34 Actors Who Were Oscar-Nominated for Playing Real Musicians & Singers
Two actresses have been nominated for portraying the same legendary singer.
MAESTRO Jason McDonald /© Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection
With his Oscar nomination, announced Tuesday (Jan. 23), for playing composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein in Maestro, Bradley Cooper joins an impressive list of actors who have been nominated for playing real-life music personalities.
Cooper is the first of these actors who is nominated for a film that he or she directed. Cooper not only starred in and directed Maestro, he also co-produced it and co-wrote the screenplay (with Josh Singer).
Twelve actors have won Oscars for playing real-life music personalities. The first to do so was James Cagney for playing entertainer George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942). The most recent was Jessica Chastain for playing televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker (who frequently sang on her TV programs and released at least 15 studio albums) in The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021).
We’ll find out if Cooper joins their ranks when the 96th Academy Awards are presented on March 10.
The first woman to win an Oscar for playing a real-life music personality was Barbra Streisand for playing comedian, singer and actress Fanny Brice in Funny Girl (1968).
Two actresses have been nominated for best actress for portraying legendary jazz singer Billie Holiday: Diana Ross was nominated for the 1972 film Lady Sings the Blues; Andra Day for the 2020 film The United States vs. Billie Holiday.
Here are 34 actors who have been nominated for Oscars for playing real-life music personalities. The list doesn’t include fictional characters inspired by real-life stars, such as Rose in The Rose (1979), which was loosely based on the life of Janis Joplin, or Effie White in Dreamgirls (2006), which drew on the life story of Florence Ballard of The Supremes.
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Bradley Cooper as Leonard Bernstein in Maestro (2023)
Cooper is nominated for best actor for playing the famed composer/conductor in his own film, which is also nominated for best picture. Bernstein was in the third class of Kennedy Center Honors recipients in 1980. He amassed 16 Grammys and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1985.
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Austin Butler as Elvis Presley in Elvis (2022)
Butler was nominated for best actor for playing the king of rock and roll in Baz Luhrmann’s film, which was also nominated for best picture. Presley received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1971, was in the inaugural class of inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1998.
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Jessica Chastain as Tammy Faye Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021)
Image Credit: Daniel C. McFadden /© Searchlight Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection Chastain won best actress for playing the televangelist, singer and personality. In her acceptance speech, Chastain saluted Bakker for being a rare voice in the evangelical world calling for LGBTQ acceptance. “And in times like this I think of Tammy, and I’m inspired by her radical acts of love. … I’m inspired by her compassion and I see it as a guiding principle that leads us forward.”
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Andrew Garfield as Jonathan Larson in Tick, Tick…BOOM! (2021)
Garfield was nominated for best actor for playing the composer, lyricist and playwright who was best known for the musicals Rent and Tick, Tick… Boom!. Larson won a Pulitzer Prize and two Tonys for his work on Rent. His best-known song is “Seasons of Love,” which made the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2005. The movie Tick, Tick…BOOM! was directed by someone with a fair amount of Broadway experience in his own right, Lin-Manuel Miranda.
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Javier Bardem as Desi Arnaz in Being the Ricardos (2021)
Bardem was nominated for best actor for playing Arnaz. Though better-known as the executive producer and male lead on I Love Lucy, which all but invented the TV situation comedy as we know it, Arnaz was also a bandleader of note. Aaron Sorkin directed Being the Ricardos.
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Viola Davis as Ma Rainey in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020)
Davis was nominated for best actress for playing the pioneering blues singer, who was called the “Mother of the Blues” in her 1920s heyday. Rainey was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an early influence in 1990. Her best-known song is “See See Rider Blues,” which featured Louis Armstrong on cornet.
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Andra Day as Billie Holiday in The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2020)
Day was nominated for best actress for playing the legendary jazz singer, whose many hits included “What a Little Moonlight Can Do,” “Carelessly” and the historic, socially-relevant “Strange Fruit.” Holiday received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1987. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an early influence in 2000. Lee Daniels directed The United States vs. Billie Holiday.
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Leslie Odom, Jr. as Sam Cooke in One Night in Miami… (2020)
Odom was nominated for best supporting actor for his performance as the smooth R&B singer, whose many hits included “You Send Me,” “Chain Gang,” “Another Saturday Night” and “A Change Is Gonna Come.” Odom was also nominated for best original song for co-writing “Speak Now” for the film. Cooke was one of the inaugural inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame the following year, and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1999. Regina King directed One Night in Miami…, a fictionalized account of a meeting in February 1964 between Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke. It is the only film on this list that was directed by a woman.
