List of black Academy Award winners and nominees explained

This list of Black Academy Award winners and nominees is fully current as the 95th Academy Awards, which was held on March 12, 2023.

Best Actor in a Leading Role

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Year	Name	Film	Role	Status	Milestone / Notes
1958	Sidney Poitier	The Defiant Ones	Noah Cullen		First Black actor to be nominated for Best Actor.
1963		Lilies of the Field	Homer Smith		First Black man to win a competitive Oscar. First Bahamian to win Best Actor. First Black actor to receive two acting nominations (Best Actor). Youngest Black actor to win Best Actor (age 37).
1970	James Earl Jones	The Great White Hope	Jack Jefferson
1972	Paul Winfield	Sounder	Nathan Lee Morgan		First film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Actress.
1986	Dexter Gordon	Round Midnight	Dale Turner		First jazz musician to be nominated for Best Actor.
1989	Morgan Freeman	Driving Miss Daisy	Hoke Colburn
1992	Denzel Washington	Malcolm X	Malcolm X
1993	Laurence Fishburne	What's Love Got to Do with It	Ike Turner		Second film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Actress.
1994	Morgan Freeman	The Shawshank Redemption	Ellis Boyd 'Red' Redding
1999	Denzel Washington	The Hurricane	Rubin Carter
2001		Training Day	Alonzo Harris		Second African-American actor to receive the award for Best Actor. First time two African-American performers won Oscars in the same year (Halle Berry, Monster's Ball). First African-American actor to win multiple competitive Academy Awards. First and only African-American actor to win Academy Awards in both acting categories (lead and supporting).
	Will Smith	Ali	Muhammad Ali		First time multiple African-American actors nominated for Best Actor in the same year.
2004	Jamie Foxx	Ray	Ray Charles		First African-American to receive two acting nominations in the same year.
	Don Cheadle	Hotel Rwanda	Paul Rusesabagina
2005	Terrence Howard	Hustle & Flow	DJay
2006	Forest Whitaker	The Last King of Scotland	Idi Amin
	Will Smith	The Pursuit of Happyness	Chris Gardner
2009	Morgan Freeman	Invictus	Nelson Mandela
2012	Denzel Washington	Flight	William "Whip" Whitaker
2013	Chiwetel Ejiofor	12 Years a Slave	Solomon Northup		First Black British actor to be nominated for Best Actor.
2016	Denzel Washington	Fences	Troy Maxson		First Black actor to direct himself to an Oscar nomination (for acting only). First Black actor to be nominated for both acting and producing (Best Picture) in the same year.
2017		Roman J. Israel, Esq.	Roman J. Israel		Denzel Washington is the first African-American actor to be nominated two years in a row.
	Daniel Kaluuya	Get Out	Chris Washington		Second Black British actor to be nominated for Best Actor.
2020	Chadwick Boseman	Ma Rainey's Black Bottom	Levee Green		First African-American actor to receive a posthumous nomination. Third film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Actress.
2021	Will Smith	King Richard	Richard Williams		Second Black actor, and ninth overall, to be nominated for both acting and producing (Best Picture) in the same year.
	Denzel Washington	The Tragedy of Macbeth	Lord Macbeth		Denzel Washington has the most nominations for an African-American actor: Best Actor (7 nominations) and Best Supporting Actor (2 nominations). First African-American actor to receive a nomination for their performance in a Shakespeare adaptation.
2023	Colman Domingo	Rustin	Bayard Rustin		First gay Black and Afro-Latino actor to be nominated for Best Actor.
	Jeffrey Wright	American Fiction	Thelonious "Monk" Ellison		First film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor.

