13 Actors You Won't Believe Have Never Won Oscars
Leonardo DiCaprio is the most recent example of an amazing actor who never won on Oscar… until this year's Academy Award ceremony when he picked up a statue for his role in The Revenant (aka that bear movie). Julianne Moore is another who was nominated multiple times and never won until 2015 -- and her kids felt so bad, they made her a prize themselves. Even Brad Pitt didn't win until 2013 after getting his first nom back in 1995. But not all actors are quite so lucky, or persistent, or whatever it is that finally lands them the golden prize. Here are 13 amazing and highly deserving actors who still haven't had the honor of winning an Academy Award.
13 Johnny Depp
It's pretty shocking that Johnny Depp has never won an Oscar, especially since he never seems to stop working and he's known for totally throwing himself into a role. He was nominated in 2004 for Best Actor for his part in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, for Best Actor in Finding Neverland the same year, and for Best Actor in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in 2007. He's also never won a BAFTA or a Critic's Choice Movie Award, and has only gone home with a single Golden Globe despite being nominated nine times.
12 Edward Norton
Edward Norton has been nominated for an Oscar three different times, for Primal Fear, American History X, and Birdman. He recently spoke out about one of the issues with the award ceremony: "Unfortunately… what started off on an almost academic and critical-slash-journalist footing has - more than people want to acknowledge - become a game of monetization.”
11 Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver has been nominated three times: Best Actress noms for Aliens and Gorillas in the Mist and a Supporting Actress nom for Working Girl. That's right, she hasn't even been nominated since the 80s. She did win two Golden Globes and a BAFTA, though.
10 Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr. has been nominated for Oscars a couple times, first in 1993 for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Chaplin, and then in 2008 for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for Tropic Thunder. People have speculated that his addictions and time in rehab might have messed with his odds of snagging the prestigious award.
9 Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Pfeiffer has been nominated for three Oscars and many were surprised she never won. First there was the Best Actress For a Supporting Role nomination for Dangerous Liaisons in 1988, a Best Actress in a Leading Role nomination for The Fabulous Baker Boys in 1989, and a Best Actress in a Leading Role nomination Love Field in 1992. She did win a Golden Globe for The Fabulous Baker Boys and a BAFTA for Dangerous Liaisons. Her biggest commercial success? That would be 1992's Batman Returns.
8 Samuel L. Jackson
Not only has Samuel L. Jackson never won an Oscar… but he's only been nominated once: for Supporting Actor in 1994's Pulp Fiction. He also didn't win the Golden Globe he was nominated for or the Screen Actor's Guild Award, but he did take home the BAFTA, as well as an Independant Spirit Award. His wife LaTanya Richardson Jackson spoke out about him not getting a 2016 nom for The Hateful Eight and said once, "The Oscars is one night."
7 Tom Cruise
These days Tom Cruise is known for one thing and it's not being a talented actor (hello Scientology), but he is another star who's never won a single Oscar. Tom was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Born on the Fourth of July in 1989, Best Actor in a Leading Role Jerry Maguire in 1996, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Magnolia in 1999. Some would argue that Tom got too mainstream starring in big office movies, but these days that doesn't seem to factor much into the equation.
6 Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Fiennes may be celebrated as a serious actor from a theater background and yet he's never won an Oscar. He was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Schindler's List in 1993, as well as Best Actor in a Leading Role The English Patient in 1996.
5 Laura Linney
Laura Linney has been nominated three times: Best Actress for You Can Count On Me in 2001, Best Supporting Actress for Kinsey in 2008, and Best Actress for The Savages in 2008. She's won some other pretty big awards, though: two Golden Globes, four Emmy awards, and one Screen Actor's Guild Award. Laura surprised many when she joined the cast of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows in 2015.
4 Bill Murray
Bill Murray has only been nominated for one Oscar: for Best Actor in Lost in Translation. He did walk away with a BAFTA and a Golden Globe for that role. That was his only Oscar nomination, but he did get Golden Globe nominations for his roles in Ghostbusters, Rushmore, Hyde Park on Hudson, St. Vincent, and the HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge. Perhaps he doesn't mind because he once made it clear that he would not be campaigning for an Oscar ever: “If you want an award so much, it's like a virus. It's an illness.”
3 Glenn Close
Glenn Close has been nominated for a whopping six Oscars and yet didn't win a single one of them. She was first nominated in 1982 for Best Supporting Actress in The World According to Garp, in 1983's Big Chill for Best Supporting Actress, 1984's The Natural for Best Supporting Actress, 1987's Fatal Attraction for Best Actress, 1988's Dangerous Liaisons for Best Actress, and 2011's Albert Nobbs for Best Actress. She's no stranger to awards, though: she took home a Screen Actor's Guild Award for The Lion in Winter in 2004 and has three Emmy's and two Golden Globes.
2 Joaquin Phoenix
Joaquin Phoenix has been nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Supporting Actor in Gladiator (2000), Best Actor in Walk The Line (2005) and Best Actor for 2012's The Master. When asked about promoting The Master on the Oscar circuit he said, "I don't want to be a part of it. It's a carrot, but it's the worst-tasting carrot I've ever tasted in my whole life. I don't want this carrot. It's totally subjective."
1 Harrison Ford
Harrison Ford is one of the biggest movie stars of all time, and yet he's actually still only been nominated for one Oscar. He was only nominated back in 1985 for Best Actor in Witness. Director J.J. Abrams however, has strongly hinted that Harrison should have gotten one for Star Wars: The Force Awakens:“There are certain people who I know deserve it desperately. And it would be wonderful if they got it."