Who’s won the most Oscars? | Winners, Movies, Nominations, & Facts | Britannica (2024)

Table of Contents
Acting Directing Film References

verifiedCite

While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.

Select Citation Style

Feedback

Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites

Written by

Amy Tikkanen Amy Tikkanen is Managing Editor at Encyclopaedia Britannica.

Amy Tikkanen

Fact-checked by

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Article History

Related Topics:
Academy Award

See all related content

First presented in 1929, the Academy Awards are among the most prestigious prizes in the film industry. Competition is fierce, and a number of individuals have won multiple awards. With 22 Oscars, producer Walt Disney holds the record for the most wins; he was also the recipient of four special or honorary Academy Awards. Art director Cedric Gibbons is a distant second, with 11 Oscars, but he has a particularly close connection to the awards. Many credit him with designing the Oscar statuette. Who are some of the other big winners? And what film has garnered the most Oscars? Read on to find out.

Acting

actor/actress wins best actress/actor awards best supporting actress/actor awards
Katharine Hepburn 4 Morning Glory (1933), Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? (1967), The Lion in Winter (1968), On Golden Pond (1981)
Daniel Day-Lewis 3 My Left Foot (1989), There Will Be Blood (2007), Lincoln (2012)
Frances McDormand 3 Fargo (1996), Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017), Nomadland (2020)
Meryl Streep 3 Sophie’s Choice (1982), The Iron Lady (2011) Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Jack Nicholson 3 One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), As Good as It Gets (1997) Terms of Endearment (1983)
Ingrid Bergman 3 Gaslight (1944), Anastasia (1956) Murder on the Orient Express (1974)
Walter Brennan 3 Come and Get It (1936), Kentucky (1938), The Westerner (1940)

Directing

director wins films
John Ford 4 The Informer (1935), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), How Green Was My Valley (1941), and The Quiet Man (1952)
Frank Capra 3 It Happened One Night (1934), Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), You Can’t Take It with You (1938)
William Wyler 3 Mrs. Miniver (1942), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), Ben-Hur (1959)
Frank Borzage 2 7th Heaven (1927), Bad Girl (1931)
Lewis Milestone 2 Two Arabian Knights (1927), All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
Frank Lloyd 2 The Divine Lady (1928), Cavalcade (1933)
Leo McCarey 2 The Awful Truth (1937), Going My Way (1944)
Billy Wilder 2 The Lost Weekend (1945), The Apartment (1960)
Elia Kazan 2 Gentleman’s Agreement (1947), On the Waterfront (1954)
Joseph L. Mankiewicz 2 A Letter to Three Wives (1949), All About Eve (1950)
George Stevens 2 A Place in the Sun (1951), Giant (1956)
Fred Zinnemann 2 From Here to Eternity (1953), A Man for All Seasons (1966)
David Lean 2 The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Robert Wise 2 West Side Story (1961), The Sound of Music (1965)
Miloš Forman 2 One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), Amadeus (1984)
Oliver Stone 2 Platoon (1986), Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
Clint Eastwood 2 Unforgiven (1992), Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Steven Spielberg 2 Schindler’s List (1993), Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Ang Lee 2 Brokeback Mountain (2005), Life of Pi (2012)
Alfonso Cuarón 2 Gravity (2013), Roma (2018)
Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu 2 Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014), The Revenant (2015)

Film

film wins awards
Ben-Hur (1959) 11 Best picture, actor, supporting actor, director, art direction (color), cinematography (color), costume design (color), film editing, music, sound, special effects
Titanic (1997) 11 best picture, director, art direction, cinematography, costume design, film editing, music (original dramatic score), music (original song), sound, sound effects editing, visual effects
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) 11 Best picture, director, art direction, costume design, film editing, makeup, music (original score), music (original song), sound mixing, visual effects, writing (adapted screenplay)
West Side Story (1961) 10 Best picture, supporting actor, supporting actress, director, art direction (color), cinematography (color), costume design (color), film editing, music (score), sound
Gigi (1958) 9 Best picture, director, art direction, cinematography (color), costume design, film editing, music (score of a musical picture), music (song), writing (adapted screenplay)
The Last Emperor (1987) 9 Best picture, director, art direction, cinematography, costume design, film editing, music (original score), sound, writing (adapted screenplay)
The English Patient (1996) 9 Best picture, supporting actress, director, art direction, cinematography, costume design, film editing, music (original dramatic score), sound
Gone with the Wind (1939) 8 Best actress, supporting actress, director, art direction, cinematography (color), film editing, outstanding production, writing (screenplay)
From Here to Eternity (1953) 8 Best picture, supporting actor, supporting actress, editor, cinematography (black-and-white), film editing, sound recording, writing (screenplay)
On the Waterfront (1954) 8 Best picture, actor, supporting actress, director, art direction (black-and-white), cinematography (black-and-white), film editing, writing (story and screenplay)
My Fair Lady (1964) 8 Best picture, actor, director, art direction (color), cinematography (color), costume design (color), music (scoring of music—adapted or treatment), sound
Cabaret (1972) 8 Best actress, supporting actor, director, art direction, cinematography, film editing, music (adaptation and original song score), sound
Gandhi (1982) 8 Best picture, actor, director, art direction, cinematography, costume design, film editing, writing (original screenplay)
Amadeus (1984) 8 Best picture, actor, director, art direction, costume design, makeup, sound, writing (adapted screenplay)
Slumdog Millionaire (2008) 8 Best picture, director, cinematography, film editing, music (original score), music (original song), sound mixing, writing (adapted screenplay)

Amy Tikkanen

Who’s won the most Oscars? | Winners, Movies, Nominations, & Facts | Britannica (2024)

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Van Hayes

Last Updated:

Views: 6058

Rating: 4.6 / 5 (46 voted)

Reviews: 85% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Van Hayes

Birthday: 1994-06-07

Address: 2004 Kling Rapid, New Destiny, MT 64658-2367

Phone: +512425013758

Job: National Farming Director

Hobby: Reading, Polo, Genealogy, amateur radio, Scouting, Stand-up comedy, Cryptography

Introduction: My name is Van Hayes, I am a thankful, friendly, smiling, calm, powerful, fine, enthusiastic person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.