Best Actress in a Leading Role

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Year	Name	Film	Role	Status	Milestone / Notes
1954	Dorothy Dandridge	Carmen Jones	Carmen Jones		First African-American actress to be nominated for Best Actress.
1972	Diana Ross	Lady Sings the Blues	Billie Holiday		First African-American actress to receive an Academy Award nomination for a debut film performance. First time multiple African-American actresses received Best Actress nominations.
	Cicely Tyson	Sounder	Rebecca Morgan		First film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Actress. First time multiple African-American actresses received Best Actress nominations.
1974	Diahann Carroll	Claudine	Claudine
1985	Whoopi Goldberg	The Color Purple	Celie Johnson		Debut film performance. First time multiple African-American actresses received nominations for the same film for both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress.
1993	Angela Bassett	What's Love Got to Do with It	Tina Turner		Second film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Actress.
2001	Halle Berry	Monster's Ball	Leticia Musgrove		First African-American actress to win Best Actress. First person of color to win Best Actress. First time two African-American performers won Oscars in the same year (Denzel Washington, Training Day).
2009	Gabourey Sidibe	Precious	Claireece "Precious" Jones		Debut film performance. Second film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress.
2011		The Help	Aibileen Clark		Second African-American actress to receive acting nominations in the lead and supporting categories after Whoopi Goldberg. Third film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actress and Supporting Actress categories.
2012	Quvenzhané Wallis	Beasts of the Southern Wild	Hushpuppy		Debut film performance. At age 9, youngest ever Best Actress nominee. First person born in the 21st century to receive an Academy Award nomination.
2016	Ruth Negga	Loving	Mildred Loving		First Black Irish actress to be nominated. First Black African (Ethiopia) actress to be nominated for Lead Actress.
2019	Cynthia Erivo	Harriet	Harriet Tubman		First Black British actress to be nominated. Second Black woman to receive multiple Oscar nominations in the same year. Third person nominated for an acting award and a music award (Best Original Song) in the same year. First Nigerian to receive an Academy Award nomination.
2020	Viola Davis	Ma Rainey's Black Bottom	Ma Rainey		Most nominated African-American actress, with four nominations. First Black actress to receive two nominations for Best Actress. Third film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Actress. Second time multiple African-American actresses received Best Actress nominations.
	Andra Day	The United States vs. Billie Holiday	Billie Holiday		Second time multiple African-American actresses received Best Actress nominations.

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Year	Name	Film	Role	Status	Milestone / Notes
1969	Rupert Crosse	The Reivers	Ned		First African-American actor to be nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
1981	Howard Rollins	Ragtime	Coalhouse Walker Jr.		Debut film performance.
1982	Louis Gossett Jr.	An Officer and a Gentleman	Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley		First African-American actor to win Best Supporting Actor.
1984	Adolph Caesar	A Soldier's Story	Sgt. Waters
1987	Morgan Freeman	Street Smart	Fast Black		First time multiple African-American actors received Best Supporting Actor nominations.
	Denzel Washington	Cry Freedom	Steve Biko
1989		Glory	Pvt. Trip		First African-American actor to receive two Best Supporting Actor nominations.
1992	Jaye Davidson	The Crying Game	Dil		Debut film performance. Youngest Black actor to receive an Academy Award nomination (age 24) First Black British actor to receive an Academy Award nomination. First out Black actor to receive an Academy Award nomination.
1994	Samuel L. Jackson	Pulp Fiction	Jules Winnfield
1996	Cuba Gooding Jr.	Jerry Maguire	Rod Tidwell		Youngest African-American male actor to win an Academy Award (age 29).
1999	Michael Clarke Duncan	The Green Mile	John Coffey
2003	Djimon Hounsou	In America	Mateo		First Black actor born in Africa (specifically in Benin) to receive an Academy Award nomination.
2004	Morgan Freeman	Million Dollar Baby	Eddie 'Scrap-Iron' Dupris		Oldest African-American actor to win an Academy Award (age 67).
	Jamie Foxx	Collateral	Max		First African-American to receive two acting nominations in the same year.
2006	Djimon Hounsou	Blood Diamond	Solomon Vandy
	Eddie Murphy	Dreamgirls	James 'Thunder' Early		First film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress.
2013	Barkhad Abdi	Captain Phillips	Abduwali Muse		Debut film performance. Second Black actor born in Africa (specifically in Somalia) to receive an Academy Award nomination.
2016	Mahershala Ali	Moonlight	Juan		Second film to feature Black nominees for both Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. First Muslim actor to win an Oscar. First time two African-American performers won in supporting role Oscars in the same year (Viola Davis, Fences).
2018		Green Book	Don Shirley		Second time two African-American performers won supporting role Oscars in the same year (Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk). First African-American actor to win two Oscars in the same category. Second African-American actor to win multiple competitive Academy Awards.
2020	Daniel Kaluuya	Judas and the Black Messiah	Fred Hampton		First Black British actor to win an acting Oscar. First Black British actor to receive multiple Academy Award nominations. First film to have multiple black actors to be nominated in the same category for the same film.
	Lakeith Stanfield		William O'Neal		First film to have multiple black actors to be nominated in the same category for the same film.
	Leslie Odom Jr.	One Night in Miami...	Sam Cooke		First African-American man to receive Academy Award nominations in the same year for acting and songwriting. Fourth person overall, third Black person, and first Black man nominated for an Academy Award for acting and songwriting in the same year.
2022	Brian Tyree Henry	Causeway	James Aucoin
2023	Sterling K. Brown	American Fiction	Clifford "Cliff" Ellison		First film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor.

