10 Greatest Acting Oscar Winners of the 2010s, Ranked

The 10 Greatest Acting Oscar Winners of the 2010s, Ranked Image via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures By  Diego Pineda Pacheco Published 2 minutes ago Diego Pineda has been a devout storyteller his whole life. He has self-published a fantasy novel and a book of short stories, and is actively working on publishing his second novel. A lifelong fan of watching movies and talking about them endlessly, he writes reviews and analyses on his Instagram page dedicated to cinema, and occasionally on his blog. His favorite filmmakers are Andrei Tarkovsky and Charlie Chaplin. He loves modern Mexican cinema and thinks it's tragically underappreciated. Other interests of Diego's include reading, gaming, roller coasters, writing reviews on his Letterboxd account (username: DPP_reviews), and going down rabbit holes of whatever topic he's interested in at any given point. Sign in to your Collider account Add Us On Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

The 2010s were an exceptional decade for cinema, marked by unprecedented technological advances; the dominance of nostalgia-based blockbusters; and intensely personal films dealing with complex, timely themes. The decade also saw the release of films with some truly exceptional acting, and the best of these performances were able to make their way to an Oscar victory.

But, of course, not all Oscar-winning performances are made equal. The 2010s had a grand total of forty acting Oscar wins, and from those forty, it's relatively easy to pin down the ten most exceptional ones. These are some of the biggest standout performances of the 21st century, pieces of acting that perfectly demonstrate how transformational and naturalistic cinematic acting during this decade tended to be.

10 Olivia Colman — 'The Favourite' (2018)

Olivia Colman wears a royal crown and grand dress and looks serious in The Favourite.Image via Searchlight Pictures

The dark satire The Favourite departs from what seems like one of the most "normal" premises in Yorgos Lanthimos' filmography: a royal drama about Queen Anne and the two women competing for her favor. However, this is still every bit as absurdist and exquisitely bizarre as Lanthimos' fans would expect, bolstered by a trio of masterful performances by Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz.

It was Colman, who was definitely the underdog during the 2018-19 Oscars race, who ended up winning the Oscar. She's absolutely phenomenal as Queen Anne, depicting her as a larger-than-life force of nature who screams and screeches with a level of nuance and subtlety not often seen in performances like this. It's a "go big or go home" kind of acting that still nails the layeredness that naturally comes with a role like this.

9 J.K. Simmons — 'Whiplash' (2014)

Image via Sony Pictures Classics

Damien Chazelle made his feature film debut with Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench, but it was his sophomore feature, Whiplash (based on a short film he made in 2013) that really put him on everyone's radar. It's one of the most perfect movies of the 2010s, an incredibly intense psychological drama that stands tall above most films about artistic obsession.Sometimes, there are performances so humongous that they become the entire foundation upon which a movie is built. J.K. Simmons' commanding turn as Terence Fletcher, the rather unorthodox maestro of the Shaffer Conservatory jazz band, is one such performance. Simmons' portrayal of the loud, ruthless, foul-mouthed Fletcher makes Whiplash what it is, providing the film's strongest moments a considerable portion of their intensity.

8 Daniel Day-Lewis — 'Lincoln' (2012)

Daniel Day-Lewis as Abraham Lincoln working in his office in Lincoln.Image via DreamWorks Pictures

Seeing as the film industry is an ever-changing business and art form, there are few universal truths in Hollywood that truly hold. One such truth is that if a movie stars Daniel Day-Lewis, even if the film itself isn't a masterpiece, it will have Day-Lewis offer one of the greatest performances of that year. Steven Spielberg's Lincoln, one of the most realistic Civil War movies ever, is no exception.

Day-Lewis's transformation into Abraham Lincoln is the definition of chameleonic. Describing it as eerily accurate would be incredibly reductionist: The actor truly disappears into the role, capturing Lincoln's complex humanity and making him feel truly alive, rather than just like a historical figure. It's precisely the kind of performance that a movie like Lincoln needed, so the actor's victory was entirely deserved.

7 Matthew McConaughey — 'Dallas Buyers Club' (2013)

Dallas Buyers Club Matthew McConaugheyImage via Focus Features

From around 2010 to around 2014, Hollywood went through one of its most important eras of the 21st century: the McConaissance. From True Detective to Interstellar to—of course—his Oscar-winning turn in Dallas Buyers Club, Matthew McConaughey successfully distanced himself from his rom-com heartthrob persona and proved that he had what it takes to be a serious actor.

Purely for McConaughey's performance, Dallas Buyers Club is one of the most essential films of 2013, which might have been the single best year for Oscar-winning performances of the entire 2010s. It's not just about the admirable physical transformation: McConaughey embodies Ron Woodroof's journey with equal parts vulnerability, grit, and humor, turning in what might be the most complex performance he's ever delivered.

