Jennifer Lawrence and the Youngest To...
Thursday, January 16, 2014 at 11:32AM With her nomination for American Hustle this morning, Jennifer Lawrence has become the youngest actor of either gender to receive her third Oscar nomination. She is only 23. Or, if you'd like to get technical about it, 23 years 5 months and 2 days. Whether you think her work in American Hustle is great or terrible (and factions have formed on both sides) or you have a more nuanced perspective on what does and doesn't work about it, there is just no denying her screen dynamism. That's what they use to call "It".
Here's how the stats break down and which legends Jennifer is toppling. Did the performers with similar records flame out early? Read on...
Jennnifer Lawrence won't let it die - she's breaking Oscar records
YOUNGEST TO FIRST NOMINATION
actor, either category
Justin Henry for Kramer vs. Kramer (1979, Supporting). 8
runner up: Jackie Cooper for Skippy (1931, Lead). 9
actress, either category
Quvenzhane Wallis for Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012, Lead). 9
runner up: Tatum O'Neal for Paper Moon (1973, Supporting... though it's really a lead role) 10
All four of these childhood nominations were solitary, and the actors were never in the race again... though Tatum's acting fame continued through her teenage years and Jackie worked for decades. Quvenhzané is still very young so who knows...
YOUNGEST TO SECOND NOMINATION
actor, either category
1. Sal Mineo by the age of 22 with Rebel Without a Cause (1955, Supporting) and Exodus (1960, Supporting)
2. Mickey Rooney by the age of 23 with Babes in Arms (1939, Lead) and Human Comedy (1943, Lead). By this point in his career he'd also received a special Juvenile Oscar.
3. Jeff Bridges by the age of 24 with The Last Picture Show (1971, Supporting) and Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974, Supporting)
4. James Dean by the age of 26* for East of Eden (1955, Lead) and Giant (1956, Lead). In today's Oscar Category Fraud circus show, that Giant role would be demoted to a supporting since Rock Hudson was also nominated as lead. Dean's age at the time of these nominations is projected age as he never made it to 26. Both of his nominations were posthumous. Though he lived to see fame (East of Eden opened in April 1955) he died on September 30th of that same year just a month before Rebel Without a Cause was due in theaters. He was twenty-four.
actress, either category
1. Angela Lansbury by the age of 20
2. Kate Winslet by the age of 22
3. Jennifer Lawrence by the age of 22 (Winter's Bone & Silver Linings Playbook)
4. [TIE] Natalie Wood, Winona Ryder, Julia Roberts all received one supporting and one lead nomination by the age of 23... the age Jennifer Lawrence is now.
5. Joan Fontaine by the age of 24 (two leads)
YOUNGEST TO THIRD NOMINATION
actor, either category
1. Marlon Brando was 29 when he received his third consecutive nomination for Julius Caesar (1953). Pre thirty-something nominations are not common for men in leading roles so Brando's meteoric Oscar rise was remarkable.
2. Leonardo DiCaprio was 32 when he received his third nomination for Blood Diamond (2006), a strange-ish nomination given that he was so much better in the Best Picture of 2006 The Departed. He's nominated again this year for The Wolf of Wall Street ending a seven year drought.
3. Montgomery Clift was 33 when he received his third nomination for From Here To Eternity (1953)
4. Jeff Bridges was 34 when he received his third nomination (first in lead) for Star Man (1984)
5. Al Pacino was also 34 (but almost 35) when he received his third nomination for The Godfather Part Two (1974). Both Pacino and Bridges would have to wait a LONG time for an actual Oscar win.
Natalie Wood in 1963, the year of her last nominated role (Love With the Proper Stranger). Many stars with massive Oscar success in their early 20s flame out with Oscar.
actress, either category
1. Jennifer Lawrence is 23 and enjoying her 3 nomination for American Hustle (2013)
2. Teresa Wright was 24 when she received her 2nd & 3rd nominations, simultaneously, for Pride of the Yankees and Mrs Miniver (1942). She won but it was her last time at the races.
