Which actor has starred in the most ‘Best Picture’ nominees?
Getting nominated for an Oscar is a dream come true for many actors, but losing the award has got to be one of their biggest nightmares. Sure, they might smile and clap for the cameras, but there is no way that they aren’t quietly seething inside. For actors like Glenn Close and Amy Adams, this has become a frustrating routine. Both have been nominated multiple times (eight in Close’s case) but have never won.
Another layer of frustration, no doubt, is being an actor who repeatedly appears in films that are nominated for ‘Best Picture’ even if they themselves fail to get a corresponding nod. You might think that the actor who has appeared in the most ‘Best Picture’ nominees would be the one who earned the most acting nominations. Meryl Streep, for example, seems like a pretty safe bet. But when you think of the 21 nominations she has under her belt, she was the best thing about the vast majority of those films. Remember that Margaret Thatcher biopic The Iron Lady? Neither do most people.
It should come as no surprise, therefore, that the actor who actually does hold the distinction of being in the most ‘Best Picture’ nominees is someone whom many film viewers probably haven’t heard of – Ward Bond. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, he was a prolific character actor who appeared in over 250 films. Even if you don’t know him, you’ve probably seen him in something. He played the policeman, Burt, in It’s a Wonderful Life, a detective in The Maltese Falcon, and a priest in The Quiet Man, to name a few.
Between 1932 and 1956, Bond appeared in 13 ‘Best Picture’ nominees – Dead End, Gone with the Wind, The Grapes of Wrath, The Long Voyage Home, Sergeant York, The Maltese Falcon, It’s a Wonderful Life, The Quiet Man, Mister Roberts, and went uncredited in Arrowsmith, Lady for a Day, It Happened One Night, and You Can’t Take It with You. Had he lived past 57, he very well might have added to the tally.
It should be noted that Robert De Niro is just behind him, having starred in 12 ‘Best Picture’ nominees. Considering that he’s one of Martin Scorsese’s go-to collaborators, it’s reasonable to assume that he’ll reach – if not exceed – Bond’s record. Cate Blanchett is also in hot pursuit, with ten ‘Best Picture’ nominees to her name (not to mention two of her own Oscars).
Is Timothée Chalamet going to surpass Robert De Niro?
Perhaps you’ve heard of a young actor named Timothée Chalamet – Timmy, to those who don’t know him but would like to imagine that they do. He’s been tearing it up in Hollywood lately and, at the tender of 29, is already drawing comparisons to the some of the greatest actors of all time. He has also appeared in a staggering number of ‘Best Picture’ nominees.
At the time of writing, he’s appeared in only 22 feature films (compared to Bond’s 200-plus), and seven of them have been nominated for the top prize at the Oscars – Call Me by Your Name, Lady Bird, Little Women, Dune: Part I, Don’t Look Up, Dune: Part II, and A Complete Unknown. None of them took home the award, and he has yet to win one himself, but he came awfully close this year for his performance as Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown.
If Chalamet keeps up this unparalleled track record, he may well pass De Niro and Bond before he hits 40. Considering that he has openly declared his intention to “be one of the greats,” he may also have his sights set on the record for acting Oscars, though Katharine Hepburn really laid down the gauntlet when she nabbed her fourth.