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Year	Name	Film	Role	Status	Milestone / Notes
1940	Hattie McDaniel	Gone with the Wind	Mammy		First African American to win and be nominated for an Academy Award.
1949	Ethel Waters	Pinky	Mrs. Dicey Johnson (Pinky's Granny)		Second African American to be nominated for an Academy Award.
1959	Juanita Moore	Imitation of Life	Annie Johnson
1967	Beah Richards	Guess Who's Coming to Dinner	Mrs. Prentice
1983	Alfre Woodard	Cross Creek	Geechee
1985	Margaret Avery	The Color Purple	Shug Avery		First time multiple African-American actresses from the same film are nominated in the same category. First film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress. Winfrey's debut film performance.
	Oprah Winfrey		Sofia
1990	Whoopi Goldberg	Ghost	Oda Mae Brown		First African-American actress to receive two acting nominations. First African-American actress to receive acting nominations in the lead and supporting categories. Second African-American actress to win Best Supporting Actress.
1993	Rosie Perez	Fearless	Carla Rodrigo		First Afro-Latina actress to receive an Academy Award nomination.
1996	Marianne Jean-Baptiste	Secrets & Lies	Hortense Cumberbatch		First Black British actress to receive an Academy Award nomination.
2002	Queen Latifah	Chicago	Matron Mama Morton		First female hip hop artist to be nominated for an Academy Award.
2004	Sophie Okonedo	Hotel Rwanda	Tatiana Rusesabagina		Second Black British actress to receive an Academy Award nomination.
2006	Jennifer Hudson	Dreamgirls	Effie White		Debut film performance. Youngest African-American to win an Academy Award (age 25) First film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress.
2007	Ruby Dee	American Gangster	Mama Lucas		At age 83, oldest African-American actress to be nominated for an Academy Award.
2008	Viola Davis	Doubt	Mrs. Miller		First time two films have Black performers nominated for Supporting Actress in the same year.
	Taraji P. Henson	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button	Queenie		First time two films to have Black performers to be nominated for Supporting Actress in the same year.
2009	Mo'Nique	Precious	Mary Lee Johnston		Second film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress.
2011	Octavia Spencer	The Help	Minny Jackson		Third film to feature African-American nominees for both Best Actress and Supporting Actress.
2013	Lupita Nyong'o	12 Years a Slave	Patsey		Debut film performance. First Black African (Kenyan) actress to be nominated. First Black African to win in any category. First Black Mexican to be nominated and win in any category. First Afro-Latina actress to be nominated and win an Academy Award.
2016	Viola Davis	Fences	Rose Maxson		First time two African-American performers won in supporting role Oscars in the same year (Mahershala Ali, Moonlight).
	Naomie Harris	Moonlight	Paula		Third Black British actress to receive an Academy Award nomination. Second film to feature Black nominees for both Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress.
	Octavia Spencer	Hidden Figures	Dorothy Vaughan		Third Black actress following Whoopi Goldberg and Viola Davis to earn multiple Oscar nominations. First Black actress to be nominated after previously winning. First time three films have Black performers nominated for Supporting Actress in the same year.
2017		The Shape of Water	Zelda Fuller		First Black actress to be nominated twice after previously winning. First Black actress to be nominated two years in a row.
	Mary J. Blige	Mudbound	Florence Jackson		First Black woman to receive multiple Oscar nominations in the same year. First person nominated for an acting award and a music award (Best Original Song) in the same year.
2018	Regina King	If Beale Street Could Talk	Sharon Rivers		Second time two African-American performers won supporting Oscars in the same year (Mahershala Ali, Green Book).
2021	Ariana DeBose	West Side Story	Anita		First Black, African-American, Afro-Latina queer actress to be nominated and win in any acting category.
	Aunjanue Ellis	King Richard	Oracene "Brandy" Price
2022	Angela Bassett		Queen Ramonda		First actor nominated for a Marvel Cinematic Universe film. First actress nominated for a comic book film. Third African-American actress to receive acting nominations in the lead and supporting categories after Whoopi Goldberg and Viola Davis. Fourth Black actress to be nominated twice.^[1]
2023	Da'Vine Joy Randolph	The Holdovers	Mary Lamb
	Danielle Brooks	The Color Purple	Sofia

Best Animated Feature

Academy Award for Best Animated Feature
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
2018	Peter Ramsey			Shared with Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Bob Persichetti & Rodney Rothman First African American to be nominated for and to win for Animated Feature.
2023	Kemp Powers			Shared with Joaquim Dos Santos, Justin K. Thompson, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Amy Pascal.

