# Legacy Oscar

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{{Use American English|date=December 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2025}}
{{Distinguish|Academy Honorary Award}}'''Legacy Oscar''' is a term referring to an [Academy Award](/source/Academy_Award) perceived to have been given in recognition of the recipient's performances in prior films, rather than for the performance specifically nominated. The implication is that the winning performance was inferior to the recipient's prior performances and would not have won in its own right.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web |last=Wenzel |first=Zac |date=April 3, 2023 |title=The Problem with Legacy Oscars |url=https://movieweb.com/the-problems-with-legacy-oscars/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404080524/https://movieweb.com/the-problems-with-legacy-oscars/ |archive-date=April 4, 2023 |access-date=June 20, 2023 |website=[MovieWeb](/source/MovieWeb) |publisher=[Valnet](/source/Valnet)}}</ref>

== Examples ==
*[Best Picture](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Picture) for [Cecil B. DeMille](/source/Cecil_B._DeMille) for ''[The Greatest Show on Earth](/source/The_Greatest_Show_on_Earth_(film))'' (1952).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Every Oscar Best Picture winner |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/oscars/every-oscar-best-picture-winner/ss-BBIMzaf#image=26 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180301150726/http://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/oscars/every-oscar-best-picture-winner/ss-BBIMzaf |archive-date=March 1, 2018 |access-date=December 17, 2025 |website=[MSN](/source/MSN)}}</ref>
* [Best Actor](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Actor) for [Jack Lemmon](/source/Jack_Lemmon) in ''[Save the Tiger](/source/Save_the_Tiger)'' (1973); he defeated [Al Pacino](/source/Al_Pacino) (''[Serpico](/source/Serpico_(film))''), [Marlon Brando](/source/Marlon_Brando) (''[Last Tango in Paris](/source/Last_Tango_in_Paris)'') and [Robert Redford](/source/Robert_Redford) (''[The Sting](/source/The_Sting)''), all of which are considered among the greatest Hollywood performances<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pogue |first=Andrew |date=June 11, 2025 |title=1 of the Best Hollywood Actors of All Time Won the Wrong Oscar (& It's Still Frustrating 51 Years Later) |url=https://www.cbr.com/best-hollywood-actor-jack-lemmon-won-wrong-oscar/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250720170450/https://www.cbr.com/best-hollywood-actor-jack-lemmon-won-wrong-oscar/ |archive-date=July 20, 2025 |access-date=December 17, 2025 |website=[Comic Book Resources](/source/Comic_Book_Resources) |publisher=[Valnet](/source/Valnet)}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Khan |first=Tariq |date=May 2, 2024 |title=Oscars rewind: 5 reasons why Jack Lemmon won Best Actor for ‘Save the Tiger’ |url=https://www.goldderby.com/film/2024/oscar-jack-lemmon-save-the-tiger/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251217234415/https://www.goldderby.com/film/2024/oscar-jack-lemmon-save-the-tiger/ |archive-date=December 17, 2025 |access-date=December 17, 2025 |website=[Gold Derby](/source/Gold_Derby) |publisher=[Penske Media Corporation](/source/Penske_Media_Corporation)}}</ref>
* [Best Actor](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Actor) for [Paul Newman](/source/Paul_Newman) in ''[The Color of Money](/source/The_Color_of_Money)'' (1987)<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pacheco |first=Diego Pineda |date=March 2, 2024 |title=10 Most Notorious Career Wins at the Oscars |url=https://collider.com/oscars-notorious-best-actor-wins/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240309051231/https://collider.com/oscars-notorious-best-actor-wins/ |archive-date=March 9, 2024 |access-date=March 11, 2024 |website=[Collider](/source/Collider_(website)) |publisher=[Valnet](/source/Valnet)}}</ref>
* Best Actress for [Jessica Tandy](/source/Jessica_Tandy) in ''[Driving Miss Daisy](/source/Driving_Miss_Daisy)'' (1989)<ref name="auto1"/><ref name="auto"/>
* Best Actor for [Al Pacino](/source/Al_Pacino) in ''[Scent of a Woman](/source/Scent_of_a_Woman_(1992_film))'' (1993)<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web |last=Shutt |first=Mike |date=April 30, 2023 |title=The 1975 Best Actor Oscar Race Was Incredible, So How Did Art Carney End Up Winning? |url=https://www.slashfilm.com/1267262/1975-best-actor-oscar-race-incredible-how-art-carney-winning/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250812220914/https://www.slashfilm.com/1267262/1975-best-actor-oscar-race-incredible-how-art-carney-winning/ |archive-date=August 12, 2025 |access-date=June 20, 2023 |website=[/Film](/source/%2FFilm) |publisher=[Static Media](/source/Static_Media)}}</ref>
* [Best Actress](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Actress) for [Kate Winslet](/source/Kate_Winslet) in ''[The Reader](/source/The_Reader_(2008_film))'' (2009)<ref name="auto2"/>
* Best Actor for [Gary Oldman](/source/Gary_Oldman) in ''[Darkest Hour](/source/Darkest_Hour_(film))'' (2018)<ref name="auto1"/><ref name="auto">{{Cite web |last=Bramesco |first=Charles |date=March 13, 2023 |title=A brief history of the "legacy Oscar" and its winners |url=https://lwlies.com/articles/legacy-oscar-winners-jamie-lee-curtis/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250829190607/https://lwlies.com/incoming/legacy-oscar-winners-jamie-lee-curtis |archive-date=August 29, 2025 |access-date=June 20, 2023 |website=[Little White Lies](/source/Little_White_Lies_(magazine)) |issn=2516-0559 |oclc=1101713234}}</ref>
* Best Actress for [Jessica Chastain](/source/Jessica_Chastain) in ''[The Eyes of Tammy Faye](/source/The_Eyes_of_Tammy_Faye_(2021_film))'' (2022)<ref name="auto1"/><ref name="auto"/>
*[Best Supporting Actress](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Supporting_Actress) for [Jamie Lee Curtis](/source/Jamie_Lee_Curtis) in ''[Everything Everywhere All at Once](/source/Everything_Everywhere_All_at_Once)'' (2023)<ref name="auto" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Shutt |first=Mike |date=March 12, 2023 |title=We Love Jamie Lee Curtis, But Banshees of Inisherin Star Kerry Condon Should Have Won an Oscar |url=https://www.slashfilm.com/1225577/banshees-of-inisherin-star-kerry-condon-should-have-won-best-supporting-actress/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241226032831/https://www.slashfilm.com/1225577/banshees-of-inisherin-star-kerry-condon-should-have-won-best-supporting-actress/ |archive-date=December 26, 2024 |access-date=June 20, 2023 |website=[/Film](/source/%2FFilm) |publisher=[Static Media](/source/Static_Media)}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Jones |first1=Marcus |last2=Thompson |first2=Anne |date=March 10, 2023 |title=2023 Oscars: Best Supporting Actress Predictions |url=https://www.indiewire.com/feature/2023-oscars-best-supporting-actress-predictions-1234750080/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230620204235/https://www.indiewire.com/feature/2023-oscars-best-supporting-actress-predictions-1234750080/ |archive-date=June 20, 2023 |access-date=June 20, 2023 |website=[IndieWire](/source/IndieWire) |publisher=[Penske Media Corporation](/source/Penske_Media_Corporation)}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{wiktionary|legacy Oscar}}

Category:Academy Awards
Category:Culture of Hollywood, Los Angeles
Category:Film and video terminology

{{Vocab-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Legacy Oscar](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_Oscar) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_Oscar?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.