movie Overkill.

[@joycepayne6280]

Viola Davis, in Fences, was brilliant. She is actually brilliant in all of her performances.

[@josiefischer9359]

I’d love to see a video on the biggest acting snubs for each decade!

[@rodrickheffley8794]

Although Gone with the Wind hasn’t aged well AT ALL, Vivien Leigh is great in that movie and nobody can deny that.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Agreed!

[@anairenemartinez165]

I think good films do not age at all.

[@yuri2604]

Vivien Leigh is such a queen

[@TheAwardsContender]

Agreed!

[@angelbabysqueaky3985]

She was so beautiful and her acting was superb. I really can't think of any other actress in her two Oscar wins . I'm talking about Vivien Leigh.

[@lenwelch2195]

The single greatest acting performance by an actor is Timothy Hutton in Ordinary People. A genius performance. The role of Conrad Jarret is a high wire act. He can’t be too sympathetic or too unrelatable. The crying scene with the psychiatrist is a tourdeforce. Filmed in one long take is a masterclass.

[@Thadmotor1044]

Add Judd Hirsch who helped make that scene

[@robertm7889]

I could not disagree more. DeNiro was better in Deer Hunter and his performance in Raging Bull is by any reasonable objective standard the best ever! I liked Ordinary People and Hutton was excellent but you are way off!

[@stevenmalham2234]

Kathy Bates? Try nominating Anthony Perkins in "Psycho." 1960

[@TheAwardsContender]

He should’ve been nominated!

[@tomreedyjr3631]

Jack should have won for Chinatown...

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great performance!

[@jorgen4566]

Vivien leigh the first one, gone with the wind or streetcar named desire, incredible actress and in addition so, so beautiful!!!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Agreed!

[@tusharkumar8750]

Vivien Leigh is so underappreciated, She's literally run Acting Circles among the Greatest. I felt amazed people appreciate Katherine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn,Bette Davis, Meryl Streep but don't know about Vivien Leigh. In "A Streetcar Named Desire" she runs the "Acting Circle" Around Marlon Brando, Eventhough She's the highlight for me in that Movie.

[@disierra-amado5596]

hepburn siblings? they weren't even related.

[@tusharkumar8750]

@@disierra-amado5596 Sorry, My Mistake 🙏

[@dolomitefan1767]

I remember watching Monster in theatres. She did that!! I totally forgot it was Charlize Theron.

[@fairamir1]

Sissy Spacek " Coal Miners Daughter" Susan Hayward " I want to Live "

[@TheAwardsContender]

Love those!

[@gidgitvonlarue9972]

Elizabeth in Who's Afraid of Virgina Wolfe just like Richard - is an acting masterclass. BOTH should have won the Oscars for that!

[@RickDesper-v8z]

Oscar's snub of Burton is inexcusable.

[@jamesfreeman2258]

DITTO

[@yanitchka]

A few suggestions: Top 10 acting performances (could be in the 4 different categories - 4 videos) - not wins, the best overall, regardless of awards; top 10 Oscar egregious snubs; top 10 Oscar nominated, but not winning performances; top 10 not Oscar nominated performances; top 10 Oscar winning film scores or songs; top 10 horror movie performances or characters (since this is your favourite genre); top 10 films not in the English language; how Kathy Bates won (I am still pushing for that); top 10 actors or actresses who never won an Oscar; top 10 best films of each decade (regardless of awards).

[@TheAwardsContender]

Thanks!

[@briandominguez8666]

Shirley MacLaine? 😢

[@TheAwardsContender]

Good one!

[@Jamestown-y9j]

Debra Winger, without Emma there is no Aurora Greenway. Think about it. Actually Winger was better, very subtle, and natural.

[@dondivillanueva]

So now maybe we're ready tor the Top 10 Acting Non-Oscar wins of all time! And maybe Bette Davis will be there for All About Eve.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Ooooh, good idea!

