Winning anAcademy Awardis one of Hollywood’s greatest honors, and it often takes a lifetime’s worth of work for actors, directors, filmmakers, or writers to finally get one. However, there have been rare instances where actors manage to skip the queue and jump straight into awards and accolades at extraordinarily young ages. While in many non-acting categories, it’s common for artists to work in Hollywood for decades before even gaining a nomination, it’s astonishing just how young some of the recipients have been.
Even though someextraordinary actors have yet to win Oscars, occasionally, the recipient’s work is so impressive that the Academy took notice straight from the get-go and gave Oscars to incredibly young people. Sometimes, these wins have been so unprecedented that the actor has held on to their title as the youngest in their category for decades. Asthe youngest Academy Award winners ever, many of these performers rank as amongthe best actors of all time, and every one of the recipients made Hollywood history.
10Richard Dreyfuss
Second Youngest Best Actor at 30 for The Goodbye Girl (1977)
Having gained his big break in Steven Spielberg movies likeJawsandClose Encounters of the Third Kind, Richard Dreyfuss made Oscar history by becoming the youngest Best Actor winner ever when he was just 30. Taking the record from Marlon Brando’s iconic performance inOn the Waterfront, Dreyfuss earned this accolade for the romantic comedy-dramaThe Goodbye Girl.Dreyfuss would hang on to this record for nearly a quarter of a centurybefore it was finally taken from him in 2002.
The Goodbye Girlwas one of the most successful rom-coms of its time and was released during an era when the Academy Awards looked quite favorably on the genre. Notably, this was the same year thatAnnie HallbeatStar Warsfor Best Picture, showcasing the genre’s major time in the spotlight. As a truly esteemed actor, Dreyfuss continued to act to this day and earned a second Best Actor nomination in 1995 forMr. Holland’s Opus.
9Adrien Brody
Best Actor at 29 for The Pianist (2002)
The Academy Award for Best Actor is often a distinction that performers earn after a long Hollywood career, having built their name up with acclaim roles over years and decades. The emotional weight and intensity of a performance that it requires to win this Oscar should not be understated, and it’s no surprise that only one man under the age of 30 has earned this distinction. This was Adrien Brody for his incredible portrayal of the Holocaust survivor Władysław Szpilman in Roman Polanski’sThe Pianist.
How The Pianist Changed Adrien Brody’s Life
Adrien Brody reveals how his star turn in The Pianist “changed his life as a man” and gave him “a level of empathy” he carries with to this day.
Brody truly gave his all to this role as he captured the tortuous pain and survival of Szpilman’s story, a man who lost everything that he held dear in the genocidal conflict.The Pianistwas a moving work that not only captured the gigantic loss that was the Holocaust but also the individual pain of those who were forced to endure it. Surprisingly, even thoughBrody became the youngest Best Actor winner in Academy Awards history, he was never again nominated for an Oscar in the more than two decades since.
The Pianist
Cast
The Pianist is a historical drama directed by Roman Polanski, featuring Adrien Brody as Władysław Szpilman, a Jewish pianist in Warsaw during World War II. The film follows Szpilman’s harrowing journey of survival amidst the horrors of the Holocaust, capturing his struggles and resilience. The Pianist showcases the impact of war on individuals and art, emphasizing themes of perseverance and human spirit.
8Marlee Matlin
Best Actress at 21 for Children of a Lesser God (1986)
At 21 years old,Marlee Matlin earned not one but two historic distinctions in Academy Award history. First, she became the youngest Best Actress winner, and second, she became the first deaf performer to win an Oscar in any category. Matlin took home the award for her leading performance opposite William Hurt inChildren of a Lesser God,where she played a deaf janitor at a school for the deaf and hard of hearing in New England. This insightful and challenging film was packed with fantastic performances and highlighted seldom explored issues around those with hearing impairments.
