Going all the way back to the very first Academy Awards, the Oscars have loved awarding portrayals of real people. Emil Jannings, the inaugural winner of Best Actor, won his Oscar for portraying Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich in “The Last Command.” As a result of this proclivity, biopics have always played a huge part in the Academy Awards, and countless performers have won Oscars for portraying real people. As such, it seems inevitable that Hollywood would start to make films about Oscar winners themselves, generating even more nominations. As of the 96th Academy Awards, eleven people have received Oscar nominations or wins for portraying Oscar nominees…
1968 – Daniel Massey, “Star!”
For his role as Noël Coward in “Star!,” Daniel Massey became the first to receive an Oscar nomination for portraying someone with an Oscar nomination. Director Robert Wise re-teamed with his “The Sound of Music” star Julie Andrews for this British actress Gertrude Lawrence biopic. Along for the ride was Massey, tackling the role of English playwright Noël Coward, Massey’s real-life godfather. While the film’s depiction of the real movie stars received a somewhat mixed reception, Massey’s performance was routinely singled out by critics. In real life, Coward had received an Oscar nomination for his screenplay for 1942’s “In Which We Serve,” along with an Honorary Oscar for the film’s “outstanding production achievement.” Massey’s portrayal of the real-world Oscar nominee earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination.
1977 – Jane Fonda and Jason Robards, “Julia”
Fred Zinneman’s “Julia” was an across-the-board awards contender in 1977. The film follows playwright Lillian Hellman as she reunites with an old friend, Julia, as she helps aid the anti-Nazi movement in Germany. Jane Fonda portrays Hellman, while Jason Robards depicts her lover and mentor, Dashiell Hammett. While the film doesn’t showcase the two writers’ success in the film industry, both were nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay, each for an adaptation of Hellman’s plays. Hellman was nominated in 1941 for “The Little Foxes,” while Hammett was nominated in 1943 for “Watch on the Rhine.” Both Robards and Fonda received Oscar nominations for their roles in “Julia,” while Robards became the first person to win an Academy Award for portraying an Oscar nominee, winning Best Supporting Actor. It was his second win after winning the previous year for “All The President’s Men.”
1992 – Robert Downey Jr., “Chaplin”
A decade after directing a biopic about one of the most influential and recognizable people of the 20th century with “Gandhi,” Richard Attenborough returned to do it again. “Chaplin” faced the difficult task of bringing the complicated story of Charlie Chaplin to life and enlisted Robert Downey Jr. to star as the famous filmmaker. The film bombed at the box office and didn’t fare much better with critics, who gave it a somewhat mixed reception. Even so, Downey’s portrayal of Chaplin won near-universal acclaim, scoring BAFTA and Academy Award nominations for Best Actor. Of course, Chaplin received numerous Oscar nominations throughout his career, both as a performer and filmmaker. In addition to two Honorary Oscars, Chaplin finally won a competitive Oscar for the Original Score for his final released film, “Limelight,” in 1972 (though it had been completed two decades earlier). Chaplin received the longest-standing ovation in Academy Awards history, a moment depicted in Attenborough’s film.
2002 – Nicolas Cage, “Adaptation.”
Certainly, the most unique case on this list is Nicolas Cage, who was nominated for playing Charlie Kaufman in “Adaptation.” After receiving an Oscar nomination for the “Being John Malkovich” screenplay, Kaufman inserted himself into his next collaboration with Spike Jonze, making himself, or at least a version of himself, the main character alongside his fictional twin brother Donald. The film received widespread acclaim, scoring Oscar nominations for Cage, Meryl Streep, Kaufman’s adapted screenplay, and winning Best Supporting Actor for Chris Cooper. Both the real-life Charlie and the fictional Donald were nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay, marking the only time an entirely fictional person, not a pseudonym or cover for a real person, was nominated for an Oscar.
2004 – Cate Blanchett, “The Aviator”
Martin Scorsese had already directed multiple biographical films before tackling “The Aviator,” the story of eccentric businessman and producer Howard Hughes. While Hughes was never an Oscar nominee himself, the film features numerous depictions of Oscar nominees and winners, including Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner and Kevin O’Rourke as Spencer Tracy. Yet, it was Cate Blanchett’s performance as Katharine Hepburn that won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, making Blanchett the first woman to win an Oscar for portraying an Oscar winner. Hepburn is the only person to win four Academy Awards for acting, so it’s fitting that this biographical turn was an Oscar-winning role.