[@stevensn2722]

Brilliant idea! Too many good choices here: Paul Newman in the Verdict, Peter O'Toole in Lawrence of Arabia, Meryl Streep in bridges of Madison County, Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard, Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction... Too many too many unforgettable Oscar nominees who didn't win that year!

[@marcor7044]

@@stevensn2722 Dont forget: Elizabeth Taylor- Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Sally Hawkins- The Shape of Water Margot Robbie- I Tonya Leonardo diCaprio- The Wolf of Wall Street Shirley MacLaine- The Apartment Natalie Portman- Jackie

[@BoBo-ti6jh]

Davis did not deserve an Oscar for Eve. Swanson or Parker should have won that year.

[@anthonydezadiaz7594]

Gloria swanson in sunset boulevard

[@Weezing336]

I find some horror or pulp material much more dramatic and emotionally impactful than the films nominated at the Oscars each year. Kathy Bates in Misery is a great reason as to why.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Absolutely!

[@DanCrowleyNYC]

Fantastic list, and I love that I came across your channel! I've only sat through Sophie's Choice once, many years ago, and it still haunts me and is the greatest acting performance I've ever seen. (As a film buff, I want to show it to my husband, but I don't know if he could handle it.)

[@KathyYoung-u1r]

How could you leave out Jane Fonda in Klute? A master class in acting.

[@sunshineandwarmth]

I have Klute on dvd. I can't watch her cry. It scares the wits out of me. I can see her face just thinking about that scene. Also, though his best had to be eye of the needle or Bertolucci's 1900, I love watching Donald Sutherland.

[@EmperorNerox]

Cuz she was better in dances with wolves

[@EAM1952]

@@EmperorNerox Jane Fonda isn’t in dances with wolves

[@melisagalvalizi6982]

Elizabeth Taylor was a brilliant actress, who says the contrary is being biased.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Love her!

[@janel342]

@melisagalvalizi. I’ll say worse than bias- the reason ET was good in ‘WHO’s afraid’ is because she played what she really was at the time- blowsy - frumpy - loudmouth - vulgar She is not a great actress she just doesn’t go that deep. But away from all that superficial cosmetic glamour she actually did good work in WAVWoolf.

[@angeltoribio1576]

Natalie Portman, Charlize Theron y Kathy Bates. Imposible decidir cual es la mejor de las 3. Rompieron el molde con esas interpretaciones. Realmente insuperables.

[@DanaArmas]

Natalie Portman she's Just Like Us 💯💯💯💯

[@biancabermudez9517]

Natalie Portman at Black Swan is so incredible. I remember watch the movie and tell my mother "she will certainly win the Oscar".

[@lonellfletcher]

Killer list, but lets be honest; you needed a top 20 lol

[@jonathanvelazquezph.d.2719]

True!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Yup

[@curiousworld7912]

Vivian Leigh was also fantastic in 'Ship of Fools'. Although the entire cast is marvelous, I think Ms. Leigh stole the show. Nice list. :)

[@trishbirchard1270]

Mary Treadwell !! 💚💚❤️❤️💚💚❤️❤️💚💚

[@curiousworld7912]

@@trishbirchard1270Yes! :)

[@sharonalbanese8084]

That was her last film. She died young. Such a beautiful and talented woman.

[@curiousworld7912]

@@sharonalbanese8084 I agree; she was both. I believe she also struggled with issues, for which there are now-treatments available.

[@sharonalbanese8084]

@curiousworld7912 yes, she has mental health problems.

[@tucucciolo1]

Meryl, Natalie, and Charlize ❤

[@TheAwardsContender]

❤️❤️❤️

[@Thadmotor1044]

add Vivian

[@EnglishActor]

Someone is missing. Someone who will strike his left foot and drink your milkshake🥛

[@shiningjewel4034]

Yes! Yes! Yes! Daniel Day-Lewis! smh

[@TheAwardsContender]

#16!

[@lenwilson3707]

How could you Possibly leave out Bette Davis. Without Davis there would be no Misery and no Monster. Yet you put Vinvien in Twice. You might want to rewatch The Letter, Dark Victory, Now Voyager, The Little Foxes, All About Eve, Whateveer Happened to Baby Jane. You made a huge mistake.

