TheOscaris among the greatest honors a film artist can achieve, an acknowledgment by one's peers of a job well done. But there is added resonance when someone dies before they receive this accolade, leaving their loved ones to accept the award on their behalf.
The first posthumous Oscar was awarded in 1940 to writer Sidney Howard for Best Adapted Screenplay forGone With the Wind. Since then, more than 60 individuals have received nominations after their deaths, with 16 posthumous wins in the competitive categories. This year, a new winner could be added to this list, withOne Battle After AnotherproducerAdam Somner, who died in 2024, nominated for Best Picture.
Here's a look at every Oscar winner who was honored posthumously.
Sidney Howard,Gone With the Wind(1939)
Screenwriter Sidney Howard became the first posthumous Oscar winner at the 1940 ceremony for his work on the historical epicGone With the Wind.The script had a long and tortured adaptation process from Margaret Mitchell's bestselling novel, with producer David O. Selznick frequently interfering, but Howard was the only one ultimately given credit. He died at the age of 48 in a horrific accident with a tractor, several months beforeGone With the Windeven premiered in late 1939.
Victor Young,Around the World in 80 Days(1956)
The next posthumous Oscar winner didn't come for nearly two decades. It went to composer Victor Young for his work on the score for 1956'sAround the World in 80 Days,which also won Best Picture. Though Young was only 57 when he died, he was nominated 22 times previous to his posthumous win, marking him the record holder (at the time) for most nominations prior to an Oscar victory.
William A. Horning,Gigi(1958)
William A. Horning was a legendary early art director, earning one of his first Oscar nominations for his work with Cedric Gibbons onThe Wizard of Oz(1939).But he was first honored for his work posthumously (and long after Gibbons had retired) on lavish MGM musicalGigi(1958), which follows a young courtesan-in-training as she falls for a dashing playboy.Gigiheld the record for sweeping its nominations, winning across all nine categories it had an Oscar nod in, untilThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the Kingtopped it in 2003.
William A. Horning,Ben-Hur(1959)
Though he never won while he was alive, Horning bears the distinct honor of being the only person to ever win posthumous Oscars consecutively. He followed up hisGigiwin with a victory for another Oscar record-holder, Biblical epicBen-Hur(1959). Horning was nominated twice in 1960, also receiving a nod for his work onAlfred HitchcockclassicNorth by Northwest.
Sam Zimbalist,Ben-Hur(1959)
In addition to art director William A. Horning, producer Sam Zimbalist was another posthumous Oscar winner forBen-Hur.Zimbalist, who began his career as an editor, was a producer known for his work on epics such asKing Solomon's Mines(1950) andQuo Vadis(1951), both of which were nominated for Best Picture. But his only Best Picture victory came forBen-Hur,and he had tragically died of a heart attack while on set in Rome during the movie's production. To this day, he remains the only posthumous winner for Best Picture.
Eric Orbom,Spartacus(1960)
The mid-century was dominated by Biblical and sword-and-sandal epics, and one of the last truly great ones was 1960'sSpartacus.It's known now as a film key in breaking the chokehold of the Hollywood Blacklist, withKirk Douglaspublicly announcing Dalton Trumbo as the screenwriter. Ultimately, it won four Oscars, including a posthumous win for art director Eric Orbom.
Walt Disney,Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day(1968)
As founder of one of Hollywood's most influential studios,Walt Disneyfittingly holds the record for most Oscar nominations (59) and wins (26, but only 22 are competitive rather than honorary). So, it stands to reason he would've eked out one last posthumous victory. Though he died in 1966, due to the long production time of animated pieces, he won for Best Short Subject (Cartoon) with 1968'sWinnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day.It was the final animated short he produced, and it remains one of the most beloved of the Disney Winnie the Pooh properties.
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Raymond Rasch and Larry Russell,Limelight(1972)
Limelightis a bit of an oddity in that it was originally released in 1952, but it was not screened in Los Angeles until 1972, due to a boycott stemming from starCharlie Chaplin's alleged communist sympathies. It won Chaplin his only competitive Oscar, and it also secured his collaborators on the score, Raymond Rasch and Larry Russell, posthumous wins for Best Music (Scoring).
Peter Finch,Network(1976)
Though many expected James Dean to become the first posthumous winner in an acting category (he was nominated for bothEast of EdenandGiantin the mid-'50s), it took nearly two more decades — and the honor went to Australian Peter Finch. In 1977, Finch won for his portrayal of unhinged TV news anchor Howard Beale in the darkly satirical (and sadly prescient)Network.Finch was in the middle of a promotional tour for the film when he died from a heart attack at the age of 60.
Geoffrey Unsworth,Tess(1980)
This adaptation of Thomas Hardy'sTess of the d'Urbervillesearned celebrated cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth his second Oscar (his first came forCabaret). Working on classics like2001: A Space OdysseyandSuperman,Unsworth earned a reputation for success across a broad range of genres. He died of a heart attack while filmingTess(and consequently shared this posthumous win with Ghislain Cloquet). Unsworth had the only posthumous win in the entire 1980s, coming in at the start of the decade.
Howard Ashman,Beauty and the Beast(1991)
Lyricist and playwrightHoward Ashmanis often credited for helping to spark the Disney animation Renaissance of the early-1990s. Working with composerAlan Menken, the two wrote unforgettable songs for films likeThe Little Mermaid(1989) andBeauty and the Beast(1991),but Ashman also took a direct role in the storytelling.
Ashman died from complications from HIV/AIDS shortly after completing work onBeauty and the Beast(the film is dedicated to him). His partner, Bill Lauch, accepted the Oscar alongside Alan Menken for the film's title song. Ashman had previously won for Best Original Song with Menken forThe Little Mermaid's "Under the Sea." He holds the record for most posthumous Oscar nominations, earning three Best Original Song nominations forBeauty and the Beastand a final nomination the next year forAladdin.
Thomas C. Goodwin,Educating Peter(1992)
Producer Thomas C. Goodwin won a posthumous Oscar for this short-subject documentary.Educating Peterfollows Peter Gwazdauskas, a student with Down syndrome, as he is included in a standard third-grade classroom in Blacksburg, Va. The documentary went on to have a sequel,Graduating Peter, which follows Gwazdauskas through middle school and high school, but Godwin was not involved.
Conrad Hall,Road to Perdition(2002)
Legendary cinematographer Conrad Hall shot some of the most iconic films ever made, includingIn Cold Blood(1967),Cool Hand Luke(1967),andButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid(1969).He won two Oscars for Best Cinematography while he was living, one forButch Cassidyand the other forAmerican Beauty(1999).His final film, 2002'sRoad to Perdition,is both dedicated to him and earned him his final Oscar posthumously. His son, Conrad W. Hall — also a cinematographer — accepted the award on his behalf.
Heath Ledger,The Dark Knight(2008)
Heath Ledgerbecame only the second actor ever to win an Oscar posthumously in 2009 (coincidentally, both he and the other winner, Peter Finch, hailed from Australia). His no-holds-barred take on iconic Batman villain the Joker was a fan favorite from the moment the film was released. But the performance was also a testament to Ledger's talent and ability to lose himself in a role, making him the first actor to receive Oscar recognition for a superhero movie. Ledger's family accepted the award on his behalf.
Gil Friesen,20 Feet From Stardom(2013)
Gil Friesen left an immeasurable impact on the music industry as the longtime chairman of A&M Records, and he used those connections and curiosity to produce the documentary20 Feet From Stardomabout the lives of back-up singers. Friesen died by the time the film was released and won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature in 2014.
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