3. Natalie Wood was 25 when she received her third (and last) nomination for Love With the Proper Stranger (1963)
4 Joan Fontaine, Jennifer Jones, and Kate Winslet were all 26 when they received their 3rd nominations and only Fontaine was on her last race. So Lawrence better hope she's got more in common with these last three names than with Wood, Fontaine or Wright.
YOUNGEST TO FOURTH NOMINATION
Oh I shouldn't keep going... but this is interesting. All of the "youngest to" for fourth nominations are from people who Oscar was just obsessed -- they all achieved it with consecutive nominations -- Marlon Brando is definitely the youngest among men, achieving it by 30 on his fourth consecutive nomination (which he won) for On The Waterfront. He was, for a couple of decades at least, the youngest man ever to win the leading prize. Among women,Jennifer Jones who holds the record at 27 for her fourth consecutive nomination with Elizabeth Taylor trailing at 28 for her fourth consecutive for her winning role in BUtterfield 8 (she turned 29 a month before the ceremony)
But a more pressing question might be whether Jennifer Lawrence can win again on March 2nd?
The Golden Globes say yes but winning consecutive Oscars is not easy to do. Back-to-back acting Oscars have happened only five times previously in Oscar history: Luise Rainer (36/37), Spencer Tracy (37/28), Katharine Hepburn (67/68), Jason Robards (76/77) and Tom Hanks (93/94). But if she wins again at 23 what would there be left to do in her career?
YOUNGEST TO SECOND WIN
actor, either category
1. Robert De Niro was 37 when he won his Best Actor statue for Raging Bull (1980). He'd previously won a supporting trophy for The Godfather Part 2 (1974)
2. Tom Hanks was 38 when he won his second of back-to-back Leading trophies for Forrest Gump (1994)
3. Spencer Tracy was a month or so away from 39 when he won his second for Boys Town (1938)
actress, either category
1. Luise Rainer was 28 for The Good Earth's win (1937)
2. Jodie Foster was 29 when she won her second leading trophy for Silence of the Lambs (1991). [Tangent: Twenty-nine years of age is statistically the most common age for actresses to win leading trophies. By comparison only one man has ever won at 29 (Adrien Brody, The Pianist)]
3. Hilary Swank was 30 when she won leading lady #2 for Million Dollar Baby (2004)
4. Bette Davis was a month or so away from 31 for her second Best actress trophy for Jezebel (1938). She never won again despite her two greatest performances (Eve, Baby Jane) still a long time ahead of her.
YOUNGEST (AND ONLY) TO THIRD WINS
Walter Brennan was the first actor to win three Oscars and still the youngest to ever do it
actor, either category
1. Walter Brennan was 46 when he won his third Supporting Actor Oscar for The Westerner (1940). He won all three within a five year period!
2. Daniel Day-Lewis was 55 when he won his third Best Actor Trophy (he's the only three time lead winner among men) for Lincoln last year.
3. Jack Nicholson was 60 when he won this second Best Actor trophy for As Good as it Gets (1997) but it was his third win since he had a supporting win under his belt, too.
actress, either category
1. Ingrid Bergman was 59 when she won her third for Murder on the Orient Express (1974)
2. Katharine Hepburn was 61 when she tied with Barbra Streisand for Best Actress 1968
3. Meryl Streep was 62 for The Iron Lady (2011)
YOUNGEST (AND ONLY) TO FOURTH WIN
Katharine Hepburn's Oscars as the National Portrait Gallery
KATHARINE HEPBURN
The all time Oscar great reached this historic feat and she did it one month away from her 75th birthday. This will undoubtedly remain an unbeatable record... but maybe it's not "untieable"? La Streep is only 64 and DDL is only 56. Just sayin'.... If you're interested in Kate the Great please be sure to tune into our weekly Wednesday series "A Year with Kate" in which Anne Marie is watching all 52 of Hepburn's movies, chronologically. She's already covered A Bill of Divorcement and Christopher Strong and on the 15th, the Oscar journey begins with Kate's first win for Morning Glory.