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Renée Zellweger as Judy Garland in Judy (2019)
Image Credit: David Hindley/Courtesy of LD Entertainment/Roadside Attractions Zellweger won best actress for her performance of the beloved singer and actress, whose hits included “The Trolley Song,” “The Man That Got Away” and the immortal “Over the Rainbow.” Garland received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1997. She received a juvenile Oscar in 1940 but never won a competitive Oscar, a fact that Zellweger alluded to in her acceptance speech. “And though Judy Garland did not receive this honor in her time, I am certain that this moment is an extension of the celebration of her legacy that began on our film set. … Miss Garland, you were certainly among the heroes who unite and define us, and this is certainly for you.”
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Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
Malek won best actor for playing the Queen frontman, becoming the first person to win an Oscar for playing a rock star. The Brian Singer film was also nominated for best picture. Mercury, who wrote “We Are the Champions,” “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” and the classic that gave the film its title, was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003 along with the other members of Queen. Queen was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2018. Accepting his award, Malek saluted Mercury: “Listen, we made a film about a gay man, an immigrant, who lived his life just unapologetically himself.”
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Mahershala Ali as Don Shirley in Green Book (2018)
Ali won best supporting actor for playing the classical and jazz pianist and composer, and the Peter Farrelly film won for best picture. Accepting his award, Ali praised the man he played: “Trying to capture Dr. Shirley’s essence pushed me to my ends, which is a reflection of the person he was and the life that he lived.”
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Meryl Streep as Florence Foster Jenkins in Florence Foster Jenkins (2016)
Streep was nominated for best actress for playing the socialite and amateur soprano in this Stephen Frears film.
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Marion Cotillard as Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose (2007)
Cotillard won best actress for playing the cabaret singer, songwriter and actress, who co-wrote and recorded the timeless ballad that gave the film its title. Accepting her award, Cotillard said, in charmingly fractured English, “Thank you life, thank you love, and it is true, there is some angels in this city.”
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Reese Witherspoon as June Carter Cash in Walk the Line (2005)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox/courtesy Everett Collection Witherspoon won best actress for playing the country singer/songwriter, who teamed with her husband Johnny Cash to record such hits as “Jackson” and “If I Were a Carpenter.” Accepting her award, Witherspoon praised “this character who is a real woman who has dignity and honor and fear and courage.” James Mangold directed the film.
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Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash in Walk the Line (2005)
Phoenix was nominated for best actor for playing the country legend, whose many hits included “Folsom Prison Blues,” “I Walk the Line,” “Ring of Fire,” “A Boy Named Sue” and “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” In 1992, when Cash was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a dozen years after being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, he became the first double inductee in those two Halls. He received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1996 and a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1999.
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Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles in Ray (2004)
Foxx won best actor for playing the pop, R&B and jazz legend, whose many hits included “Georgia on My Mind,” “Hit the Road Jack” and “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” all of which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Charles is the only Black artist to date who has been inducted into both the Country Music and Rock and Roll Halls of Fame. He received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1986 and a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy the following year. Ray, directed by Taylor Hackford, was nominated for best picture. Accepting his award, Foxx saluted the ground-breaking artist he played: “Give it up for Ray Charles and his beautiful legacy. And thank you, Ray Charles, for living.”
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Meryl Streep as Roberta Guaspari in Music of the Heart (1999)
Streep was nominated for best actress for playing the violinist and music educator. This film was a real departure for its director, Wes Craven, best known for his work in the horror genre.
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Geoffrey Rush as David Helfgott in Shine (1996)
Rush won best actor for playing the Australian concert pianist, while the film was nominated for best picture. Accepting his award, Rush saluted “the unstoppable” Helfgott. “The front of my script said that this story was inspired by the events of your life. You truly are an inspiration,” he said.
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Angela Bassett as Tina Turner in What’s Love Got to Do With It (1993)
Image Credit: Buena Vista/courtesy Everett Collection Bassett was nominated for best actress for playing the R&B star-turned-rock icon. Ike & Tina, whose hits included “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine” and “Proud Mary,” were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. Tina, whose solo hits include the classic that gave this film its title, was inducted as a solo artist in 2021. Bassett did the honors at the induction ceremony. Turner received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2005 and a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2018.