Best Cinematography

Academy Award for Best Cinematography
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1998	Remi Adefarasin	Elizabeth		First Black person to be nominated for Best Cinematography.
2016	Bradford Young	Arrival		First African American to be nominated in the category.

Best Costume Design

Academy Award for Best Costume Design
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1992	Ruth E. Carter	Malcolm X		First African American to be nominated for Best Costume Design.
1997		Amistad
2004	Sharen Davis	Ray
2006		Dreamgirls
2018	Ruth E. Carter^[2]	Black Panther		First African American to win for Best Costume Design.
2021	Paul Tazewell	West Side Story		First African American male costume designer to be nominated for Best Costume Design.
2022	Ruth E. Carter			First African American woman to win any two competitive Academy Awards.^[3]

Best Director

Academy Award for Best Director
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1991	John Singleton	Boyz n the Hood		First African American to be nominated for Best Director. Youngest person ever nominated in this category (age 24).
2009	Lee Daniels	Precious		First African American director to earn a Best Picture nomination.
2013	Steve McQueen	12 Years a Slave		First Black director whose film won an Oscar for Best Picture. First Black British person to earn a Best Director nomination.
2016	Barry Jenkins	Moonlight		Second Black director to direct a Best Picture-winning film. First African-American director to direct a Best Picture-winning film.
2017	Jordan Peele	Get Out		First African American to earn a Best Director nomination and a Best Picture nomination for a debut film.
2018	Spike Lee	BlacKkKlansman

Best Documentary Feature

Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1987	Callie Crossley (director/producer)	Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years/Bridge to Freedom 1965		First African American to be nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Shared with James A. DeVinney.
1990	Yvonne Smith (producer)	Adam Clayton Powell		Shared with Richard Kilberg.
1993	William Miles (director/producer)
1997	Spike Lee (director/producer) Samuel D. Pollard (producer)	4 Little Girls
2004	Karolyn Ali (producer)
2012	T. J. Martin (director)	Undefeated		First African American to win in this category.
2016	Ava DuVernay (director/producer)	13th
	Roger Ross Williams (director/producer)	Life, Animated		Shared with Julie Goldman.
	Raoul Peck (director/producer) Hébert Peck (producer)	I Am Not Your Negro		First Haitians to be nominated in this category.
	Ezra Edelman (director/producer)
2017	Yance Ford (director/producer)	Strong Island		First openly transgender man to be nominated for any Academy Award. First openly transgender director to be nominated for any Academy Award. Shared with Joslyn Barnes.
2018	RaMell Ross (director/producer)	Hale County This Morning, This Evening		Shared with Joslyn Barnes and Su Kim.
2020	Garrett Bradley (director/producer) Lauren Domino (producer)	Time		Shared with Kellen Quinn.
2021	Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson (director)	Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)		Shared with Joseph Patel, Robert Fyvolent and David Dinerstein.
	Stanley Nelson (director/producer) Traci A. Curry (director/producer)	Attica
2023	Moses Bwayo (director)			Shared with Christopher Sharp and John Battsek

Best Documentary Short Subject

Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
2000	Leelai Demoz			Shared with Eric Simonson. First African American to be nominated for Best Documentary Short Subject.
2009	Roger Ross Williams	Music by Prudence		Shared with Elinor Burkett. First African American to win Best Documentary Short Subject.
2020	Kris Bowers	A Concerto Is a Conversation		Shared with Ben Proudfoot.
	Sophia Nahli Allison Janice Duncan	A Love Song for Latasha		First African American women to be nominated for Best Documentary Short Subject.
2023	Kris Bowers	The Last Repair Shop		First African American person to be nominated twice for Best Documentary Short Subject. Shared with Ben Proudfoot.
	Christine Turner	The Barber of Little Rock		Shared with John Hoffman.