Do you believe that it's too much too soon for Jennifer Lawrence? What do you make of these Oscar stats?
Reader Comments (52)
I'll break these records, and I'll become the youngest actor when I'd reach my fourth nomination (and I won't stop there... I'll have much more nominations and I plan onto win at least 4, all deserved... :P). They've told me I'm too ugly for being an actor, but one day you'll see me there... :)
DDL is the only one likely to tie Hepburn's Super-Record (four wins in Leading) anytime soon. Streep would have to win two more for that, which I'm not seeing. I can see her getting one more (in lead or supporting) and tying the other record, though.
As for Lawrence, I have the sickening feeling that she or her spiritual mother Roberts is going to take home the prize this year. Someone tell me I'm wrong.
maybe it's too much too soon, but I really like her so I don't care. (and it's not like it's her fault, she's not acting 'thirsty' for awards)
and I thought "poor leo" was hated by the academy!
I think for her own sake a second win might cause such a massive backlash against her, and I can't imagine she'll campaign too hard for the win this year so who knows. I like her as a movie star and thought her performance in Winter's Bone was brilliant, but she's been rewarded enough at this point.
marcelo -- his fans are just VERY sensitive. They're kind of like Cate Blanchett and Meryl Streep fans. ;) Leo has been well honored over the years. 4 nominations aint nothing to bitch about. and bitching that he hasn't won yet is strange because that's not how it works for men, really. They make them wait until they're older. It's a very specific gender thing.
What about Winona Ryder with "Little Women" and "the Age of Innocence" in 94 and 95?
Jennifer Lawrence must've been a saint in a past life because between the accolades and the fact that she is the first woman to top the box office in decades -- it's just a perfect storm for this girl.
But maybe we were all just really craving a movie star... it had been awhile since we've had a true star. They seemed to be churned out constantly in the 90s and then slowed a lot in the aughts.
Streep will win again if she lives long enough. I predict that she'll have a nomination drought and then will get nominated again for a touching swan song. Bingo.
If Jennifer Lawrence wins again, she's going to bring back the Oscar curse. There would be a backlash.
yeah, you forgot winona. she was 24, too.
She's the New Renee Zellweger.
the smackdown... :(
(I know you're busy, nathaniel, but just don't forget about it... it's the most expected one! lol)
WINONA FOREVER!!!!
And Julia Roberts? Wasn't she 23 years old when she got her second nomination?
bonobo & dave -- updated. they were in my calculations and i forgot to include. oopsie.
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If anyone from "American Hustle" is taking home gold I gotta think its Lawrence, and I don't have the numbers but it seems to be betting against the odds that a film with nominations in every acting category goes without a win.
"But maybe we were all just really craving a movie star..." THIS, like Bia said.
And to get one who's also very talented is something we should be celebrating instead of bitching about. Besides, with two more Hunger Games in the next 2 years, both of which will be massive, this talk of backlash is pure nonsense/envy/irrational hatred.
lol off-topic, sorta, but I just heard meryl actually mentioning 'streep fatigue' (everybody must have already seen it)... in this day and age, yes, the possibility of backlash is bigger because there's just too much talk everywhere, but also celebrities are more self-aware... so maybe j-law will be fine.
I think Lawrence is a fantastic actress, and her work in American Hustle was her best yet. I love how she also isn't afraid to work at elevating mainstream fare, like the Hunger Games movies and the X-Men franchise reboot (I am salivating at the prospects of her and Fassy as the villainous duo in the next movie).
She has yet to take a misstep. Any backlash at this point is simply envy or entertainment media-fatigue. My hope for her is that she begins to take the Kidman-route and seek work with even more respected auteurs in addition to Hollywood mainstream movies.
@Jose - I think the backlash talk, and I'm certainly as guilty of that as many others, comes from two directions. One comes from her fans, who are in one way or another steeling themselves they anticipate something coming, and with the way celebrity culture works, it's not unwarranted -- sort of like an immunization shot. The other comes from her detractors, who can't wait to see her crash and burn and want to join in on the fun when "everyone" else is sick of her.
