Oscar: 98 years of Oscar (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025)
Research in Progress (March 14, 2026):
The Best Supporting Actress category was established in 1936.
Total number of women winners: 81 (lead) +78 (supporting)
If you want to know more about the history and politics of the Oscars, please read my book:
Winners: Best Actress and Supporting Actress (A to Z)
1927-28: Janet Gaynor, Seventh Heaven, Street Angel, Sunrise, 22 (won for 3 roles)
1928-29: Mary Pickford, Coquette, 37
1929-30: Norma Shearer, Their Own Desire, The Divorcee, 28
1930-31: Marie Dressler, Min and Bill, 63
1931-32: Helen Haynes, The Sin of Madelon Claudet, 32
1932-33: Katharine Hepburn, Morning Glory, 26
1934: Claudette Colbert, It Happened One Night, 31
1935: Bette Davis, Dangerous, 27
1936: Luise Rainer, The Great Ziegfeld, 26
1937: Luise Rainer, The Good Earth, 27 (second Oscar)
1938: Bette Davis, Jezebel, 30
1939: Vivien Leigh, Gone With the Wind, 26
1940: Ginger Rogers, Kitty Foyle, 29
1941: Joan Fontaine, Suspicion, 24
1942: Greer Garson, Mrs. Miniver, 38
1943: Jennifer Jones, The Song of Bernadette, 24
1944: Ingrid Bergman, Gaslight, 29
1945: Joan Crawford, Mildred Pierce, 41
1946: Olivia De Havilland, To Each His Own, 30
1947: Loretta Young, The Farmer’s Daughter, 34
1948: Jane Wyman. Johnny Belinda, 31
1949: Olivia De Havilland, The Heiress, 33
1950: Judy Holliday, Born Yesterday, 29
1951: Vivien Leigh, A Streetcar Named Desire, 38
1952: Shirley Booth, Come Back, Little Sheba, 54
1953: Audrey Hepburn, Roman Holiday, 24
1954: Grace Kelly, The Country Girl, 25
1955: Anna Magnani, The Rose Tattoo, 47
1956: Ingrid Bergman, Anastasia, 41 (second Oscar)
1957: Joanne Woodward, The Three Faces of Eve, 27
1958: Susan Hayward, I Want to Live! 40
1959: Simone Signoret, A Room at the Top, 38
1960: Elizabeth Taylor, BUtterfield 8, 28
1961: Sophia Loren, Two Women, 27
1962: Anne Bancroft, The Miracle Worker, 31
1963: Patricia Neal, Hud, 37
1964: Julie Andrews, Mary Poppins, 29
1965: Julie Christie, Darling, 24
1966: Elizabeth Taylor, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? 34 (second Oscar)
1967: Barbra Streisand, Funny Girl, 26
(Tie)
1967: Katharine Hepburn, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? 59 (second Oscar)
1968: Katharine Hepburn, The Lion in Winter, 60 (third Oscar)
1969: Maggie Smith, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, 35
1970: Glenda Jackson, Women in Love, 34
1971: Jane Fonda, Klute, 34
1972: Liza Minnelli, Cabaret, 26
1973: Glenda Jackson, A Touch of Class, 37
1974: Ellen Burstyn, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, 42
1975: Louise Fletcher. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, 41
1976: Faye Dunaway, Network, 35
1977: Diane Keaton, Annie Hall, 31
1978: Jane Fonda, Coming Home, 41
1979: Sally Field, Norma Rae, 33
1980: Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter, 31
1981: Katharine, Hepburn, On Golden Pond, 74 (fourth Oscar)
1982: Meryl Streep, Sophie’s Choice, 33
1983: Shirley MacLaine, Terms of Endearment, 49
1984: Sally Field, Places in the Heart, 38
1985: Geraldine Page, The Trip to Bountiful, 61
1986: Marlee Matlin, Children of a Lesser God, 21 (youngest winner)
1987: Cher, Moonstruck, 41
1988: Jodie Foster, The Accused, 26
1989: Jessica Tandy, Driving Miss Daisy, 80 (oldest)
1990: Kathy Bates, Misery, 42
1991: Jodie Foster, The Silence of the Lambs, 29
1992: Emma Thompson, Howards End, 33
1993: Holly Hunter, The Piano, 35
1994: Jessica Lange, Blue Sky, 45
1995: Susan Sarandon, Dead Man Walking, 49
1996: Frances McDormand, Fargo, 39
1997: Helen Hunt, As Good As It gets, 34
1998: Gwyneth Paltrow, Shakespeare in Love, 26
1999: Hilary Swank, Boys Don’t Cry, 25
2000: Julia Roberts, Erin Brockovich, 33
2001: Halle Berry, Monster’s Ball, 35 (first Black lead winner)
2002: Nicole Kidman, The Hours, 35
2003: Charlize Theron, Monster, 28
2004: Hilary Swank, Million Dollar Baby, 30
2005: Reese Witherspoon, Ray, 29
