Best Actor in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film Award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film. Superlatives Note: Dustin Hoffman's total of eight nominations, includes his 1968 Most Promising Newcomer nomination for The Graduate. Winners and nominees From 1952 to 1967, there were two Best Actor awards: one for a British actor and another for a foreign actor. In 1968, the two prizes of British and Foreign actor were combined to create a single Best Actor award. Its current title, for Best Actor in a Leading Role, has been used since 1995. 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Note: All nominations for multiple performances in a single year from the 1950s to the 1970s count as one nomination. The two mentions for Michael Caine (1983) and Anthony Hopkins (1993) count as two separate nominations. Multiple nominations 7 nominations Michael Caine Daniel Day-Lewis Peter Finch Dustin Hoffman Jack Lemmon Laurence Olivier 6 nominations Marlon Brando Leonardo DiCaprio Albert Finney Sidney Poitier 5 nominations Dirk Bogarde Robert De Niro Anthony Hopkins Spencer Tracy 4 nominations Ralph Fiennes Tom Hanks Jack Hawkins Trevor Howard Kenneth More Paul Newman Peter Sellers 3 nominations Woody Allen Richard Attenborough Richard Burton George Clooney Tom Courtenay Russell Crowe Alec Guinness Gene Hackman Burt Lancaster Fredric March Walter Matthau Viggo Mortensen Jack Nicholson Gary Oldman Sean Penn Joaquin Phoenix Kevin Spacey 2 nominations Christian Bale Alan Bates Warren Beatty Jamie Bell Jean-Paul Belmondo Jeff Bridges Jim Broadbent Nicolas Cage Sean Connery Bradley Cooper Benedict Cumberbatch Tony Curtis James Dean Gérard Depardieu Johnny Depp Michael Douglas Richard Dreyfuss Michael Fassbender Colin Firth Henry Fonda Pierre Fresnay Jake Gyllenhaal Jean Gabin John Gielgud George Hamilton Laurence Harvey William Holden Bob Hoskins Charles Laughton Ian McKellen John Mills Yves Montand James Mason Marcello Mastroianni Al Pacino Gregory Peck Brad Pitt Jonathan Pryce Anthony Quinn Michael Redgrave Eddie Redmayne Ralph Richardson Geoffrey Rush George C. Scott Martin Sheen Takashi Shimura Frank Sinatra Rod Steiger James Stewart Robin Williams Nicol Williamson Donald Wolfit Multiple wins 5 wins Peter Finch 4 wins Daniel Day-Lewis 3 wins Marlon Brando Anthony Hopkins Jack Lemmon 2 wins Dirk Bogarde Colin Firth Dustin Hoffman Burt Lancaster Marcello Mastroianni Jack Nicholson Rod Steiger See also Academy Award for Best Actor Critics' Choice Movie Award for