I'm a fan, if that counts for anything, and I was deep into her fandom until I started seeing comments ranging from former fans that go from "she's overrated and untalented" (expected) to "she is the sign of everything wrong with white feminism and white Hollywood power structures" (has an underlying point behind the hyperbole) to "she's racist because she stole the award from Lupita and Quvenzhane and ageist because she stole it from Emmanuelle" (!!!!!) is so strange. I've never seen invective like it before, so I mention backlash just to ward off the prospect a little bit.
Just let Lawrence win so the backlash can come and then we get a break from her and she'll go away like Anne Hathaway after everyone got sick of her.
@Jessica - we're guaranteed at least 2 more JLaw-heavy years with X-Men and the final two Hunger Games movies. Going away is not quite an option for her under those contractual obligations. Kudos to her for disappearing in between movies and press obligations though. She makes it a point to avoid the limelight unless it's cast on her,which is a plus.
"she's racist because she stole the award from Lupita and Quvenzhane and ageist because she stole it from Emmanuelle" (!!!!!) is so strange."
This is just so... I mean, what? I'm not sure in which category I am. I have been a fan of hers since the Winter's Bone and Like Crazy days, even more so when she made me really like the Hunger Games movies (I hadn't read the books and I expected the movies to be just stupid YA garble). But I haven't been able to like either of her performance for DOR and I did get annoyed that she won last year over over Riva, Chastain and Watts. I think I would equally annoyed this year if she won for another performance that to me, felt so gimmicky and acting with a capital A all the time. Especially when Lupita gave such a beautiful performance.
But I don't see myself hating on her on the long haul, and I also think people who believe she will flame out are underestimating the strength of the Hunger Games franchise and how her start power/box office draw will keep getting her cast in more prestige pieces for a while yet.
Like Jennifer Lawrence very much, but would hate a second win right now. I've said all that follows before, but I'll say it again: she doesn't even want it, she seemed so embarassed accepting her Globe. It was such an awkward moment. It seems like the sort of crazy thing the Globes do but Oscar doesn't - but I thought that about Christoph Waltz for Django, too...
Love all the facts and figures.
I sincerely hope that Jennifer Lawrence doesn't win this go round. She's an extremely talented girl but the backlash with be immense and will do more harm to her career than any possible good. I wasn't crazy about her win last year only because I didn't think her role was deserving, her work in Winter's Bone though truly was award worthy. She should have a long career ahead but then the same was true of Teresa Wright another very skillful actress who after her initial bust of glory seemed to be tarnished by the early acclaim and was ignored from that point on. Hope she continues in a positive vain with noms and if deserving a future win just not the now ridiculous over acknowledgement that is being foisted on Meryl Streep.
I kinda think she's longing for the post Hunger Games fame so maybe some "backlash" will help expedite that? But honestly I don't think even winning a 2nd back to back Oscar is gonna hurt her. Enough people really love her. She's not gonna be like Swank or Zellweger and disappear anytime soon. She has so much lined up to keep her in the conversation for many years to come.
This type of sudden, perenial awards magnetism virtually always works against a person, especially when he or she is so young. I appreciated her work in "Winter's Bone," didn't mind her "Silver Linings Playbook" sweep (though I don't *love* the performance), and think she's just about the best thing in "American Hustle," but I changed the channel immediately after she won the Golden Globe on Sunday night.
When there are so many talented, capable actors out there, it seems down right crimimal that a minor fraction gets this kind of attention. Of course, this is not her fault, per se, but...you know...
I'm about 90% sure she's going to win again this year. I don't have much of a problem with this, but it makes Emmanuelle Riva's loss last year seem even worse. Maybe there's a way the Academy could give her an Oscar this year under the stipulation that they retroactively change their decision from last year to Emmanuelle Riva?
My point is that I don't mind the fact that Jennifer Lawrence is about to win for American Hustle, but I still mind that she won for Silver Linings Playbook. This should be her FIRST win coming up.
