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List of posthumous Academy Award winners and nominees

Individuals who were nominated or won an Academy Award posthumously


Individuals who were nominated or won an Academy Award posthumously

Throughout the history of the Academy Awards, several individuals have died prior to the ceremony and were posthumously nominated or have won the award following their deaths. As of 2025, 64 individuals have received posthumous nominations with 79 nominations total, in competitive categories (with 3 people being nominated posthumously 3 times and 9 people twice), 29 individuals have won posthumously (William A. Horning winning twice, in 1959 and 1960), including 14 individuals in honorary categories. This list includes posthumous winners and nominees of the Academy's competitive awards, as well as posthumous recipients of its honorary awards.

Competitive awards

NameDate of deathCeremonyFilm yearAcademy AwardFilmWinnerNotes
Marit Allen80th2007Best Costume DesignLa Vie en Rose
Howard Ashman64th1991Best Music (Song)Beauty and the Beast
65th1992Aladdin
Joseph H. August21st1948Best CinematographyPortrait of Jennie
Robert Alan Aurthur52nd1979Best PictureAll That Jazz
Best Original Screenplay
Chadwick Boseman93rd2020Best ActorMa Rainey's Black Bottom
Mario Cecchi Gori68th1995Best PictureIl Postino
Frank Churchill15th1942Best Music (Scoring)Bambi
Best Music (Song)
Allen Davey18th1945Best CinematographyA Song to Remember
James Dean28th1955Best ActorEast of Eden
29th1956Giant
Walt Disney41st1968Best Short Film (Animated)Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day
Gail Dolgin84th2011Best Documentary (Short Subject)The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
Gerald Duffy1st]]1927 / 1928Best Title WritingThe Private Life of Helen of Troy
Jeanne Eagels2nd]]1928 / 1929Best ActressThe Letter
William Ferrari36th1963Best Art DirectionHow the West Was Won
Peter Finch49th1976Best ActorNetwork
Gil Friesen86th2013Best Documentary Feature20 Feet from Stardom
George Gershwin10th1937Best Music (Song)Shall We Dance
Stuart Gilmore44th1971Best Film EditingThe Andromeda Strain
Thomas C. Goodwin65th1992Best Documentary (Short Subject)Educating Peter
Conrad Hall75th2002Best CinematographyRoad to Perdition
David Hall38th1965Best Art DirectionThe Greatest Story Ever Told
Dale Hennesy55th1982Best Art DirectionAnnie
Bernard Herrmann49th1976Best Music (Scoring)Obsession
Taxi Driver
Gordon Hollingshead25th1952Academy Award for Best Short Subject (One-Reel)Desert Killer
Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Two-Reel)Thar She Blows!
William A. Horning31st1958Best Art DirectionGigi
32nd1959Ben-Hur
North by Northwest
Sidney Howard12th1939Best Adapted ScreenplayGone with the Wind
John Hubley50th1977Best Short Film (Animated)A Doonesbury Special
Eiko Ishioka85th2012Best Costume DesignMirror Mirror
Bert Kalmar24th1951Best Music (Song)The Strip
Jerome Kern18th1945Best Music (Scoring)Can't Help Singing
Best Music (Song)
19th1946Centennial Summer
William Kiernan46th1973Best Art DirectionThe Way We Were
Frederic Knudtson36th1963Best Film EditingIt's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
Albert Lamorisse51st1978Best Documentary (Feature)The Lovers' Wind
Heath Ledger81st2008Best Supporting ActorThe Dark Knight
Boris Leven59th1986Best Art DirectionThe Color of Money
Walt Martin87th2014Best Sound MixingAmerican SniperJohn Reitz]] and Gregg Rudloff
William C. Mellor38th1965Best CinematographyThe Greatest Story Ever Told
Anthony Minghella81st2008Best PictureThe Reader
James V. Monaco19th1946Best Music (Song)The Dolly Sisters
Alfred Newman43rd1970Best Music (Scoring)Airport
Joseph O'Brien18th1945Best Short Film (Live Action)Your National Gallery
Bridget O'Connor84th2011Best Adapted ScreenplayTinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Eric Orbom33rd1960Best Art DirectionSpartacus
Arnold Perl45th1972Best Documentary (Feature)Malcolm X
Sydney Pollack81st2008Best PictureThe Reader
Raymond Rasch45th1972Best Music (Scoring)Limelight1952]] film, won its award in 1972 because the blacklisting of Charlie Chaplin prevented it from being shown in Los Angeles until then. (The Academy subsequently changed its rules to prevent films more than two years old from receiving awards.)
Gretchen Rau79th2006Best Art DirectionThe Good Shepherd
Ralph Richardson57th1984Best Supporting ActorGreystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes
Richard H. Riedel32nd1959Best Art DirectionPillow Talk
Robbie Robertson96th2023Best Original ScoreKillers of the Flower Moon
Larry Russell45th1972Best Music (Scoring)Limelight
Tess Slesinger18th1945Best Adapted ScreenplayA Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Carol Sobieski64th1991Best Adapted ScreenplayFried Green Tomatoes
Adam Somner98th2025Best PictureOne Battle After Another
Gile Steele24th1951Best Costume DesignKind Lady
The Great Caruso
25th1952The Merry Widow
Harry Stradling42nd1969Best CinematographyHello, Dolly!
Harry W. Tetrick49th1976Best SoundKing Kong
Rocky
Spencer Tracy40th1967Best ActorGuess Who's Coming to Dinner
Massimo Troisi68th1995Best ActorIl Postino
Best Adapted Screenplay
Lamar Trotti27th1954Best WritingThere's No Business Like Show Business
Geoffrey Unsworth53rd1980Best CinematographyTess
August Wilson89th2016Best Adapted ScreenplayFences
Robert L. Wolfe54th1981Best Film EditingOn Golden Pond
Victor Young29th1956Best Music (Scoring)Around the World in 80 Days
Best Music (Song)Written on the Wind
Sam Zimbalist32nd1959Best PictureBen-Hur

