The rare Oscars distinction shared by Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, and Sylvester Stallone
Even though they’re separated by generations, existed in completely separate eras, and made wildly different films on either side of the camera, there’s one major unifying factor that links Charlie Chaplin with Orson Welles and Sylvester Stallone.
The trio are iconic and enduring figures in Hollywood history, albeit in completely opposing ways. Chaplin was a revolutionary and a pioneer who became one of the biggest stars on the planet and stayed that way for decades, with his creation of the Tramp character yielding one of the industry’s most indelible figures.
Welles exploded onto the scene as the cinematic wunderkind behind Citizen Kane before struggling to maintain that momentum in the decades to come, but realistically, there was only one way to go but down after he announced his arrival by crafting one of the greatest motion pictures that’s ever been made.
As for Stallone, he persevered with Rocky and steered it towards massive success after refusing to let it be made with anyone other than himself in the title role before segueing into becoming one of action cinema’s figureheads. Even in his 70s, he’s as buff as ever and more than happy to pick up a gun and mow down an army of faceless goons, something that couldn’t be said of Chaplin or Welles.
The three of them found plenty of favour as both actors and filmmakers, which is where their shared distinction comes in. Stallone has never won an Academy Award, Welles only snagged a solitary statue, and Chaplin never took home a competitive prize, although he did win two honorary Oscars for his overall contributions to the business.
Narrowing the focus even further, what connects them specifically is 1928’s silent romantic comedy The Circus, the aforementioned Citizen Kane, and the boxing film which spawned a lucrative franchise that’s still going strong today. Thanks to their Oscars recognition, Chaplin, Welles, and Stallone are the only performers in the ceremony’s history to have been nominated for ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Original Screenplay’ for the same movie.
The Circus received nominations for ‘Best Actor’, ‘Best Picture’, and ‘Best Original Screenplay’, but its only win was a special statue handed over by the Academy. Citizen Kane didn’t win ‘Best Director’ or ‘Best Actor’, but Welles did share ‘Best Original Screenplay’ with Herman J. Mankiewicz.
Even though Rocky was named ‘Best Picture’ and John G. Avildsen took home ‘Best Director’, Stallone technically fared the worst out of the three when he didn’t collect any individual gongs, despite making the shortlist for ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Original Screenplay’.
It’s rare company to be in, and while actors who also direct are a regular occurrence, making the ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Original Screenplay’ shortlist in the same year is a much trickier thing to accomplish.
