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30 Prestigious Academy Awards Trivia and Answers

Reviewed by Stefanie, Author·Updated Jul 2025·4 min read

Test your knowledge of the most prestigious night in Hollywood and discover fascinating facts about the winners, nominees, and groundbreaking moments that have defined the Oscars! Our Academy Awards trivia questions will be great fun as you watch this prestigious ceremony.

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  1. 1Who are the only two individuals to have won both an Academy Award and a Nobel Prize?

  2. 2Which three films have won the most Academy Awards, each securing 11 Oscars?

  3. 3What are the "Big Five" Academy Awards categories, and how many films have won all five?

  4. 4Which country has won the most Oscars for Best International Feature Film (formerly Best Foreign Language Film)?

  5. 5Who is the only person named "Oscar" to have won an Oscar?

  6. 6Which film received the most Oscar nominations without winning Best Picture?

  7. 7Who holds the record for the most Oscar nominations without a win?

  8. 8What is the shortest performance to win an acting Oscar?

  9. 9Which film was the first to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature?

  10. 10Who is the youngest person to win an Academy Award in a competitive category?

  11. 11Who is the oldest person to win an Academy Award?

  12. 12Which film was the first non-English language movie to win Best Picture?

  13. 13Who was the first person born in the 21st century to win an Academy Award?

  14. 14Which film received the most Oscar nominations without winning any awards?

  15. 15Who is the only actor to win an Oscar for portraying a fictional Oscar nominee?

  16. 16Which film was the first to win the Best Picture Oscar?

  17. 17Who is the only person to win an Oscar for acting in a language other than English?

  18. 18Which film holds the record for the shortest runtime to win Best Picture?

  19. 19Who was the first African American woman to win an Academy Award?

  20. 20Which director has won the most Best Director Oscars?

  21. 21What venue has hosted the Oscars ceremonies since 2002?

  22. 22Which film told the story of six unemployed men who form a male striptease act and won an Oscar?

  23. 23Who is the only person to win an Oscar for Best Director for a film that was not nominated for Best Picture?

  24. 24Which film is the only X-rated movie to win Best Picture?

  25. 25Who was the first person to turn down an Academy Award?

  26. 26Which film was the first animated feature to be nominated for Best Picture?

  27. 27Who is the only actor to be nominated for an Oscar after their death?

  28. 28Which film won the first Oscar for Best Animated Feature?

  29. 29Who is the only person to win an Oscar for acting and also receive a Nobel Prize?

  30. 30Which film received the most Oscar nominations without winning any awards?

Answer Key

  1. 1. George Bernard Shaw and Bob DylanGeorge Bernard Shaw won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1925 and an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Pygmalion (1938). Bob Dylan received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2016 and won an Oscar for Best Original Song for Things Have Changed from Wonder Boys (2000).
  2. 2. Ben-Hur (1959), Titanic (1997), and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)Each of these films won 11 Academy Awards, holding the record for the most Oscars won by a single film.
  3. 3. Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay (Original or Adapted); three films have won all five.The three films to achieve this are It Happened One Night (1934), One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), and The Silence of the Lambs (1991).
  4. 4. ItalyItaly has won the most Oscars in this category, with a total of 14 wins.
  5. 5. Oscar Hammerstein IIHe won two Academy Awards for Best Original Song: one for The Last Time I Saw Paris from Lady Be Good (1941) and another for It Might as Well Be Spring from State Fair (1945).
  6. 6. They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969)This film received nine nominations but was not even nominated for Best Picture.
  7. 7. Diane Warren (13 nominations without a win, as of 2025)Previously, sound mixer Kevin O’Connell held this record with 20 nominations before finally winning for Hacksaw Ridge (2016).
  8. 8. Beatrice Straight in Network (1976)She won Best Supporting Actress with approximately five minutes and two seconds of screen time, making it the shortest performance to win an Academy Award.
  9. 9. Shrek (2001)The inaugural Best Animated Feature Oscar was awarded at the 74th Academy Awards in 2002.
  10. 10. Tatum O’NealShe won Best Supporting Actress at age 10 for Paper Moon (1973), making her the youngest Oscar winner in a competitive category.
  11. 11. Christopher PlummerAt age 82, Plummer won Best Supporting Actor for Beginners (2010).
  12. 12. ParasiteThe South Korean film Parasite (2019) made history as the first non-English language film to win Best Picture.
  13. 13. Billie EilishBorn in 2001, Billie Eilish won Best Original Song for "No Time to Die" in 2022.
  14. 14. The Turning Point and The Color PurpleBoth films received 11 nominations each and did not win any Oscars.
  15. 15. Maggie SmithShe won Best Supporting Actress for playing an Oscar loser in California Suite (1978).
  16. 16. WingsWings (1927) was the first film to win the Best Picture Oscar at the inaugural Academy Awards in 1929.
  17. 17. Roberto BenigniHe won Best Actor for Life Is Beautiful (1998), performing primarily in Italian.
  18. 18. MartyMarty (1955) has a runtime of 90 minutes, making it the shortest film to win Best Picture.
  19. 19. Hattie McDanielShe won Best Supporting Actress for her role in Gone with the Wind (1939).
  20. 20. John FordJohn Ford won four Best Director Oscars during his career.
  21. 21. Dolby TheatreThe Dolby Theatre in Hollywood has been the venue for the Oscars since 2002.
  22. 22. The Full MontyThe Full Monty (1997) is a British comedy about six unemployed men who form a male striptease act.
  23. 23. Lewis MilestoneHe won Best Director for Two Arabian Knights (1928), which was not nominated for Best Picture.
  24. 24. Midnight CowboyMidnight Cowboy (1969) is the only X-rated film to win the Best Picture Oscar.
  25. 25. George C. ScottHe declined the Best Actor Oscar for Patton (1970), citing a dislike for the voting process.
  26. 26. Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast (1991) was the first animated feature nominated for Best Picture.
  27. 27. Heath LedgerHe was posthumously nominated and won Best Supporting Actor for The Dark Knight (2008).
  28. 28. ShrekShrek (2001) won the inaugural Best Animated Feature award.
  29. 29. George Bernard ShawHe won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Pygmalion (1938) and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1925.
  30. 30. The Turning Point and The Color PurpleBoth films received 11 nominations each and did not win any Oscars.

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