The only thing Lawrence needs to avoid, is working with Russell again for the next decade. It would look lazy. She has a HUGE career ahead of her if she wants it. She needs to work with other auteur directors, possibly do some stage (or at least attempt it). She is incredibly talented.
And calling her racist or ageist because someone else voted for her to win an award is...........just ridiculous.
I just wanted to point out that Dean's actual Lead nomination for Giant is category fraud, as he's only in the film for about 30 minutes and the story is not about him at all.
Nathan, I believe Jennifer Jones was 26 when she got her third nomination (for Best Actress for Love Letters, 1945.)
In today's Oscar Category Fraud circus show, that Giant role would be demoted to a supporting since Rock Hudson was also nominated as lead.
Nitpicking on my part, but Jett Rink was a supporting character in Giant. I believe Dean was nominated in the lead category because his name was above the title.
Didn't you forget kate hepburn winning back to back oscars for guess who's
coming to dinner & lion in winter 68/69?
All these industry plaudits can only hurt jennifer...how can she possibly
Top what she accomplished so young? I think get career will take a dive
From which she may recover but in a subtle sort of comeback...it's just too
Much too soon for superstar darling Jennifer....
Angela Lansbury was actually 20 when she received her 2nd nomination. The the 1946 Oscars happened in March (for which she was nominated for Dorian Grey) and she was born in Oct. of '25.
Jennifer Lawrence shouldn't be nominated for one damn thing except for "Winter's Bone." All her other nods are bullshit.
Hmm. I'm very disappointed in this topic and headline on this of all days from TFE. Although it's clear, Nathaniel, you've done some research, it ultimately feels like a cyber gateway to the ever prevalent sport of internet-bashing some young actor or actress, and today it's Jennifer Lawrence's turn--again. Words like "wish she would just go away" are disturbing on so many levels. The hate on the internet for creative types (as well as the crazy, rabid fandom) is frightening.
Heading back to The Dissolve, to read a review of Jack Ryan, and why Danny Elfman's score for PeeWee's Big Adventure worked.
The determination of whether or not a role is considered Leading or Supporting is made solely by the members, not by any arbitrary rule. The membership is polled for who they think should be nominated and the members individually indicate if they think the part should be nominated for Leading or Supporting. When the votes are tallied, the category that has the most votes is the one that the candidate is nominated for.
Just because Rock Hudson was nominated for Leading doesn't mean no other man in the same movie couldn't also be nominated for Leading. Barry Fitzgerald in 1944's Going My Way had him up against Bing Crosby in the same film. In an odd situation, Fitzgerald was nominated for both Leading and Supporting for his role in that film. Crosby took Leading, Fitzgerald won Supporting. It was because of that situation that the only rule regarding multiple categories for the same piece of work was introduced: You can be nominated for either Leading or Supporting, not both.
But again, the determination of which one you are nominated for is made by the ones doing the nominating. There is no rule to determine what constitutes a Leading role compared to a Supporting role nor any rule that prevents two people from the same film being nominated in the same category. It all depends upon how the nomination ballot plays out. If more members nominate you for Supporting than for Leading, then that's what you're nominated for.
It's not THAT strange that people have been bitching about Leo being snubbed. He's been in 7 nominated pictures and gotten rave reviews for so many roles.
Julia Roberts' Oscar record now matches Holly Hunter's, (2 actress; 2 supporting) nominations (1 Actress Award) apiece. Julia Roberts has also surpassed Kathy Bates and Anjelica Huston, by virtue of receiving a fourth nomination, very elusive for the other two. They however will likely match McDormand's record, (1 actress; 3 supporting) nominations.
What bothers me about a Lawrence victory isn't anything having to do with being over rewarded by the Academy, but everything to do with the denial of 12 Years a Slave's Lupita Nyong'o. If Nyong'o loses it'll be a huge fuck you.
1. Marlon Brando was 29 when he received his third consecutive nomination for Viva Zapata (1953).
Didn't Zapata come out in '52? Are you talking about his nomination for Juliuis Caesar in '53?
