Beyond the year-by-year roll call, the best actor Oscar winners list by year hides milestone firsts and stubborn records. Here are the leading-role facts that still dominate awards trivia night.

Emil Jannings won the first Best Actor Oscar at the 1929 ceremony for The Last Command and The Way of All Flesh. Every best actor Oscar winners list by year begins with his name at the top of history.

Adrien Brody was 29 when he won for The Pianist at the 2003 ceremony — still the youngest Best Actor champion on the official best actor Oscar winners list by year. He beat Richard Dreyfuss by one year.

Anthony Hopkins was 83 when he won for The Father at the 2021 ceremony — the oldest Best Actor winner in the best actor Oscar winners list by year. He accepted the trophy while competing against the late Chadwick Boseman.

Daniel Day-Lewis is the only man with three Best Actor Oscars for My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood, and Lincoln. His triple crown remains the toughest record on the best actor Oscar winners list by year to break.