Honorary awards

NameDate of deathCeremonyFilm yearAcademy AwardNotes
Robert Benjamin52nd1979Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award
Les Bowie51st1978Special Achievement Award (Visual Effects) for Superman
Theo Brown82nd2009Scientific and Technical Award (Scientific and Engineering Award)
Douglas Fairbanks12th1939Academy Honorary Award
Chuck Gaspar86th2013Scientific or Technical Award (Technical Achievement Award)url=https://archive.today/20140426072617/http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/BasicSearch?action=searchLink&displayType=6&BSNomineeID=64940date=2014-04-26 }}
Audrey Hepburn65th1992Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award
Werner Hopf32nd1959Scientific and Technical Award (Class II)
Quincy Jones97th2024Academy Honorary Award
George Kraemer65th1992Scientific and Technical Award (Scientific and Engineering Award)
John D. Lowry84th2011Scientific and Technical Award (Scientific and Engineering Award)
Charles MillerN/A13th1940Scientific or Technical Award (Class I)
Jürgen Noffke84th2011Scientific and Technical Award (Scientific and Engineering Award)
Edward G. Robinson45th1972Academy Honorary Award
Louis StankiewiczN/A54th1981Scientific or Technical Award (Technical Achievement Award)
Geoffrey H. Williamson65th1992Scientific and Technical Award (Scientific and Engineering Award)

Excluded: retrospective awards

The list does not include people who were retrospectively honoured with an Academy Award and were dead at the time the Academy made the decision to make the retrospective award. For example: in 1993, seventeen years after his death, Dalton Trumbo was retrospectively awarded the 1953 Oscar for Academy Award for Best Story for Roman Holiday. It had been previously awarded to Ian McLellan Hunter. However, Hunter was merely a front for Trumbo, because Trumbo was on the Hollywood blacklist at the time and it was impossible for his name to appear in either the film's credits or the Academy Award nomination (though it was not generally known that he was the real screenwriter). Trumbo did not die until 1976, and under normal circumstances he would have received this award in person in 1953; therefore the Academy does not consider this a posthumous award but a correction of the record.

Similarly, the Oscar for Best Screenplay (Adaptation) for The Bridge on the River Kwai was originally awarded to Pierre Boulle, but only in 1984 corrected to honor the actual screenwriters, Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson, who were blacklisted at the time and could only work on the film in secret. By the time this correction was made, both Foreman and Wilson had died, but the award does not qualify for an entry in the above list.

Notes

References

  1. Ashman's partner, Bill Lauch, accepted the award on his behalf. Ashman had a total of three nominations in this category this year, for "[[Belle (Disney song). Belle]]", "[[Be Our Guest]]", and "[[Beauty and the Beast (Disney song). Beauty and the Beast]]", which he won the award for.
  2. Boseman is the first black actor to posthumously receive a nomination.
  3. Finch became the first posthumous winner in an acting category. His widow Eletha and screenwriter [[Paddy Chayefsky]] accepted the award on his behalf.
  4. With [[Morgan Neville]] and [[Caitrin Rogers]]
  5. [[Conrad Hall]]'s son [[Conrad W. Hall]] accepted the award on his behalf.
  6. [https://archive.today/20130808105627/http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/BasicSearch?action=searchLink&displayType=6&BSNomineeID=58966 Frederic Knudtson]
  7. Ledger died after completing his scenes in ''The Dark Knight'' but before the film had been completed, and a year before the nominations were announced. His father, mother and sister accepted the award on his behalf.
  8. John Reitz]] and [[Gregg Rudloff]]
  9. ''Limelight'', a [[1952 in film. 1952]] film, won its award in 1972 because the [[Hollywood blacklist. blacklisting]] of [[Charlie Chaplin]] prevented it from being shown in Los Angeles until then. (The [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Academy]] subsequently changed its rules to prevent films more than two years old from receiving awards.)
  10. Unsworth died during the shooting of ''Tess'', and the cinematography was completed by [[Ghislain Cloquet]]. Unsworth and Cloquet were jointly nominated, successfully, for Best Cinematography.
  11. Zimbalist died during the filming of ''Ben-Hur''. His widow Mary Zimbalist accepted the award on his behalf.
  12. "Les Bowie, Colin Chilvers, Denys Coop, Roy Field, Derek Meddings, Zoran Perisic Academy Awards Acceptance Speech". [[Margaret Herrick Library]] - [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences]].
  13. [https://archive.today/20130808105645/http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/BasicSearch?action=searchLink&displayType=6&BSNomineeID=71020 Theo Brown]
  14. link. (2014-04-26)
  15. Hepburn died eight days after the Academy voted to confer this award, but two months before the 65th Academy Awards ceremony. Her son Sean Hepburn Ferrer accepted the award on her behalf.
  16. [https://archive.today/20130808105618/http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/BasicSearch?action=searchLink&displayType=6&BSNomineeID=60730 Werner Hopf]
  17. Jones died four months after the Academy voted to confer this award, but two weeks before the Governors Awards ceremony on November 17.
  18. [https://archive.today/20130808105635/http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/BasicSearch?action=searchLink&displayType=6&BSNomineeID=71517 John D. Lowry]
  19. [https://archive.today/20130808105559/http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/BasicSearch?action=searchLink&displayType=6&BSNomineeID=71507 Dr. Jürgen Noffke]
  20. Robinson died after the Academy voted to confer this award, but two months before the 45th Academy Awards ceremony. His widow Jane accepted the award on his behalf.
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