When movies’ highest achievement is given to the artists who left us too soon.

Everyone who has won a posthumous Oscar

When movies' highest achievement is given to the artists who left us too soon.

By Maureen Lee Lenker

Maureen Lee Lenker

Maureen Lee Lenker is a senior writer at ** with over nine years of experience. An award-winning journalist, she’s written for Turner Classic Movies, Ms. Magazine, The Hollywood Reporter, and more.

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March 16, 2026 8:00 a.m. ET

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Peter Finch as Howard Beale in 'Network'; Heath Ledger as the Joker in 'The Dark Knight'; Walt Disney in his office circa 1960. Credit:

Screen Archives/Getty; Stephen Vaughan/Warner Bros.; Screen Archives/Getty

The Oscar is among the greatest honors a film artist can achieve, an acknowledgment by one's peers of a job well done. But there is added resonance when someone dies before they receive this accolade, leaving their loved ones to accept the award on their behalf.

The first posthumous Oscar was awarded in 1940 to writer Sidney Howard for Best Adapted Screenplay for *Gone With the Wind*. Since then, more than 60 individuals have received nominations after their deaths, with 16 posthumous wins in the competitive categories. This year, a new winner could be added to this list, with *One Battle After Another* producer Adam Somner, who died in 2024, nominated for Best Picture.

Here's a look at every Oscar winner who was honored posthumously.

Sidney Howard, Gone With the Wind (1939)

Clark Gable as Rhett Butler and Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O'Hara in 'Gone With the Wind'. Everett Collection

Screenwriter Sidney Howard became the first posthumous Oscar winner at the 1940 ceremony for his work on the historical epic *Gone With the Wind**. *The script had a long and tortured adaptation process from Margaret Mitchell's bestselling novel, with producer David O. Selznick frequently interfering, but Howard was the only one ultimately given credit. He died at the age of 48 in a horrific accident with a tractor, several months before *Gone With the Wind *even premiered in late 1939.

Victor Young, Around the World in 80 Days (1956)

Basil Sydney as a Reform Club member, Trevor Howard as Denis Fallentin, Robert Morley as Gauthier Ralph, David Niven as Phileas Fogg, and Ronald Squire as a Reform Club member in 'Around the World in 80 Days'. Everett Collection

The next posthumous Oscar winner didn't come for nearly two decades. It went to composer Victor Young for his work on the score for 1956's *Around the World in 80 Days, *which also won Best Picture. Though Young was only 57 when he died, he was nominated 22 times previous to his posthumous win, marking him the record holder (at the time) for most nominations prior to an Oscar victory.

William A. Horning, Gigi (1958)

Louis Jourdan as Gaston Lachaille and Leslie Caron as Gigi in 'Gigi'. Everett Collection

William A. Horning was a legendary early art director, earning one of his first Oscar nominations for his work with Cedric Gibbons on *The Wizard of Oz* (1939)*. *But he was first honored for his work posthumously (and long after Gibbons had retired) on lavish MGM musical *Gigi *(1958), which follows a young courtesan-in-training as she falls for a dashing playboy. *Gigi *held the record for sweeping its nominations, winning across all nine categories it had an Oscar nod in, until *The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King *topped it in 2003.

William A. Horning, Ben-Hur (1959)

Charlton Heston as Judah Ben-Hur and Stephen Boyd as Messala in 'Ben-Hur'. Everett Collection

Though he never won while he was alive, Horning bears the distinct honor of being the only person to ever win posthumous Oscars consecutively. He followed up his *Gigi *win with a victory for another Oscar record-holder, Biblical epic *Ben-Hur *(1959). Horning was nominated twice in 1960, also receiving a nod for his work on Alfred Hitchcock classic *North by Northwest.*

Sam Zimbalist, Ben-Hur (1959)

Charlton Heston as Judah Ben-Hur in 'Ben-Hur'. Everett Collection

In addition to art director William A. Horning, producer Sam Zimbalist was another posthumous Oscar winner for *Ben-Hur. *Zimbalist, who began his career as an editor, was a producer known for his work on epics such as *King Solomon's Mines *(1950) and *Quo Vadis *(1951), both of which were nominated for Best Picture. But his only Best Picture victory came for *Ben-Hur, *and he had tragically died of a heart attack while on set in Rome during the movie's production. To this day, he remains the only posthumous winner for Best Picture.

Eric Orbom, Spartacus (1960)

Kirk Douglas as Spartacus in 'Spartacus'. Everett Collection

The mid-century was dominated by Biblical and sword-and-sandal epics, and one of the last truly great ones was 1960's *Spartacus. *It's known now as a film key in breaking the chokehold of the Hollywood Blacklist, with Kirk Douglas publicly announcing Dalton Trumbo as the screenwriter. Ultimately, it won four Oscars, including a posthumous win for art director Eric Orbom.

Walt Disney, Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968)

Walt Disney in his office circa 1960; 'Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day' movie poster.

Screen Archives/Getty; Courtesy Everett Collection

As founder of one of Hollywood's most influential studios, Walt Disney fittingly holds the record for most Oscar nominations (59) and wins (26, but only 22 are competitive rather than honorary). So, it stands to reason he would've eked out one last posthumous victory. Though he died in 1966, due to the long production time of animated pieces, he won for Best Short Subject (Cartoon) with 1968's *Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day. *It was the final animated short he produced, and it remains one of the most beloved of the Disney Winnie the Pooh properties.