Best Film Editing

Academy Award for Best Film Editing
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1969	Hugh A. Robertson	Midnight Cowboy		First African American to be nominated for Best Editing.
2016	Joi McMillon	Moonlight		First African American woman to be nominated for Best Editing. Shared with Nat Sanders.

Best International Feature Film

In the International Feature Film category (formerly known as Best Foreign Language Film), although the Oscar is presented to and accepted by the film's director, the submitting country is officially credited as the nominee, not the director.^[4] The following is a list of films directed by Black people which have been nominated for Best International Feature Film.

Academy Award for Best International Feature Film
Year	Director	Country	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1995	Rachid Bouchareb	Algeria	Dust of Life		First Black director whose film was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film.
2006			Days of Glory		First African director to have multiple films nominated for Best Foreign Language film.
2010			Outside the Law		First African director whose films have received three nominations for Best Foreign Language Film.
2013	Abderrahmane Sissako	Mauritania	Timbuktu
2019		France	Les Miserables		First non-African film directed by a Black director to be nominated in this category.

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
2020	Mia Neal Jamika Wilson^[5]	Ma Rainey's Black Bottom		First African Americans to be nominated for Best Makeup and Hairstyling. Shared with Sergio López-Rivera.
2021	Carla Farmer Stacey Morris	Coming 2 America		Shared with Mike Marino.
2022	Camille Friend^[6]			Shared with Joel Harlow.

Best Music, Original Score

Academy Award for Best Original Score
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1961	Duke Ellington	Paris Blues		First African American to be nominated for Best Original Score. Nominated for Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture.
1964	Calvin Jackson	The Unsinkable Molly Brown		Shared with Robert Armbruster, Leo Arnaud, Jack Elliott, Jack Hayes & Leo Shuken.
1967	Quincy Jones	In Cold Blood
1972	Isaac Hayes	Shaft		Nominated for Best Music, Original Dramatic Score.
1972	Gil Askey	Lady Sings the Blues		First African American to be nominated in the Scoring Original Song Score and/or Adaptation (which is different from Best Original Score category).
1978	Quincy Jones	The Wiz		First African American to be nominated in the Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Adaptation Score (which is different from Best Original Score category).
1984	Prince	Purple Rain		First African American winner of Best Original Song Score (which is different from Best Original Score category); this category was retired afterwards.
1985	Quincy Jones Andrae Crouch Caiphus Semenya	The Color Purple		Shared nomination with 9 other composers. Semenya became the first Black South African to be nominated for an Academy Award.
1986	Herbie Hancock	Round Midnight		First African-American winner of Best Original Score.
1987	Jonas Gwangwa	Cry Freedom		Shared with George Fenton.
	2018	Terence Blanchard	BlacKkKlansman
2020	Da 5 Bloods			First African American to receive multiple solo nominations for Best Original Score. First time multiple African Americans received a nomination for Best Original Score in the same year.
	Jon Batiste	Soul		First time multiple African Americans received a nomination for Best Original Score in the same year. Shared with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

