Notable Firsts and Records

[Uri]

and Hepburn was, of course, Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter for which she won the third of her four Oscars

Hepburn also played another queen - Hecuba - in The Trojan Women.

[Big Magilla]

Hmmm. We could do this all day!

Bette Davis and Katharine Hepburn both had their turns playing Elizabethan queens as well, though neither received one of their nominations for them.

Hepburn was up first as John Ford's Mary of Scotland in 1936. She wanted Davis to play Elizabeth in it, but co-star Fredric March insisted on his wife Florence Eldredge for the part instead. Davis later played Elizabeth in 1939's The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex but was Oscar nominated that year for Dark Victory. She was an also-ran in 1955 for The Virgin Queen in which she played her again. Hepburn was nominated that year for playing a character named Jane Hudson in Summertime. Davis would be nominated for playing a different character with the same name in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? in 1962 while Hepburn was nominated that year for Long Day's Journey into Night.

Davis and Hepburn also played other queens. Davis was Catherine the Great in John Paul Jones and Hepburn was, of course, Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter for which she won the third of her four Oscars, a role later played in a TV remake by Glenn Close.

[Okri]

danfrank, while true, neither of those pairing were nominated in the same year which, I think, is what jack is asking for.

Thanks, got it now. Seems pretty fluky, so I’m guessing you’re right on this one, Jack.

It's funny that Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett couldn't make this permutation happen with Elizabeth 1, having both gotten nominations for playing her n the same year (in 1998), been nominated another time for playing royalty (Mrs Brown/The Golden Age), been nominated for different roles in the same film (Notes on a Scandal) and been nominated in the same category (2013 Best Actress for Philomena and Blue Jasmine).

[anonymous1980]

I don't think Kennedy is actively producing anymore, so Gardner could topple her in the next few years.

Kathleen Kennedy is still an active producer but she is concentrating on Lucasfilm projects for Disney at this point in her career. But you’re right. Unless one of those projects turn out to be amazing Best Picture level good or she decides to come back to non-Star Wars/Indiana Jones projects, Dede Gardner could overtake her.

[Big Magilla]

These ages might be off by a year depending on when their birthday was compared to when they received the Oscar nomination, but here is the order in ages of each actor who's hit 8 acting nominations and at what age(ish).

Bette Davis (b. 1908) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1945, age 37
Meryl Streep (b. 1949) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1989, age 40
Jack Nicholson (b. 1937) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1986, age 49
Katharine Hepburn (b. 1907) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1960, age 53
Al Pacino (b. 1940) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1993, age 53
Cate Blanchett (b. 1969) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2023, age 54
Jack Lemmon (b. 1925) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1983, age 58
Spencer Tracy (b. 1900) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1962, age 62
Geraldine Page (b. 1924) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1986, age 62
Denzel Washington (b. 1954) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2017, age 64
Laurence Olivier (b. 1907) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1973, age 66
Marlon Brando (b. 1924) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1990, age 66
Paul Newman (b. 1925) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1995, age 70
Glenn Close (b. 1947) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2021, age 74
Peter O'Toole (b. 1932) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2007, age 75
Judi Dench (b. 1934) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2022, age 88

Technically, Bette Davis received her 8th nomination in 1951, age 43. Her write-in vote for Of Human Bondage (1934) was not officially recognized by the Academy until well after her death. Her bio on IMDb. credits her only with being the youngest to receive 7 nominations:

"As of 2016, she holds the record of youngest actress to receive seven Academy Award nominations. She earned her seventh Oscar nomination in 1945, at the age of 36, for Mr. Skeffington (1944)."

That would make Meryl Streep the youngest to receive 8 nominations at age 40, early in the year that Davis died.

[OscarGuy]

Shane Boris becomes the first person nominated twice in the same year (Fire of Love & Navalny) in the Best Documentary Feature category since Walt Disney did it back in 1942. And those are the only two who've ever done it in that category.

[OscarGuy]

These ages might be off by a year depending on when their birthday was compared to when they received the Oscar nomination, but here is the order in ages of each actor who's hit 8 acting nominations and at what age(ish).

Bette Davis (b. 1908) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1945, age 37
Meryl Streep (b. 1949) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1989, age 40
Jack Nicholson (b. 1937) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1986, age 49
Katharine Hepburn (b. 1907) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1960, age 53
Al Pacino (b. 1940) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1993, age 53
Cate Blanchett (b. 1969) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2023, age 54
Jack Lemmon (b. 1925) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1983, age 58
Spencer Tracy (b. 1900) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1962, age 62
Geraldine Page (b. 1924) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1986, age 62
Denzel Washington (b. 1954) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2017, age 64
Laurence Olivier (b. 1907) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1973, age 66
Marlon Brando (b. 1924) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1990, age 66
Paul Newman (b. 1925) - 8th Oscar nomination in 1995, age 70
Glenn Close (b. 1947) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2021, age 74
Peter O'Toole (b. 1932) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2007, age 75
Judi Dench (b. 1934) - 8th Oscar nomination in 2022, age 88

[OscarGuy]

Not quite a record yet, but getting close. Dede Gardner picks up her 7th nomination for Best Picture. The current female leader in the category is Kathleen Kennedy with 8. I don't think Kennedy is actively producing anymore, so Gardner could topple her in the next few years. Gardner is the only woman to date to win more than one Best Picture Oscar.

The next highest women on the nominations list are Megan Ellison and Donna Gigliotti with 4 each.

Spielberg extends his lead with 12 nominations for producing. Next highest is Scott Rudin with 9.

[Mister Tee]

Not to the extent that Inarritu has, but Todd Field is three for three. And all of his films have been nominated for no fewer than three nominations. 5 for In the Bedroom, 3 for Little Children, and 6 for Tár.

Not to mention best actress/best screenplay for each of them.

[OscarGuy]

Not to the extent that Inarritu has, but Todd Field is three for three. And all of his films have been nominated for no fewer than three nominations. 5 for In the Bedroom, 3 for Little Children, and 6 for Tár.

[danfrank]

danfrank, while true, neither of those pairing were nominated in the same year which, I think, is what jack is asking for.

Thanks, got it now. Seems pretty fluky, so I’m guessing you’re right on this one, Jack.

[anonymous1980]

With Bardo's Cinematography nomination, all of Alejandro G. Inarittu's feature films have all received at least one Academy Award nomination. Has any other filmmaker achieved this?

[flipp525]

danfrank, while true, neither of those pairings were nominated in the same year which, I think, is what jack is asking for.

[danfrank]

Is this not also the first time we have a nominated performance for playing a real person, Marilyn Monroe, in the same category as another who was previously nominated for playing the same person?

Anthony Hopkins and Frank Langella were both nominated for best actor for playing Nixon.

And Laurence Olivier and Kenneth Branagh for playing Henry V

[danfrank]

Is this not also the first time we have a nominated performance for playing a real person, Marilyn Monroe, in the same category as another who was previously nominated for playing the same person?

Anthony Hopkins and Frank Langella were both nominated for best actor for playing Nixon.