Matlin’s Oscar win and breakout performance inChildren of a Lesser Godopened the door for her acting career, although she consistently faced a lack of roles for deaf women. With notable roles on television in series likeSeinfeld,The West Wing,andThe L Word, Matlin has been an important deaf activist and a notable member of the National Association of the Deaf. Matlin once again contributed to Academy Award success after portraying Jackie Rossi in the Best Picture-winning coming-of-age dramedyCODA, which told the story of a hearing daughter in a deaf family.
7Timothy Hutton
Best Supporting Actor at 20 for Ordinary People (1980)
Robert Redford’s 1980 dramaOrdinary Peoplegained four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor. With that, Timothy Hutton made history as the youngest recipient of the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as Conrad Jarrett, a sensitive and suicidal son reeling from the accidental death of his only brother, Buck. This emotionally tense performance showcased the sad realities of a fractured family as Hutton imbued his performances with raw vulnerability.
Hutton was actually the youngest recipient of this award by a long shot, with the second youngest Best Supporting Actor going to 29-year-old Cuba Gooding Jr. for his role inJerry Maguire. Heath Ledger also famously received theOscar award posthumouslyat 29 for his iconic portrayal of the Joker in Christopher Nolan’sThe Dark Knight. AlthoughHutton has continued acting consistently to this day, his role as Conrad Jarrett has remained his most acclaimed performance.
Ordinary People
The accidental death of a family’s eldest son puts a deep strain on the relationship between the harsh mother, the caring father and the younger son who feels guilty.
6Janet Gaynor
Third Youngest Best Actress at 22 for 7th Heaven, Street Angel, and Sunrise
The Academy Award for Best Actress boasts many young Oscar winners, meaning that, even though she was just 22 at the time, Janet Gaynor was just the third youngest recipient of this award. This win dates back to the very first Academy Awards, held on July 11, 2025, and considered films from 1927 and 1928. Rather than giving Oscars for one singular performance, this early ceremony considered several movies, meaning that Gaynor won for her collective roles in7th Heaven,Street Angel, andSunrise.
7th Heavenwas a synchronized sound romantic drama where Gaynor played Diane, a young woman who fell in love with the street cleaner who saved her life.Street Angelwas a Frank Borzage drama where Gaynor portrayed a young woman on the run from the law.The most notable of Gaynor’s three Oscar-winning performances wasSunrise, an iconic romantic drama known for its picturesque cinematography and as one of the greatest films of the silent era.
5Jennifer Lawrence
Second Youngest Best Actress at 22 for Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
One of the most notable young Oscar wins of the 21st century went to Jennifer Lawrence for her astounding performance inSilver Linings Playbook. After breakout performances in series likeX-MenandThe Hunger Games, Lawrence was the biggest up-and-coming actress in Hollywood during the early 2010s. Once she teamed up with director David O’Russell for a more dramatic turn inSilver Linings Playbook, it was clear that she had both the talent and the charisma to truly take Hollywood by storm.
Adding to all of this, Lawrence just came across as so likable during this time that the moviegoing public was delighted to see her achieve such astounding success at just 22 years old.Lawrence won the award for the role of Tiffany Maxwell, a young widow who connected with a bipolar man played by Bradley Cooper in this offbeat romance that was a hit with audiences and critics alike. Lawrence was previously nominated for an Oscar for her role inWinter’s Boneand has since gained two further nominations for O’Rusell’sAmerican HustleandJoy.
The Silver Linings Playbook
Based on the novel by Matthew Quick, Silver Linings Playbook stars Bradley Cooper as Pat Solitano Jr., a recently released psychiatric patient struggling with bipolar disorder and living with his parents in rural Pennsylvania. Determined to win back his ex-wife, Pat teams up with Tiffany Maxwell to both rekindle his relationship and help Tiffany win a dance competition. Jennifer Lawrence stars alongside Cooper as Tiffany, with Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, and Chris Tucker also making up the cast.