6 Lupita Nyong'o — '12 Years a Slave' (2013)

Image via Entertainment One

Purely for how emotionally harrowing it is, 12 Years a Slave could reasonably be counted among the most intense Best Picture Oscar winners ever. Much of that intensity comes from its excellent performances, delivered by one of the best cast ensembles of any movie of the 2010s. One actress in particular delivered a piece of acting so immensely powerful that it single-handedly made her an Oscar-winning star: Lupita Nyong'o.

This is a perfect example of an Oscar-worthy supporting turn: Nyong'o isn't in 12 Years a Slave much, but whatever time she does have on screen, she absolutely hijacks. Her performance is absolutely visceral and incredibly committed, with her having some of the most gut-wrenching scenes in the entire movie. Full of raw honesty and heart-shattering pathos, it's some of the best supporting acting of the decade.

5 Viola Davis — 'Fences' (2016)

Image via Paramount Pictures

Whether Viola Davis should have campaigned in the Lead category for Fences is up for debate, but what's undeniable is that her performance in this powerful drama based on an August Wilson play is one of unparalleled power and believability. Her Oscar victory marked the first time that an actor won a Tony and an Oscar for playing the same character since Joel Grey's Oscar win for Cabaret, all the way back in 1973.

A tour de force full of subdued pain and sacrifice that finally explode in one of the best-acted scenes in film history.

It's undoubtedly one of the best Oscar-winning performances of the 21st century, a tour de force full of subdued pain and sacrifice that finally explode in one of the best-acted scenes in film history—everyone who has seen Fences knows the one. It helps that the character of Rose is so well-written, but it's Davis who makes her emotional journey the thematic and emotional heart of Fences.

4 Frances McDormand — 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri' (2017)

Frances McDormand as Mildred Hayes, standing by a billboard and looking sad in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, MissouriImage via Searchlight Pictures

After becoming one of the best acting Oscar-winners of the '90s in 1997 with Fargo, it took Frances McDormand over 20 years to earn a second Oscar for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. The film is as brilliantly satirical and darkly humorous as one might expect from a Martin McDonagh picture, but far more serious than the rest of his work. McDormand strikes that balance to perfection as well.

McDormand plays a stubborn, furious, grieving mother with a level of rawness and honesty that you don't often see. But under that abrasive exterior lies a deeply sympathetic and dramatic heart full of pain, and McDormand more than succeeds at granting her character the interiority needed to reflect that complexity. It's a late-career-defining piece of masterful acting.

3 Cate Blanchett — 'Blue Jasmine' (2013)

Cate Blanchett as Jasmine French smiling at someone off-camera in Blue JasmineImage via Sony Pictures Classics

Cementing 2013 as the quintessential year for Oscar-winning acting, the year's best Academy Award recipient was Cate Blanchett, whose performance in Blue Jasmine is perhaps the best piece of acting of any 21st-century Woody Allen film. It's a resounding character study with a protagonist that's both unlikable and sympathetic, a complicated juxtaposition that Blanchett nails like the pro she is.

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It's one of the greatest Best Actress wins of the 21st century, a layered work of actorial art where Blanchett flawlessly embodies her character's rapid mental and emotional descent without ever losing the glamor that characterizes her. She shifts seamlessly from high-class poise to a sweaty crumbling state over the course of one of Allen's best modern efforts.

2 Casey Affleck — 'Manchester by the Sea' (2016)

Casey Affleck as Lee Chandler looking intently ahead in Manchester by the Sea.Image via Amazon Studios

Watching Manchester by the Sea without a box of tissues by one's side is bound to be a very wet activity. This gut-wrenching drama is one of the most heartbreaking of the 21st century, and it relies largely on one of the greatest Best Actor winners of the 21st century: Casey Affleck, whose portrayal of a grieving father is one of the most raw and believable depictions of trauma in any movie of the 2010s.

Affleck disappears into the role, playing Lee's depression, regret, and pain with such believability that it's hard not to place oneself in his shoes—and it's emotionally devastating to do so. But it's not the big emotional scenes that make this performance so powerful. Rather, it's the quieter, more subdued moments where the audience sees Lee struggling to hold back his suffering and find hope that make this such a tour de force.

1 Natalie Portman — 'Black Swan' (2010)

Image via Fox Searchlight Pictures

It was never really a competition: Natalie Portman's career-best turn in Darren Aronofsky's surreal psychological horror gem Black Swan is not only the greatest Oscar-winning performance of the 2010s, but one of the greatest of all time. Physically, psychologically, and emotionally transformative, Portman's performance as an obsessed ballerina is a piece of acting as captivating as it is chilling.

If Black Swan is one of the best character studies of the 21st century, it's largely because Portman's leading presence is such a strong anchor. Her portrayal of Nina's obsession and fragility provides one of the most rounded and lived-in characters of any 2010s horror film, and the way Portman explores her character's layered journey is a spectacle to behold.

Like Follow Followed Black Swan R Drama Thriller Horror Release Date December 3, 2010 Runtime 109 minutes Director Darren Aronofsky Writers Andres Heinz, John J. McLaughlin, Mark Heyman

Cast

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• Natalie Portman Nina Sayers / The Swan Queen
• Mila Kunis Lily / The Black Swan

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