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Laurence Fishburne as Ike Turner in What’s Love Got to Do With It (1993)
Fishburne was nominated for best actor for playing the rock n’ roll pioneer whose legacy has been tainted by his abusive treatment of his wife.
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Jessica Lange as Patsy Cline in Sweet Dreams (1985)
Lange was nominated for best actress for playing the country star, whose hits included “Walkin’ After Midnight,” “I Fall to Pieces” and “Crazy.” Cline was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1973. She received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1995.
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Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Amadeus (1984)
Hulce was nominated for best actor for playing the renowned 18th-century classical composer; the Milos Forman film won for best picture.
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F. Murray Abraham as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus (1984)
Abraham won best actor for playing the Italian composer and conductor. The Milos Forman film won for best picture. Accepting his award, Abraham thanked his co-star. “There’s only one thing that’s missing for me tonight and that is to have Tom Hulce standing by my side.”
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Sissy Spacek as Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980)
Image Credit: Universal/courtesy Everett Collection Spacek won best actress for playing the country legend, whose many hits included “Don’t Come Home a Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind),” “One’s on the Way,” and the classic that gave the film its title. Lynn was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008. She received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2010. The Michael Apted film was nominated for best picture. Accepting her award, Spacek made note of the camaraderie on the set: “I started to work on Coal Miner’s Daughter with a bunch of strangers and I finished working on Coal Miner’s Daughter with a bunch of friends.”
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Gary Busey as Buddy Holly in The Buddy Holly Story (1978)
Busey was the first actor to be nominated for playing a rock star. Holly, one of the inaugural inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, was also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame that year and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1997. The bespectacled singer/songwriter’s hits included “That’ll Be the Day,” “Peggy Sue” and “Oh, Boy!”
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Diana Ross as Billie Holiday in Lady Sings the Blues (1972)
Ross was nominated for best actress for playing the jazz legend. The double-LP soundtrack album topped the Billboard 200 for two weeks in April 1973. Ross did the honors when Holiday was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an early influence in 2000.
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Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl (1968)
Image Credit: Courtesy of Everett Collection Streisand won best actress for playing the vaudeville star, and the William Wyler film was nominated for best picture. Brice’s hits included “My Man,” “Second Hand Rose” and “I’d Rather Be Blue.” Accepting her award, Streisand alluded to the fact that the musical took a long time to get off the ground. “Sitting there tonight I was thinking that the first script of Funny Girl was written when I was only 11 years old, and thank God it took so long to get it right, you know,” she said.
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Daniel Massey as Noël Coward in Star! (1968)
Massey was nominated for best supporting actor for playing the English playwright, entertainer and wit. Coward’s most famous song is “Mad Dogs and Englishmen,” which provided the title of Joe Cocker’s celebrated 1970 album and tour. Coward was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1988. Robert Wise, the director of The Sound of Music, also helmed this film. He’s the only director with two films on the list.
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Julie Andrews as Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music (1965)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved. Courtesy: Everett Collection. Andrews was nominated for best actress for playing the matriarch of the Trapp Family Singers, and the Robert Wise film won for best picture. The soundtrack album logged 109 weeks in the top 10 on the Billboard 200, including two weeks at No. 1.
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Eleanor Parker as Marjorie Lawrence in Interrupted Melody (1955)
Parker was nominated for best actress for playing the Australian soprano.
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Susan Hayward as Jane Froman in With a Song in My Heart (1952)
Hayward landed a best actress nod for playing the singer and actress, whose hits included “I’ll Walk Alone” and “I Believe.”
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Larry Parks as Al Jolson in The Jolson Story (1946)
Parks was nominated for best actor for playing the entertainer. Jolson’s many hits included “Rock-A-Bye Your Baby With a Dixie Melody,” “Swanee,” “April Showers,” “California, Here I Come” and “When the Red, Red Robin Comes Bob, Bob Bobbin’ Along.”
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Cornel Wilde as Frédéric Chopin in A Song to Remember (1945)
Wilde was nominated for best actor for playing the classical composer and pianist.
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James Cagney as George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
Cagney won best actor for playing the famed entertainer and composer. The Michael Curtiz film was nominated for best picture. Accepting his award, Cagney allowed, “I might say it was a pretty good part.” Cohan, the writer of such classics as “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” “Give My Regards to Broadway” and “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” was in the inaugural class of Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees in 1970.
Link to the source article – https://www.billboard.com/lists/actors-playing-musicians-oscar-nominations-singers/
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