2006: Helen Mirren, The Queen, 61
2007: Marion Cottillard, La Vie en Rose, 32
2008: Kate Winslet, The Reader, 33
2009: Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side, 45
2010: Natalie Portman, Black Swan, 25
2011: Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady, 62 (second Best Actress)
2012: Jennifer Lawrence, The Silver Linings Handbook, 22
2013: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine, 44
2014: Julianne Moore, Still Alice? 54
2015: Brie Larson, Room, 26
2016: Emma Stone, La La Land, 29
2017: Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, 60 (second Oscar)
2018: Olivia Colman, The Favourite, 45
2019: Rene Zellweger, Judy, 50
2020: Frances McDormand, Nomadland, 63 (third Oscar)
2021: Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, 45
2022: Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All At Once, 60
2023: Emma Stone, Poor Things, 35 (second Oscar)
2024: Mikey Madison, Anora, 25
2025: Jessie Buckley, 36
Summary
Winners in their 20s: 32
Winners in their 30s: 32
Winners in their 40s: 12
Winners in their 50s: 2 (Shirley Booth; Renee Zellweger)
Winners in their 60s: 3 (Marie Dressler, Geraldine Page, Michelle Yeoh)
Winners older than 70: 1 (Jessica Tandy, 80)
Conclusion:
Over the past 98 years, there have been 81 Best Actress winners (and 98 lead performances, as many have won more than one Oscar)
For the women who have won multiple times, the age at which they had earned their first Oscar was taken into account. Thus, three-time Best Actress winner, Frances McDormand, was 39 at her first win (and 63 at her latest).
The majority of female winners were younger than 39.
About one fourth of the women were older than 40.
Best Actress
(including Michelle Yeoh, Emma Stone, Mikey Madison)
Andrews, Julie, Mary Poppins
Bates, Kathy, Misery
Bancroft, Anne, The Miracle Worker
Berry, Halley, Monster’s Ball
Bergman, Ingrid (3): Gaslight; Anastasia; Murder on Orient Express
Blanchett, Cate (2): The Aviator; Blue Jasmine
Booth, Shirley, Come Back, Little Sheba
Buckley, Jessie, Hamnet
Bullock, Sandra, Blind Side
Burstyn, Ellen, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
Chastain, Jessica. Eyes of Tammy Faye
Cher, Moonstrucklie, Darling!
Colbert, Claudette, It Happened One Night
Colman, Olivia, The Favourite
Cottilard, Marion, La Vie en Rose
Crawford, Joan, Mildred Pierce
Davis, Bette, Dangerous, 1935; Jezebel, 1938
De Havilland, Olivia (2) To Each His Own, The Heiress
Dressler, Marie, Min and Bill
Dunaway, Faye, Network;
Field, Sally (2): Norma Rae; Places in the Heart
Fltehcer, Louise, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Fonda, Jane (2) Klute; Coming Home
Fontaine, Joan, Suspicion
Foster, Jodie (2): The Accused; The Silence of the Lambs
Garson, Greer, Mrs. Miniver
Gaynor, Janet (3 films)
Hayes, Helen, The Sin of Madelon Claudet; Airport
Hayward, Susan, I Want to Live!
Hepburn, Audrey, Roman Holiday
Hepburn, Katharine (4), Morning Glory, 1933; Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967); The Lion in Winter (1968)
Holliday, Judy, Born Yesterday
Hunt, Helen, As Good As It Gets
Hunter, Holly, The Piano, 1993
Jackson, Glenda (2): Women in Love; Touch of Class
Jones, Jennifer, The Song of Bernadette
Keaton, Diane, Annie Hall
Kelly, Grace, Country Girl
Kidman, Nicole, The Hours
Lange, Jessica (2): Tootsie; Blue Sky
Larson, Brie, Room
Lawrence, Jennifer, The Silver Linings Handbook;
Leigh, Vivien (2), Gone With the Wind, A Streetcar Named Desire
Loren, Sophia, Two Women
McDormand, Frances; Fargo; Billboards; Nomadland (3 Actress)
MacLaine, Shirley
Madison, Mikey
Magnani, Anna
Matlin, Marlee
Minnelli, Liza, Cabaret
Mirren, Helen, The Queen
Moore, Julianne, Still Alice
Neal, Patricia, Hud
Page, Geraldine, Trip to Bountiful
Paltrow, Gwyneth, Shakespeare in Love
Pickford, Mary, Coquette
Portman, Natalie, Black Swoon
Rainer, Luise (2), Great Ziegfeld, 1936; The Good Earth, 1937
Roberts, Julia, Erin Brockovich
