The Academy Awards have a long and storied history and since its inception in the spring of 1929, a lot has changed. What began as an awards ceremony with only 15 categories has expanded to 24, and they became televised for the first time in 195, a tradition that has continued each year to this day. The ceremony has also expanded its demographic of winners and nominees with several historic firsts. The 2023 Academy Awards saw the first Asian woman win Best Actress, Michelle Yeoh for her role as Evelyn Quan Wang in “Everything Everywhere All At Once.”
24/7 Tempo reviewed data from the Academy Awards database of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to determine famous firsts that define the Academy Awards History We compiled a list of nominations and wins with historical significance in the award show’s history. Achievements are listed in chronological order.
Many of these famous firsts include the first Black man winning Best Actor in 1963, the first deaf actor winning an Oscar in 1986, and the first Asian woman winning best director in 2020. Other famous firsts involve award-winning movies that represent previously underappreciated film genres, such as “Rocky,” which became the first sports movie to win Best Picture in 1976, and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” which became the first martial arts film nominated for Best Picture in 2000.
However, there is much more room for growth in diversity and representation at the Academy Awards, although they continually strive to recognize a broader range of talent, improvement is still necessary. In its 94-year history, for instance, only seven women have ever been nominated for Best Director, and only three have won the honor. (These are the Oscars’ most egregious snubs.)
Here are famous firsts that defined Academy Award History
30. First foreign-language film to receive a Best Picture nomination
- Winner: The Grand Illusion (French)
- Year: 1938
29. First foreign-made film to win Best Picture
- Winner: Hamlet (British)
- Year: 1948
28. First film to win three Academy Awards for acting
- Winner: A Streetcar Named Desire (Vivien Leigh, Karl Malden, Kim Hunter)
- Year: 1951
27. First Asian performer to win an acting Oscar
- Winner: Myoshi Umeki, Best Supporting Actress, Sayonara
- Year: 1957
26. First person to win Oscars for Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Picture for one film
- Winner: Billy Wilder, The Apartment
- Year: 1961
25. First Black performer to win Best Actor
- Winner: Sidney Poitier, Lilies of the Field
- Year: 1963
24. First crime film to win Best Picture
- Winner: In the Heat of the Night
- Year: 1967
23. First X-rated movie to win an Oscar
- Winner: Midnight Cowboy (later re-rated to R)
- Year: 1969
22. First science fiction film to be nominated for Best Picture
- Winner: A Clockwork Orange
- Year: 1971
21. First horror film nominated for Best Picture
- Winner: The Exorcist
- Year: 1973
20. First sequel to win Best Picture
- Winner: Godfather Part II
- Year: 1974
19. First sports film to win Best Picture
- Winner: Rocky
- Year: 1976
18. First actor to win an Oscar for playing a member of the opposite sex
- Winner: Linda Hunt, Best Supporting Actress, The Year of Living Dangerously
- Year: 1983
17. First third-generation Oscar winner
- Winner: Angelica Huston, Best Supporting Actress, Prizzi’s Honor (daughter of Oscar-winning director John Huston and granddaughter of Oscar-winning actor Walter Huston)
- Year: 1985
16. First deaf performer to win an acting Oscar
- Winner: Marlee Matlin, Best Actress, Children of a Lesser God
- Year: 1986
15. First animated film to receive a Best Picture nomination
- Winner: Beauty and the Beast
- Year: 1991
14. First movie to receive two Oscar nominations for the same character
- Winner: Titanic (a Best Actress nomination for Kate Winslet and a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Gloria Stuart, both for the role of Rose, at different ages)
- Year: 1997
13. First Best Picture winner to gross over $1 billion
- Winner: Titanic
- Year: 1997
12. First martial arts film nominated for Best Picture
- Winner: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
- Year: 2000
11. First Black woman to win Best Actress
- Winner: Halle Berry, Monster’s Ball
- Year: 2001
10. First musical film to win Best Picture in 34 years
- Winner: Chicago
- Year: 2002
9. First remake to win Best Picture
- Winner: The Departed, a remake of Internal Affairs (2002)
- Year: 2006
8. First female to win Best Director
- Winner: Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
- Year: 2009
7. First performance in a superhero film to win an acting Oscar
- Winner: Heath Ledger, Best Supporting Actor, The Dark Knight
- Year: 2009
6. First CGI film nominated for Best Picture
- Winner: Up
- Year: 2009
5. First silent film to win Best Picture in 84 years
- Winner: The Artist
- Year: 2011
4. First film by a Black director to win Best Picture
- Winner: 12 Years A Slave (Steve McQueen)
- Year: 2013
3. First foreign-language film to win Best Picture
- Winner: Parasite (Korean)
- Year: 2019
2. First Asian woman to win Best Director
- Winner: Chloé Zhao, Nomadland
- Year: 2020
1. First streaming movie to win Best Picture
- Winner: CODA, streaming on Apple+
- Year: 2021