For Hollywood bragging rights, there’s nothing quite like an Oscar. Winning one golden statuette is a career highlight — winning more than one? That’s a sign of greatness. Across the decades, it’s only a tiny number of actors and actresses who’ve been able to bring home more than a single Academy Award. Some are older, revered legends, others are newer players, but all of them have their own place in Oscar history. Here is the ultimate list of the performers with the highest acting wins.
10. The Double Winners Club
Plenty of stars have earned two Oscars, joining an exclusive but surprisingly varied club. Renée Zellweger scored with Cold Mountain and Judy, while Hilary Swank is two-for-two with Boys Don’t Cry and Million Dollar Baby. Emma Stone, the youngest on this list, has already won twice — for La La Land and Poor Things. Mahershala Ali stunned with back-to-back Supporting Actor wins for Moonlight and Green Book.
Old-fashioned stars such as Marlon Brando, Tom Hanks, Bette Davis, Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Elizabeth Taylor, and Spencer Tracy also fall into this category. Two Oscars don’t set any records, but it’s still a feat few ever achieve.
9. Adrien Brody’s Big Comeback
Adrien Brody stunned the world in 2003 by taking Best Actor for The Pianist — and again when he laid that memorable kiss on Halle Berry. At the 97th Academy Awards, he won his second statue for The Brutalist, getting into the multiple-winners’ club. Not bad for one who was once the youngest Best Actor winner ever.
8. Jodie Foster & Anthony Hopkins — A Shared Legacy
Foster and Hopkins shared Oscar history with The Silence of the Lambs. Foster had won previously for The Accused, and Hopkins subsequently won again for The Father, becoming the oldest acting winner ever at the age of 83. And yes — Hopkins’ Hannibal Lecter remains one of film’s greatest villains, even though he was on screen for less than half an hour.
7. Tom Hanks: Mr. Back-to-Back
Only a handful of actors have managed to string together two consecutive Oscar victories. Tom Hanks did it in the mid-’90s with Philadelphia and Forrest Gump, demonstrating his versatility in playing both sentimental drama and offbeat comedy. That double locked up his reputation as one of the most versatile and esteemed performers working in Hollywood.
6. Meryl Streep: The Record-Setter
Nobody is anywhere near Meryl Streep when it comes to nominations — 21 and still counting. She’s only won three: Kramer vs. Kramer, Sophie’s Choice, and The Iron Lady. And in her third acceptance speech, she even kidded about audiences grumbling, “Her? Again?” Love her or roll your eyes, though, Streep’s consistency is unbeatable.
5. Frances McDormand: Best Actress Perfection
Frances McDormand has a total of three Best Actress awards — Fargo, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, and Nomadland. She is the sole performer whose all Best Actress awards have been in the lead category, and she’s maintained a flawless record with each of her nominations. Her acceptance speeches are never less memorable, exhorting moviegoers to enjoy cinema on the big screen.
4. Daniel Day-Lewis: The Intense Perfectionist
Daniel Day-Lewis is the sole actor to have received three Best Actor Oscars — My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood, and Lincoln. For his ability to disappear into his roles entirely, Day-Lewis is notoriously choosy, taking many years off between acting jobs. When he does, however, accept a role, it tends to translate to Oscar gold.
3. Jack Nicholson: The King of Nominations
Jack Nicholson boasts three Oscars — two Best Actor ones for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and As Good As It Gets, and a Best Supporting one for Terms of Endearment. With 12 nominations, he has the most nominations by any male actor. Nicholson himself once attributed his agent for giving him a boost, joking that being informed he was not suited to act was the very motivation he needed.
2. Walter Brennan: Supporting Actor Legend
Walter Brennan is no longer a household name, but his record remains astounding — three Best Supporting Actor awards, all within four years (Come and Get It, Kentucky, and The Westerner). No other actor has achieved that in such rapid succession.
1. Katharine Hepburn: The Untouchable
At the top is Katharine Hepburn, with four Best Actress wins — more than any other person in history. Her wins span five decades, from Morning Glory in the 1930s to On Golden Pond in the 1980s. Hepburn never personally appeared to receive her Oscars, famously quipping: “As for me, prizes are nothing. My prize is my work.”
Additional Oscar Trivia for Fans
- Walt Disney maintains the total Oscar record with 26 victories (though not for acting).
- Heath Ledger, Peter Finch, and others have won posthumous Oscars.
- Nicholson paces the men in acting nominations, while Meryl Streep paces everybody.
- And naturally, there’s never a dearth of crazy Oscar-night moments, starting from Adrien Brody’s surprise kiss to Marlon Brando sending Sacheen Littlefeaver to refuse his award.
The Oscars are not just awards — they’re moments of film history. These stars and actresses embody the pinnacle of screen performances, from Hepburn’s long-standing record to McDormand’s contemporary reign. And though records will eventually be broken, the tale behind the victory is what makes Oscar history all the more memorable.