Raymond Rasch and Larry Russell, Limelight (1972)

Charlie Chaplin as Calvero in 'Limelight'. Everett Collection

*Limelight *is a bit of an oddity in that it was originally released in 1952, but it was not screened in Los Angeles until 1972, due to a boycott stemming from star Charlie Chaplin's alleged communist sympathies. It won Chaplin his only competitive Oscar, and it also secured his collaborators on the score, Raymond Rasch and Larry Russell, posthumous wins for Best Music (Scoring).

Who has won the most Oscars? See the record-holders in major categories

Ranking the 30 greatest Best Actress-winning performances in Oscar history

Peter Finch, Network (1976)

Peter Finch as Howard Beale in 'Network'. Everett Collection

Though many expected James Dean to become the first posthumous winner in an acting category (he was nominated for both *East of Eden *and *Giant *in the mid-'50s), it took nearly two more decades — and the honor went to Australian Peter Finch. In 1977, Finch won for his portrayal of unhinged TV news anchor Howard Beale in the darkly satirical (and sadly prescient) *Network. *Finch was in the middle of a promotional tour for the film when he died from a heart attack at the age of 60.

Geoffrey Unsworth, Tess (1980)

Leigh Lawson as Alec Stokes-d'Urberville and Nastassja Kinski as Tess Durbeyfield in 'Tess'. Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

This adaptation of Thomas Hardy's *Tess of the d'Urbervilles *earned celebrated cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth his second Oscar (his first came for *Cabaret*). Working on classics like *2001: A Space Odyssey *and *Superman, *Unsworth earned a reputation for success across a broad range of genres. He died of a heart attack while filming *Tess *(and consequently shared this posthumous win with Ghislain Cloquet). Unsworth had the only posthumous win in the entire 1980s, coming in at the start of the decade.

Howard Ashman, Beauty and the Beast (1991)

Howard Ashman; the Beast (voice: Robby Benson) and Belle (voice: Paige O'Hara) in 'Beauty and the Beast'. Everett Collection (2)

Lyricist and playwright Howard Ashman is often credited for helping to spark the Disney animation Renaissance of the early-1990s. Working with composer Alan Menken, the two wrote unforgettable songs for films like *The Little Mermaid *(1989) and *Beauty and the Beast* (1991)*, *but Ashman also took a direct role in the storytelling.

Ashman died from complications from HIV/AIDS shortly after completing work on *Beauty and the Beast *(the film is dedicated to him). His partner, Bill Lauch, accepted the Oscar alongside Alan Menken for the film's title song. Ashman had previously won for Best Original Song with Menken for *The Little Mermaid*'s "Under the Sea." He holds the record for most posthumous Oscar nominations, earning three Best Original Song nominations for *Beauty and the Beast *and a final nomination the next year for *Aladdin.*

Thomas C. Goodwin, Educating Peter (1992)

Peter Gwazdauskas (center) in 'Educating Peter'. Everett Collection

Producer Thomas C. Goodwin won a posthumous Oscar for this short-subject documentary. *Educating Peter *follows Peter Gwazdauskas, a student with Down syndrome, as he is included in a standard third-grade classroom in Blacksburg, Va. The documentary went on to have a sequel, *Graduating Peter*,* *which follows Gwazdauskas through middle school and high school, but Godwin was not involved.

Conrad Hall, Road to Perdition (2002)

Conrad Hall during the BAFTA America awards on March 25, 2000, at Lowes Hotel in Santa Monica, Calif.; Tom Hanks as Michael Sullivan in 'Road to Perdition'. Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images; Everett Collection

Legendary cinematographer Conrad Hall shot some of the most iconic films ever made, including *In Cold Blood* (1967),* Cool Hand Luke* (1967)*, *and *Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid* (1969)*. *He won two Oscars for Best Cinematography while he was living, one for *Butch Cassidy *and the other for *American Beauty* (1999)*. *His final film, 2002's *Road to Perdition, *is both dedicated to him and earned him his final Oscar posthumously. His son, Conrad W. Hall — also a cinematographer — accepted the award on his behalf.

Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight (2008)

Heath Ledger as the Joker in 'The Dark Knight'. Everett Collection

Heath Ledger became only the second actor ever to win an Oscar posthumously in 2009 (coincidentally, both he and the other winner, Peter Finch, hailed from Australia). His no-holds-barred take on iconic Batman villain the Joker was a fan favorite from the moment the film was released. But the performance was also a testament to Ledger's talent and ability to lose himself in a role, making him the first actor to receive Oscar recognition for a superhero movie. Ledger's family accepted the award on his behalf.

Gil Friesen, 20 Feet From Stardom (2013)

Darlene Love in '20 Feet From Stardom'.

Courtesy Everett Collection

Gil Friesen left an immeasurable impact on the music industry as the longtime chairman of A&M Records, and he used those connections and curiosity to produce the documentary *20 Feet From Stardom *about the lives of back-up singers. Friesen died by the time the film was released and won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature in 2014.

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