Best Music, Original Song

Academy Award for Best Original Song
Year	Name	Film	Song	Status	Milestone / Notes
1967	Quincy Jones Bob Russell	Banning	"The Eyes of Love"		First African Americans to be nominated for Best Original Song.
1968		For Love of Ivy	"For Love of Ivy"		First African Americans to be nominated twice for Best Original Song.
1972	Isaac Hayes	Shaft	"Theme from Shaft"		First African-American winner for Best Original Song. First African-American to win a non-acting award.
1981	Lionel Richie	Endless Love	"Endless Love"
1983	Irene Cara	Flashdance	"Flashdance... What a Feeling"		First African-American woman to win a non-acting Academy Award. Shared with Keith Forsey & Giorgio Moroder.
1984	Stevie Wonder	The Woman in Red	"I Just Called to Say I Love You"
	Ray Parker Jr.	Ghostbusters	"Ghostbusters"
1985	Lionel Richie	White Nights	"Say You, Say Me"
	Quincy Jones Lionel Richie	The Color Purple	"Miss Celie's Blues"		Shared nomination with Rod Temperton Richie is the first (and to date, only) Black person to receive multiple Best Original Song nominations in the same year.
1987	Jonas Gwangwa	Cry Freedom	"Cry Freedom"		First Black South African to be nominated in this category. Shared with George Fenton.
1988	Lamont Dozier	Buster	"Two Hearts"		Shared with Phil Collins.
1993	Janet Jackson Jimmy Jam Terry Lewis	Poetic Justice	"Again"
	James Ingram	Beethoven's 2nd	"The Day I Fall In Love"		Shared with Cliff Magness and Carole Bayer Sager.
1994		Junior	"Look What Love Has Done"		Shared with James Newton Howard, Carole Bayer Sager, and Patty Smyth.
2005	Frayser Boy Juicy J DJ Paul	Hustle & Flow	"It's Hard out Here for a Pimp"		First African-American rappers to win an Academy Award.
2006	Siedah Garrett	Dreamgirls	"Love You I Do"		Shared with Henry Krieger.
2007	Jamal Joseph Charles Mack Tevin Thomas	August Rush	"Raise It Up"
2011	Carlinhos Brown Siedah Garrett	Rio	"Real in Rio"		Shared with Sergio Mendes. Garrett is the most nominated African-American female songwriter (two nominations). Brown is the first Black Latin American nominated for Best Original Song.
2013	Pharrell Williams	Despicable Me 2	"Happy"
2014	Common John Legend	Selma	"Glory"
2015	DaHeala The Weeknd	Fifty Shades of Grey	"Earned It"		Shared with Belly and Stephan Moccio. The Weeknd & DaHeala are the first Black Canadians nominated for Best Original Song.
2017	Mary J. Blige Raphael Saadiq Taura Stinson	Mudbound	"Mighty River"		Blige is also the first Black woman to receive multiple Academy Award nominations in the same year. First person nominated for an Academy Award for acting and writing an original song in the same year.
	Common	Marshall	"Stand Up for Something"		Shared with Diane Warren.
2018	Kendrick Lamar Sounwave SZA Anthony Tiffith	Black Panther	"All the Stars"
2019	Cynthia Erivo Joshuah Brian Campbell	Harriet	"Stand Up"		Second Black woman to receive multiple Academy Award nominations in the same year. Second person nominated for an Academy Award for acting and writing an original song in the same year.
2020	H.E.R. D'Mile Tiara Thomas	Judas and the Black Messiah	"Fight For You"
	Leslie Odom Jr.	One Night in Miami...	"Speak Now"		First Black man to receive Academy Award nominations in the acting and music categories. Third person nominated for an Academy Award for acting and writing an original song in the same year. Shared with Sam Ashworth.
	Celeste	The Trial of the Chicago 7	"Hear My Voice"		Shared with Daniel Pemberton.
2021	Beyoncé DIXSON	King Richard	"Be Alive"
2022	Ryan Coogler Rihanna Tems^[7]		"Lift Me Up"		Shared with Ludwig Göransson.
2023	Jon Batiste	American Symphony	"It Never Went Away"		Shared with Dan Wilson

Best Picture

Academy Award for Best Picture
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1985	Quincy Jones	The Color Purple		First African American producer whose film was nominated for Best Picture.
2009	Lee Daniels	Precious		First African American director whose film was nominated for Best Picture. First time two films with African American producers were nominated for Best Picture.
	Broderick Johnson	The Blind Side
2012	Reginald Hudlin	Django Unchained
	2013	Steve McQueen	12 Years a Slave		First Black director and producer to win Best Picture.
	2014	Oprah Winfrey	Selma		First Black female producer nominated for Best Picture.
2016	Denzel Washington	Fences		First time that three films with Black producers were nominated for Best Picture.
	Pharrell Williams	Hidden Figures
	Kimberly Steward	Manchester by the Sea
2017	Jordan Peele	Get Out
2016	Barry Jenkins	Moonlight
	2018	Spike Lee Jordan Peele	BlacKkKlansman		The first Best Picture nominee to have more than one African American producer. Peele is the first African American producer to be nominated for Best Picture twice. Shared with Jason Blum, Raymond Mansfield, and Sean McKittrick
2020	Shaka King Charles D. King Ryan Coogler	Judas and the Black Messiah		First Best Picture nominee to have all black producers.
2021	Will Smith	King Richard		Shared with Tim White and Trevor White.
2023	Cord Jefferson Jermaine Johnson	American Fiction		Shared with Ben LeClair and Nikos Karamigios.

Best Production Design

Academy Award for Best Production Design
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
2018	Hannah Beachler	Black Panther		First African American to be nominated for and to win Best Production Design. Shared with Jay Hart.

