With the Oscar Academy Awards over (and tweets about it calming down), it’s fun to look at the ones that didn’t get the statues — the nominees, especially the actors. They don't always get the win, only a mere nod from the Academy. Oscar nominees get the prestige of being nominated for this very sought-after award, one of the most famous cinema awards in the world. The actors with the most Oscar nominations are some of the best performers ever.
An actor with nominations (and maybe wins) under their name is a master of the craft. While winners get all the hype, people with Oscar nominations usually get the marketing benefits. Meryl Streep, a brilliant actress with the most Oscar nominations overall, has twenty-one nominations, mainly in the Best Actress category. Her name alone can make a movie a commercial success. The more nominations you have, the more well-known your name is.
While Meryl Streep might be the actor with the most Oscar nominations, there are many more actors with more Oscar nods. Below, we have compiled a list of the actors and actresses who gathered a lot of nominations throughout their acting careers. Leave an upvote on the actor whose nomination number shocked you the most. Also, if you think the actor's performance deserved a victory, not just a nomination, share it in the comments below.
#1 Jack Nicholson - 12 Nominations
It's rare to tie with Katherine Hepburn for the same Oscar nomination number. Jack Nicholson's long years of work saw him getting twelve Oscar nominations, with the majority in the Best Actor category. His first Oscar nomination, in the Best Supporting Actor category, was for the movie Easy Rider.
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28points
#2 Meryl Streep - 21 Nominations
The queen of acting, Meryl Streep, is not a stranger to the Oscars ceremony. Meryl Streep has received a stunning twenty-one Oscar nominations, a unique record in the history of cinema. Streep received her first nomination for her supporting role in The Deer Hunter just two years after beginning her career.
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26points
#3 Kate Winslet - 7 Nominations
Kate Winslet is always ready to portray a powerful and determined woman, may it be in a period drama or an independent movie. From Sense and Sensibility to Steve Jobs, Winslet’s portrayals garnered some nominations from the Academy — seven, to be exact. She won one Oscar for the movie The Reader.
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23points
#4 Tom Hanks - 6 Nominations
Tom Hanks's accolade history began in a Big way. Hanks' silver screen career started in 1980, when he appeared in the not-so-known movie He Knows You're Alone. Nine years later, he would get his first Oscar nomination for his work in Big. Later, he would earn five more nominations and win twice.
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22points
#5 Judi Dench - 8 Nominations
From her portrayal of Queen Victoria in Mrs. Brown to the more recent “Granny” in the movie Belfast, Dame Judi Dench has had a career filled with great performances and powerful characters. She was nominated eight times for the prestigious Oscar award, winning only once for the movie Shakespeare in Love.
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20points
#6 Maggie Smith - 6 Nominations
Not every English lady can become a dame, a female knight. Luckily, for her work, Dame Maggie Smith is one of them. Besides becoming a member of the damehood society, Smith is also a celebrated actress on the silver screen. In her career, she got six Oscar nominations, winning twice.
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20points
#7 Robert De Niro - 7 Nominations
Some stars start their award list with a banger — Robert De Niro is one of them. De Niro’s first Oscar nomination and win was for his role as Vito Corleone in The Godfather Part II. He got nominated six more times, winning only once more for the movie Raging Bull. His last nomination came in 2013.
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19points
#8 Susan Sarandon - 5 Nominations
Mischievous, motherly, and funny at times — throughout her career, Susan Sarandon captured all those feelings in many characters. Starting her career with the movie Joe in 1970, the next ten years saw her star in plenty of genre movies before finally getting her first Oscar nomination in 1980.
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19points
#9 Katharine Hepburn - 12 Nominations
The silver screen legend Katharine Hepburn first appeared on the screen with the movie A Bill of Divorcement in 1932. Hepburn's filmography spans 50 years and includes twelve Lead Actress nominations for the Oscars. For Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, The Lion in Winter, and On Golden Pond, Hepburn won three Oscars.
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18points
#10 Cate Blanchett - 8 Nominations
When imagining Galadriel, the lady of the woods and the greatest Elve of Middle-Earth, Cate Blanchett might be the first thing that comes to mind. She got eight nominations in her career, winning twice for Blue Jasmine and The Aviator. Sadly, the Academy didn't acknowledge her work in The Lord of the Rings franchise.
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18points
#11 Amy Adams - 6 Nominations
Tying for the same number of nominations that Leonardo DiCaprio has, Amy Adams is not a rookie at the Academy Awards. Only twelve years into her career, she appeared in Junebug, the first movie she got nominated for. Later in her career, she got five more nominations, but sadly, no victories.
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18points
#12 Bette Davis - 10 Nominations
Bette Davis worked in her field for 50 years and on 100 movies. Known for her portrayal of cold, sardonic characters and ability to act in plenty of genres, from horror to comedies, Davis was a true master of the acting craft. Throughout her career, she was nominated ten times for an Oscar and won two times.
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17points
#13 Denzel Washington - 9 Nominations
He received his first Oscar nomination for his performance as anti-apartheid campaigner Steve Biko in the 1987 movie Cry Freedom. Since then, he has received one nomination each decade, including one for his work as Malcolm X in Spike Lee's 1992 film. He has nine nominations and two Oscar awards.
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17points
#14 Al Pacino - 9 Nominations
Michael Corleone, Tony Montana, and Satan himself — Al Pacino’s career spans 50 years and more, and he has shown a lot through the years. With nine nominations and only one Oscar award, Pacino's first nomination came for the legendary movie The Godfather. Other nominations include Godfather Part II, Serpico, and six more.
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16points
#15 Jeff Bridges - 7 Nominations
The Dude himself, Jeff Bridges, started his career on a powerful foot. Bridges had a lot of comedic and serious roles in his career, some of which earned him some Oscar nominations. The Big Lebowski was the first movie Bridges got nominated for. From there, he went on to get himself six more nominations.
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16points
#16 Leonardo Dicaprio - 6 Nominations
The face of modern cinema, a common collaborator with Martin Scorsese, and the symbol of the environmental movement in Hollywood — Leonardo DiCaprio is a talented actor whose accomplishments show that. Before winning his first Oscar in 2016, he had four nominations already. His last nomination, sixth, was for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
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16points
#17 Paul Newman - 9 Nominations
Throughout his long career, Paul Newman got nominated ten times, the first time in 1959 for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof with Elizabeth Taylor and Burl Ives. After The Color of Money, a 1986 Martin Scorsese picture, Newman finally won an Oscar. Among the nominated performances are The Verdict, Cool Hand Luke, and Rachel, Rachel.
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15points
#18 Frances McDormand – 6 Nominations
May it be a serious role of a mom trying to find the person responsible for the loss of her daughter’s life, or a more comedic one, like a detective investigating an absurd crime, Frances McDormand tries to bring her A-game on the silver screen. For her work, McDormand got six nominations and two Oscars.
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15points
#19 Gene Hackman – 5 Nominations
Who knows how many Oscar nominations Gene Hackman would have gotten if he hadn’t retired? Hackman, an excellent actor, was not a stranger to the Academy award ceremony. He was nominated five times. Luckily, he won two times for the movies The French Connection and Unforgiven — meaning he can lead and support.
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15points
#20 Glenn Close - 8 Nominations
Glenn Close is one of the top five most-nominated actresses in the history of Oscar Academy awards. She has had eight nominations for Academy Awards, tying Peter O'Toole for the most nominations in an acting category without winning. Fortunately, she did win 3 Golden Globes and Emmys.
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14points