[@christinecrites835]

Leigh should have won for dragging them drapes down and making that dress! Ha.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Haha, yes!

[@joshdrayton1230]

I can appreciate most of these choices. But Natalie Portman? To me that was an underwhelming performance in a seriously trashy film. I agree with another comment below that Streisand's win for Funny Girl should be up there. Easily the greatest movie debut of all time and an astonishing display of charisma and versatility.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great choice!

[@bobwalker5694]

Let's not forget Katherine Hepburn in The Lion in Winter .....

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great one!

[@stealthhumor]

Atomic Blonde was perfect. Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove deserves something.

[@pophector]

Great top 10 list, Brian! So many 10 out of 10 iconic and legendary performances that are hard to argue with, and glad you have goddess Streep at #1 with the immortal Sophie's Choice! Honorable mentions were awesome picks! Although I know your true #1 would be Gloria Swanson had she won with Sunset Boulevard! I think that'll be an interesting race to cover next year, the infamous 1950 one!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Absolutely!

[@mervyngreene6687]

Did you really exclude Katherine Hepburn from your list? She won her first Best Actress Academy Award in 1934. She won her last one in 1982. There is a good argument that she won three of her awards playing "Katherine Hepburn." However, her performance in "The Lion in Winter," wasn't superb. As was the performance of her co-star, the criminally underappreciated Peter O'Toole.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Thanks for watching!

[@megb9700]

I have always loved Vivienne Leigh’s work and no one else has ever agreed with me before. I’m going to argue for the lifetime work of Renee Zellweger. She melts into her character whether she’s a supporting actor or number one. She does accents, dances, and sings.

[@TheAwardsContender]

Yes, I adore her!

[@BoBo-ti6jh]

Zellwegger is awful in Judy.

[@williamashton9235]

Zellweger is a great actress, but really chewed the scenery in her award winning performance in "Cold Mountain."

[@randomguy6695]

Zellweger really should’ve won for Chicago. She was excellent in that.

[@milenel]

vivien leigh being here twice, exactly!!

[@rabrab3]

I agree with most of your picks; however, Kathy Bates should have won for Delores Claiborne, a part that was written with her in mind. Great job!!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Love Bates so much!

[@rosemanos5123]

Kathy Bates and Jennifer Jason Leigh should've won for Delores Claiborne. Their performances were perfect in that underrated gem.

[@dianemoore6526]

My favorite kathy bates movie.

[@hahahahajajajajaj]

Marion corillard would be on my list

[@niccage6375]

Might be too early to call, but Ke Huy Quan is one of my favorites.

[@paulvoorhies8821]

😂

[@brickellrich1]

Huh?

[@TheAwardsContender]

👍👍👍

[@mervyngreene6687]

I would have replaced Bates with Jodie Foster in "Silence of the Lambs." Her character could have been totally ignored.

[@MrHootiedean]

Great list! I live for Kathy Bates. Shame on the Academy for not nominating her in Dolores Claiborne. How about a list of the Elusive Second Oscar? Off the top of my head: Nicole Kidman, Lupita Nyong'o, Natalie Portman and of course Kathy Bates!

[@TheAwardsContender]

Great idea!

[@RalphS223]

Anne Bancroft got robbed. Where is the love for Anne?!?!?!?

[@TheAwardsContender]

Love that performance!

[@Jamestown-y9j]

Damn, I love Anne Bancroft, great actress, witty, intelligent, beautiful, down to earth, sexy, a Woman; Mel Brooks was a lucky and blessed man.

[@SandViolet]

Best performance of all time by an actor or an actress: Vivien Leigh in "A Streetcar Named Desire". Second best performance: Olivia de Havilland in "The Heiress".

[@seangates900]

Mo'Nique in "Precious" knocked the floor out from under what we always knew a villain could be. Truly groundbreaking, devastating work.