Best Short Film (Animated)

Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
2017	Kobe Bryant	Dear Basketball		Shared nomination with Glen Keane. First African American to win Short Film (Animated). First former professional athlete to be nominated for and to win an Academy Award in any category. First person to win both an Olympic medal and an Academy Award.
2019	Matthew A. Cherry Karen Rupert Toliver	Hair Love		Cherry is the second former professional athlete to be nominated for and to win an Academy Award in any category. Toliver is the first Black woman to win Short Film (Animated).

Best Short Film (Live Action)

Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1991	David Massey	Last Breeze of Summer		First African American nominated for Short Film (Live Action).
1995	Dianne Houston	Tuesday Morning Ride		First African-American woman nominated for Short Film (Live Action). Shared with Joy Ride.
2014	James Lucas	The Phone Call		First Black person to win in this category. Shared with Mat Kirkby.
2017	Kevin Wilson Jr.	My Nephew Emmett
	2020	Travon Free	Two Distant Strangers		First Black-American to win in this category Shared with Martin Desmond Roe.
	2023	Misan Harriman	The After		Shared with Nicky Bentham.

Best Sound

Academy Award for Best Sound
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1978	Willie D. Burton	The Buddy Holly Story		First African American to be nominated for Best Sound.
1980		Altered States		First African American to be nominated multiple times for Best Sound.
1983		WarGames
1988		Bird		First African American to win Best Sound.
1989	Russell Williams II	Glory		Second African American to win Best Sound.
1990		Dances with Wolves		First African American to win multiple Academy Awards in any category. First and only African American to win consecutive awards in any category.
1994	Willie D. Burton	The Shawshank Redemption
1999		The Green Mile
2006		Dreamgirls		From 2003 through 2019, the Best Sound category was known as "Best Sound Mixing". The third African American to win two competitive Academy Awards.
2023		Oppenheimer

Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Year	Name	Film	Adapted From	Status	Milestone / Notes
1972	Lonne Elder III	Sounder	Sounder by William H. Armstrong		First African-American nominee for Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay). First African-American nominated for screenwriting, along with Suzanne de Passe for Lady Sings the Blues nominated the same year for Best Writing (Original Screenplay).
1984	Charles Fuller	A Soldier's Story	A Soldier's Play by Fuller
2009	Geoffrey Fletcher	Precious	Push by Sapphire		First African American to win a screenplay Academy Award (Adapted Screenplay).
2013	John Ridley	12 Years a Slave			First African-American writer to have written a film that won Best Picture.
2016	Barry Jenkins Tarell Alvin McCraney	Moonlight	In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue by McCraney		First film to have two African-American screenwriters nominated and to win. Second film to have African-American writers that won Best Picture. First time two films written by African-Americans were nominated in the same year.
	August Wilson	Fences	Fences by Wilson		First African-American writer to receive a posthumous nomination in a writing category. First time two films written by African-Americans were nominated in the same year.
	2017	Virgil Williams Dee Rees	Mudbound	Mudbound by Hillary Jordan		Rees is the second Black woman to be nominated for a Screenplay Oscar.^[8] Rees is the first black woman to be nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay.
2018	Kevin Willmott Spike Lee	BlacKkKlansman	Black Klansman by Ron Stallworth		Shared with Charlie Wachtel & David Rabinowitz. Lee is the first Black screenwriter to be nominated for both Best Original and Best Adapted Screenplay. Lee is the first Black filmmaker to win a competitive Oscar after receiving an Honorary Academy Award. Along with Barry Jenkins nominated the same year for If Beale Street Could Talk, Lee and Jenkins are the first two black people to be nominated for screenwriting twice.
	Barry Jenkins	If Beale Street Could Talk	If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin		First Black person to have two nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay. Along with Spike Lee nominated the same year for BlacKkKlansman, Jenkins and Lee are the first two Black people to be nominated for screenwriting twice.
2020	Kemp Powers	One Night in Miami...	One Night in Miami by Powers
2023	Cord Jefferson	American Fiction	Erasure by Percival Everett

Best Writing (Original Screenplay)

Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay
Year	Name	Film	Status	Milestone / Notes
1972	Suzanne de Passe	Lady Sings the Blues		Shared nomination with co-writers Chris Clark and Terence McCloy. First African-American nominee for Best Writing (Original Screenplay). First African-American nominated for screenwriting, along with Lonne Elder III for Sounder nominated the same year for Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay). First African-American woman nominated for screenwriting. First African-American woman nominated for Best Writing (Original Screenplay).
1989	Spike Lee	Do the Right Thing		First African-American man nominated for Best Writing (Original Screenplay).
1991	John Singleton	Boyz n the Hood		Youngest person to be nominated in this category (age 24).
2017	Jordan Peele	Get Out		First African-American to win Best Writing (Original Screenplay). First African-American to be nominated for and to win Best Writing (Original Screenplay) for a debut film.
2020	Shaka King Kenny Lucas Keith Lucas	Judas and the Black Messiah		First film to have multiple African-American screenwriters nominated for Best Original Screenplay. Shared with Will Berson.