Rogers, Ginger, Kitty Foyle
Sarandon, Susan, Dead Man Walking, 49
Shearer, Norma, The Divorcee
Signoret, Simone, Room at the Top
Smith, Maggie (2), Prime of Miss Jean Brodie; California Suite;
Spacey, Sissy, Coal Miner’s Daughter
Stone, Emma (2):La La Land; Poor Things
Streep, Meryl (3): Kramer Vs. Kramer; Sophie’s Choice; Iron Lady
Streisand, Barbra, Funny Girl (Tie with Hepburn)
Swank, Hilary (2): Boys Dont Cry; Million Dollar Baby
Tandy, Jessica, Driving Miss Daisy
Taylor, Elizabeth (2), BUtterfield 8! Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Theron, Charlize, Monster
Thompson, Emma, Howards End, 33
Winslet, Kate, The Reader
Witherspoon, Reese, Walk the Line
Woodward, Joanne, Three Faces of Eve
Wyman, Jane, Johnny Belinda
Yeoh, Michelle, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Young, Loretta, Framer’s Daughter
Zellweger, Renee (2): Cold Mountain; Judy
Supporting Actress, 1936–present
Arquette, Patricia, Boyhood
Ashcroft, Peggy, A Passage to India
Astor, Mary, The Great Lie
Bainter, Faye, Jezebel
Barrymore, Ethel, None But the Lonely Heart
Basinger, Kim, L.A. Confidential
Baxter, Anne, The Razor’s Edge
Binoche, Juliette, The English Patient
Brady, Alice, In Old Chicag0
Connelly, Jennifer, A Beautiful Mind
Cruz, Penelope, Vicki, Cristina, Barcelona
Curtis, Jamie Lee, Everything
Darwell, Jane, The Grapes of Wrath
Davis, Geena, The Accidental Tourist
Dench, Judi, Shakespeare in Love
Dennis, Sandy, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Dern, Laura, Marriage Story
Dukakis, Olympia, Moonstruck
Duke, Patty, The Miracle Worker
Fricker, Brenda, My Left Foot
Goldberg, Whoopi, Ghost
Gordon, Ruth, Rosemary’s Baby
Grahame, Gloria, The Bad and the Beautiful
Grant, Lee, Shampoo
Harden, Marcia Gay, Pollock
Hathaway, Anne, Les Miserables
Hawn, Goldie, Cactus Flower
Heckart, Eileen, Butterflies Are Free
Hiller, Wendy, Separate Tables
Holme, Celeste, Gentleman’s Agreement
Hudson, Jennifer, Dreamgirls
Hull, Josephine Hull, Harvey
Hunt, Linda, The Year of Living Dangerously
Hunter, Kim, A Streetcar Named Desire
Huston, Anjelica, Prizzi’s Honor
Janney, Allison, I, Tonya
Jolie, Angelina, Girl, Interrupted
Jones, Shirley, Elmer Gantry
Kedrova, Lila, Zorba the Greek
King, Regina, If Beale Street Could Talk
Leachman, Cloris, The Last Picture Show
Leo, Melissa, The Fighter
McCambrdige, Mercedes; All the King’s Men
McDaniel, Hattie, Gone With the Wind
Madigan, Amy, Weapons (2025)
Mo’ Nique, Precious
Moreno, Rita, West Side Story
Malone, Dorothy, Written on the Wind
N’Yong, Lupita, 12 Years a Slave
O’Neal, Tatum, Paper Moon
Parsons, Estelle, Bonnie and Clyde
Paquin, Anna, The Piano
Paxinou, Katina, For Whom the Bell Tolls
Redgrave, Vanessa, Julia
Reed, Donna, From Here to Eternity
Revere, Anne, National Velvet
Ruehl, Mercedes, The Fisher King
Rutherford, Margaret, The V.I.P.’s
Saint, Eva Marie, On the Waterfront
Sondergaard, Gale, Anthony Adverse
Sorvino, Mira, Mighty Aphrodite
Spencer, Octavia, The Help
Stapleton, Maureen, Reds
Steenburgen, Mary, Melvin and Howard
Straight, Beatrice, Network
Swinton, Tilda, Michael Clayton
Tomei, Marisa, My Cousin Vinny
Trevor, Claire, Key Largo
Vikander, Alicia, The Danish Girl
Umeki, Miyoshi, Sayonara
Van Fleet, Jo, East of Eden
Weisz, Rachel, The Constant Gardener
Wiest, Dianne (2): Hannah and Her Sisters; Bullets Over Broadway
Winters, Shelley (2), The Diary of Anne Frank, A Patch of Blue
Wright, Teresa, Mrs. Miniver
Youn Yuh-jung, Minari
Zeta-Jones, Catherine, Chicago;
Notes:
Best Actress: In 98 years, 81 women have won the Best Actress; some multiple times.
Of the 81 women, 7 have won the Best Actress and the Best Supporting Actress.
Of the 7 actresses, Helen Hayes, Ingrid Bergman, and Maggie Smith have first won the Best Actress and then Best Supporting Actress.
Of the 78 Supporting Actresses winners, only two, Shelley Winters and Diane Wiest, have won two Best Supporting Actress Oscars. Winters had also been nominated for Best Actress, in 1951.
