We can't believe some of these huge names have never won an Oscar for their acting efforts. From Hollywood Icons to the film industry's most famous faces at the moment, we've rounded up the actors with the most Oscar nominations who haven't got a win.
Sir Ian McKellen
Can you believe Ian McKellen has never won an Oscar? He was nominated for an award in 1999 for Gods and Monsters and in 2002 for Lord of the Rings, both for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, but neither won him the award.
Harrison Ford
He might be a household name for his roles in the Indiana Jones movies and Star Wars films, but he's only been nominated for one Oscar back in 1986 for Witness which he missed out on.
Salma Hayek
Salma's career highlight is probably her role in Frida, but Nicole Kidman pipped her to the post and she missed out.
Robert Downey Jr
Can you believe acting legend Robert Downey Jr has never won an Academy Award. Despite being nominated twice for his roles in Chaplin and Tropic Thunder, he didn't come away with a win.
Ralph Fiennes
Despite starring in some of the most iconic movies of all time including Schindler's List, he never won an award for his role. He was also nominated for The English Patient too which he lost out on too.
Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle was a hugely successful actor in the 80s and 90s and had many Oscar nominations for Dangerous Liaisons (1988), The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) and Love Field (1992) but sadly, she never won.
The Hollywood icons who never won an Oscar
They may be some of the biggest names in Hollywood, but they all missed out on that gold statuette. Can you believe they didn't win?!
Alfred Hitchcock
The master of suspense kept us on the edge of our seats for more than 50 years, and he must have been on tenterhooks wondering if the Academy would ever recognise his genius. After five nominations and no wins between 1941 and 1961 he was eventually awarded the Irving G Thalberg Memorial Award in 1967 – the only mystery is what took them so long...
Related: Janet Leigh: Psycho, her turbulent marriage to Tony Curtis and more
Natalie Wood
Her first Oscar nod came when Natalie was 16, for her performance in Rebel Without A Cause – but she lost out to Jo Van Fleet in East of Eden. Incredibly, although we all remember her as coquettish Maria in West Side Story – a film that won 10 Oscars in 1961. Natalie was only in the running for Best Actress that year because of another film Splendour In the Grass. She was overlooked in favour of Sophia Loren and two years later missed out again to Patricia Neal.
Did you know... Christopher Plummer and Jessica Tandy are the oldest ever to receive the Best Actor or Actress awards. Both in their 80s when they won, recognition had been a long time coming!
Peter O’Toole
Famed for playing the full range, from kings to drunks, Peter has the unenviable distinction of being the actor most nominated for an Academy Award without a win. Eight times he was in the running, but each time was overlooked. His first nod in 1963 was for Lawrence of Arabia, but he was beaten by Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird. Then, despite his performances in Becket, The Lion in Winter and Goodbye, Mr Chips, he lost out to John Wayne, Cliff Robertson, Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro and Ben Kingsley. The Academy recognised his achievements with an honorary statuette in 2003, but he hesitated to accept saying, “I’m still in the game and might win the lovely bugger outright”.
Home-grown talent - Julie Walters
She’s a national treasure but despite two nominations our Julie has so far been overlooked by the Academy. Her first breakthrough role as a hairdresser turned university student in Educating Rita was hugely acclaimed but she lost out to Shirley McClaine. Then, 17 years later, her fabulous portrayal of Mrs Wilkinson in Billy Elliot still wasn’t enough to win her the gong. We’re just glad she’s got plenty of BAFTAs and an OBE to redress the balance.
Richard Burton
Regarded as one of the best actors of all time, Richard was almost as unlucky as Peter O’Toole with seven nominations and no wins. In 1964 the pair were both up for the Best Actor award for their roles in Becket but lost out to Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady. Perhaps Burton’s turbulent personal life was just too much for the Academy!
Marilyn Monroe
It’s hard to believe that the icon of her age not only never received an Oscar, but was never even nominated. No one would have look more at home shimmying up the red carpet blowing kisses. Oscar judges are notoriously sniffy, so maybe they found her too frivolous. We can only treasure unforgettable moments such as her billowing skirt scene in the Seven Year Itch and her innocently raising the temperature of Tony Curtis in Some Like It Hot.
Deborah Kerr
When she was finally given an honorary Oscar in 1993, Deborah had previously been overlooked six times. Stand-out performances in From Here to Eternity and The King and I hadn’t been enough to secure her a statuette. Glenn Close presented the award ‘In appreciation for a full career’s worth of elegant and beautifully crafted performances’. Glenn, more than anyone, must have understood how Deborah felt having also been nominated six times herself without a win.