2011 – Kenneth Branagh, “My Week With Marilyn”
Despite winning three Golden Globes and receiving two BAFTA nominations, Marilyn Monroe never received an Academy Award nomination. Thus, Oscar-nominated portrayals of her from Michelle Williams (“My Week With Marilyn”) and Ana De Armas (“Blonde”) don’t count for this list. Nevertheless, Simon Curtis’ “My Week With Marilyn” also featured an Oscar-nominated performance from Kenneth Branagh as Sir Laurence Olivier. The legendary Olivier received 11 Academy Award nominations, winning two and being bestowed two Honorary Oscars. The similarities between Olivier and Branagh’s careers are fascinating, with both finding great success in their respective turns directing multiple Shakespeare adaptations. For Branagh to receive a nomination for his depiction of Olivier is poetic, in a way.
2015 – Bryan Cranston, “Trumbo”
At one point in time, Dalton Trumbo became one of the highest-paid screenwriters in Hollywood, eventually receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay for his work on “Kitty Foyle.” He would go on to win two Academy Awards for Best Writing – Motion Picture Story for “Roman Holiday” and “The Brave One,” though both were written under pseudonyms. Both of these stories are covered in Jay Roach’s 2015 film “Trumbo,” exploring the blacklisting and tragedy of the writer. For his portrayal of Trumbo, Bryan Cranston received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
2019 – Renée Zellweger, “Judy”
In 1955, Judy Garland was widely expected to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in “A Star Is Born.” As she had just given birth, a camera crew was brought into the hospital to broadcast Garland’s acceptance speech. Instead, Grace Kelly won that year, leaving a bitter Garland without a competitive Oscar. Nevertheless, Garland received two nominations and an Academy Juvenile Award. In 2019, Renée Zellweger portrayed Garland in “Judy,” winning widespread critical acclaim and sweeping the year’s televised awards. Zellweger won her second Oscar for playing Garland, something that would’ve likely angered Garland greatly.
2020 – Gary Oldman, “Mank”
“Citizen Kane” is widely regarded as one of the greatest films ever made, and the story behind the film’s creation is fascinating in and of itself. David Fincher brought it to life in “Mank,” centering screenwriting legend Herman J. Mankiewicz. While “Mank” tackles the controversy around the authorship of “Citizen Kane,” Fincher’s father, Jack, wrote the screenplay for “Mank” before he died in 2003, with rumors swirling that producer Eric Roth rewrote much of the film before its production. Nevertheless, the movie received acclaim upon release, scoring ten Academy Award nominations. Gary Oldman received a Best Actor nomination for his portrayal of Mankiewicz, who had won the Oscar for “Citizen Kane,” and received a second nomination a year later for “The Pride of the Yankees.”
2023 – Bradley Cooper, “Maestro”
For his three nominations for “Maestro” (Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor), Bradley Cooper became the fourth most-nominated individual without an Oscar win. Despite being overdue for a win when his Leonard Bernstein biopic was released on Netflix, Cooper still couldn’t win. “Maestro” tells the decades-spanning story of the composer’s life and romance with actress Felicia Montealegre (Carey Mulligan). Cooper and Mulligan received rave reviews for their performances and the way they captured the complexity of the couple’s relationship, each scoring Oscar nominations for their work. Bernstein only composed one original score for a feature film, 1954’s “On The Waterfront,” for which he received his only Academy Award nomination.
This year, it appears likely that Timothée Chalamet will join this crop of performers nominated for portraying Academy Award nominees and winners. His performance as Oscar winner Bob Dylan (Best Original Song Oscar nominee for “Things Have Changed” from “Wonder Boys”) in “A Complete Unknown” has received critical acclaim and numerous nominations thus far, including at the Golden Globe and Critics Choice Awards. Could Chalamet become the tenth person nominated for his depiction of an Oscar nominee? We’ll find out when the Oscar nominations are unveiled on January 17th.
What’s your favorite performance from this list? Do you think Timothée Chalamet will receive another Oscar nomination for “A Complete Unknown.” Please let us know in the comments below or on Next Best Picture’s X account, and be sure to check out Next Best Picture’s latest Oscar predictions here.