4Patty Duke
Third Youngest Best Supporting Actress at 16 for The Miracle Worker (1962)
Patty Duke was a child actress who got her start during the late 1950s on soaps likeThe Brighter Dayand, as a teen, originated her role as Helen Keller inThe Miracle Workeron Broadway. Duke managed to hang onto the role for the film adaptation in 1962 when she became the youngest competitive Oscar winner at the time. The role of Keller was challenging, as Duke had to portray a real woman who was blind and deaf due to an illness from a young age.
The Miracle Workerwas a powerful drama whose effectiveness was primarily due to Duke’s incredible performance.Duke captured the trials of Keller’s existenceand her perseverance in the face of almost insurmountable odds to make herself understood by those around her. Not only did the real Kelly achieve this goal, but she became a notable disability rights activist and even detailed her struggles in her autobiographyThe Story of My Life, which served as a major source of inspiration forThe Miracle Worker.
3Anna Paquin
Second Youngest Best Supporting Actress at 11 for The Piano (1993)
The Pianowas a powerful and evocative film by New Zealand director Jane Campion thatearned 11-year-old Anna Paquin an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. A historical drama about a Scottish mute mother moving to New Zealand with her daughter,The Pianoshowcased Paquin’s incredible skill for an emotive performance at such an astoundingly young age. With Paquin acting as her mother’s (Holly Hunter) interpreter, it was incredible to see how a life of needing to be her mother’s voice led to her gaining wisdom far beyond her years.
Although Paquin has yet to receive any further Academy Award nominations, she has carved out an impressive career in Hollywood. With films in everything from theX-Menfranchise toThe Irishman, Paquin has balanced mainstream entertainment with earnest performances for auteur directors. Viewers may also recognize Paquin for her leading role as Sookie Stackhouse in the HBO vampire dramaTrue Blood
The Piano
The Piano, directed by Jane Campion, follows a mute Scottish woman in colonial New Zealand who enters an arranged marriage. Her new husband refuses to transport her beloved piano, instead giving it to a neighbor, leading to a complex relationship as they navigate cultural and emotional conflicts.
2Tatum O’Neal
Best Supporting Actress at ten for Paper Moon (1973)
At the age of just ten, Tatum O’Neil became the youngest person to ever gain a competitive Oscar for her extraordinary performance inPaper Moon. With an outstanding screenplay from Alvin Sargent,Tatum excelled in her role opposite her real-life father, Ryan O’Neal, where her dad played the itinerant con man Moses Pray, and Tatum played the likable kid, accomplice, and potential daughter Addie Loggins. While the elder O’Neal did a great job, Tatum truly stole the show, and it’s no surprise that she made Academy Award history with this performance.
Tatum had tough competition for this Oscar as her rival teen competitor was 14-year-old Linda Blair, who gave an iconic performance that same year inThe Exorcist. Blair actually took home the Golden Globe for Best Support Actress that same year, although, in that ceremony, Tatum was put forward in the Best Actress category and lost to Glenda Jackson inA Touch of Class. It’s truly a testament to the power of Tatum’s spellbinding performance that nobody has managed to outdo her achievement over the past five decades.
1Shirley Temple
Honorary Juvenile Award at six
The honor of being the youngest Oscar winner across any category in the Academy Awards history goes to none other than Shirley Temple. As a child star so iconic that they named the quintessential non-alcoholic drink after her,Temple was given an Honorary Juvenile Academy Award when she was just six years oldin 1934. What’s most impressive was that by the end of that year, Temple already boasted a career that would put many lifelong actors to shame, as she’d already appeared in 13 movies, many of which she was cast as the leading star.
Other young recipients of the Honorary Juvenile Award included seven-year-old Vincent Winter forThe Little Kidnappersand eight-year-old Margaret O’Brien forMeet Me in St. Louis.
Temple was truly one of the most prolific child stars there ever was, as her singing, dancing, and signature curly blonde locks made her a worldwide phenomenon. While she continued acting well into her teens before retiring and pursuing a successful diplomatic career with the United Nations,Temple’s best moviescame when she was still a toddler. Temple has held her record as theyoungest Oscar winnerever since 1934, and it would take a child actor of unprecedented talent to take this achievement away from her at this stage.