Special awards

Special Awards
Year	Name	Award
1947	James Baskett	Academy Special Award, for his characterization of Uncle Remus in Song of the South. First Black man to receive an Oscar.
1995	Quincy Jones	Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award
2001	Sidney Poitier	Academy Honorary Award, "for his extraordinary performances and unique presence on the screen and for representing the industry with dignity, style and intelligence".
2011	James Earl Jones	Academy Honorary Award, "for his legacy of consistent excellence and uncommon versatility"
	Oprah Winfrey	Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award
2014	Harry Belafonte
2015	Spike Lee	Academy Honorary Award, "filmmaker, educator, motivator, iconoclast, artist […] [and] a champion of independent film and an inspiration to young filmmakers"
2017		Academy Honorary Award, “A resolutely independent and influential film pioneer who has chronicled the lives of Black Americans with eloquence and insight.”
2018	Cicely Tyson	Academy Honorary Award, "Whose unforgettable performances and personal integrity have inspired generations of filmmakers, actors and audiences"
2020	Tyler Perry	Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award
2021	Danny Glover
	Samuel L. Jackson	Academy Honorary Award, "Sam Jackson is a cultural icon whose dynamic work has resonated across decades and generations and audiences worldwide"
2022	Euzhan Palcy	Academy Honorary Award, "a pioneering filmmaker whose groundbreaking significance in international cinema is cemented in film history"
2023	Angela Bassett	Academy Honorary Award, "Across her decades-long career, Angela Bassett has continued to deliver transcendent performances that set new standards in acting"

Nominees by decade (acting categories)

Decade	1930s	1940s	1950s	1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s	2000s	2010s	2020s
Lead Actor	0	0	1	1	2	2	4	8	5	5
Lead Actress	0	0	1	0	3	1	1	2	4	2
Supp. Actor	0	0	0	1	0	6	4	5	3	5
Supp. Actress	1	1	1	1	0	3	2	7	8	5
Total	1	1	3	3	5	12	11	22	20	17

See also

• Cheryl Boone Isaacs, first African-American president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (but not herself an Oscar winner or nominee)
• List of African Academy Award winners and nominees
• List of African-American Tony nominees and winners
• List of Asian Academy Award winners and nominees
• List of Black Golden Globe Award winners and nominees
• List of Hispanic-American (U.S.) Academy Award winners and nominees
• List of indigenous Academy Award winners and nominees

References

General sources

• Web site: Winners and Nominees . . September 21, 2011.

Notes and References

1. News: Cohn . Gabe . 2023-03-12 . Oscars 2023 Winners: The Complete List . en-US . The New York Times . 2023-03-13 . 0362-4331.
2. News: Saad . Nardine . February 24, 2019 . Oscars 2019: 'Black Panther's' Ruth E. Carter makes the record book with costume design win . Los Angeles Times .
3. Web site: 2023-03-13 . Ruth Carter makes history as the first Black woman to take home two Academy Awards . 2023-03-13 . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
4. Web site: 93rd Academy Awards of Merit . Oscars.org . March 21, 2021 . 20 . January 12, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200502044737/https://oscars.org/sites/oscars/files/93aa_rules.pdf . May 2, 2020 . live .
5. News: Giardina . Carolyn . April 25, 2021 . Oscars: Mia Neal and Jamika Wilson Make History With Makeup and Hairstyling Win . Hollywood Reporter .
6. News: Cohn . Gabe . 2023-03-12 . Oscars 2023 Winners: The Complete List . en-US . The New York Times . 2023-03-13 . 0362-4331.
7. News: Cohn . Gabe . 2023-03-12 . Oscars 2023 Winners: The Complete List . en-US . The New York Times . 2023-03-13 . 0362-4331.
8. Web site: Rachel Withers . The 2018 Oscar nominees include these historic firsts . January 23, 2018 . Slate.com . January 24, 2018.