Is Luise Rainer currently the youngest to win 2 oscars in any category? Also the 1st to win 2 consec maybe? She'll hold her 1st & youngest to win 2 lead oscars this year at any rate.
It would be remarkable for J Law to win 2 oscars by such a young age, but it would be too much I fear for her to sustain... partly based on the fact that the 2 performances were quite fine but hardly revelatory. Her 3 oscar noms are certainly impressive and show her range - all quite different.
"It's not THAT strange that people have been bitching about Leo being snubbed. He's been in 7 nominated pictures and gotten rave reviews for so many roles."
Three non-Scorsese nominated pictures (and many other attempts at Oscarbait). And I'm not so sure about the rave reviews. Has he ever won a major critics award? Many of his fans have even lamented that he was "snubbed" for J. Edgar. That wasn't a "snub" - it was a bad performance in a worse movie.
Honestly, these types of hypermaniacal fanbases do not do celebrities any favors. I can't stand Leo, but part of that has to do with the attitude of his fans, who behave as though he's the greatest actor of his generation.
That said, part of me just wants him to win an Oscar already so we don't have to hear about it anymore. Though I'm sure his fans will be on to #2 in no time...
Yo.
You've all seen enough recent Oscars to know that they're going to spreeeead the love. Remember all the great movies in 2003? Everybody got a piece. Here's how it will go down:
Picture: 12 Years a Slave
Director: Gravity
Actor: Nebraska
Actress: Blue Jasmine
Supp Actor: Dallas Buyer's Club
Supp Actress: American Hustle
Screenplay: Her
And in a year this rich, who could argue with that?
xoxo,
Kiki
Lawrence is on top of the world right now, but of course the question is whether or not she'll maintain longevity. She's only 23. She's achieving so much in such a short time span. How can she keep topping herself? This is the trick (which Kate Winslet has mastered): don't TRY to top yourself. Don't sit in a room going "I have to make sure this year is even better than the previous one". Simply let the success come and embrace it without forgetting your artistic intentions. That's what Winslet did, and that's what Lawrence seems to be doing. Lawrence isn't trying to top herself; she's just going with the flow and continuing to choose work that interests her.
Peaking early in your career is a double edged sword. Some let it get to their heads and think they'll always be on top so they put in less effort as artists; others say to themselves "Ok, things are great today but I might be unemployed tomorrow". Winslet had the latter mentality. She peaked early, smartly avoided over exposure, and just focused on doing the work she loved. She didn't try to capitalize on her success. She peaked early, smartly avoided overexposure, and continues to maintain her longevity & relevancy.
Lawrence sounds like she knows what she's doing. I think she'll follow in Winslet's footsteps. The thing is it'll be much, much harder for Lawrence to avoid overexposure because she has to deal with the social media boom that didn't exist when Winslet blew up. All Lawrence has to do is drop her earring or something and she'll be in our faces and across headlines a minute later. I have a feeling she'll disappear (by choice) after The Hunger Games finishes. I can definitely see her living quietly and taking a break; she even said she wanted to do that.
I bet Streep wins two more times to surpass Kate Hepburn.
Could someone please give Luise Rainer a part in a movie so she can win an Oscar at 105 and forever rule the trivia section of Oscarology madness?
Joe -ooops. you're right. fixing now.
Carmen -- i love this idea so much
Jennifer was great in American Hustle ! Terrible ? Don't jump on the hate band wagon because she's talented and popular. For those complaining about her SHE'S NOT GIVING HERSELF awards ok so calm down and let's be honest their professionals I rather trust their judgement.
JENNIFER LAWRENCE ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE SO GET USE TO SEEING HER FACE EVERYWHERE HAHAHA ....
J Law broke NATALIE WOOD's record that she kept for 50 years since her last nomination on Love With The Proper Stranger ( with Steve Mcqueen ) back in 1963 ...Natalie had a really great chance on winning an OSCAR for her performance in Splendor In The Grace but she diden't win , Sophia Loren won it and in the classic teenage hit Rebel Without A Cause ( with James Dean and Sal Mineo ) too ..... Congrats for Jennifer on the record ☺👑