Every Best Actor Winner In Oscar History

Winners in the 2000s

The first winner of the new millennium was Kevin Spacey for his disaffected dad character in American Beauty. Spacey had previously won in the Supporting Actor category for The Usual Suspects (2005).

Russell Crowe took home the award for Gladiator at the 73rd Oscars on March 25, 2001. The next year’s show in 2002 was a record four and a half hours long, and viewers who stuck it out were rewarded with seeing Denzel Washington pick up his first Best Actor Oscar for Training Day. Washington is the first African-American actor to win since Sidney Poitier picked up Best Actor almost 40 years earlier.

In 2003, Adrian Brody won for The Pianist and celebrated by grabbing presenter Halle Berry for a much-discussed kiss. Berry has laughed off the kiss, but still seems none too pleased about the ordeal. Brody was 29 when he won, making him the youngest Best Actor winner in history.

Sean Penn won for Mystic River in 2004, and then Jamie Foxx won for Ray in 2005. Phillip Seymour Hoffman took home the award in 2006 for his portrayal of author Truman Capote in Capote, and then Forest Whitaker won in 2007 for The Last King of Scotland.

Daniel-Day Lewis won his second Oscar in 2008 for There Will Be Blood, and then Sean Penn won his second in 2009 for Milk.

Winners

2000: Kevin Spacey – American Beauty
2001: Russell Crowe – Gladiator
2002: Denzel Washington – Training Day
2003: Adrian Brody – The Pianist
2004: Sean Penn – Mystic River
2005: Jamie Foxx – Ray
2006: Phillip Seymour Hoffman – Capote
2007: Forest Whitaker – The Last King of Scotland
2008: Daniel Day-Lewis – There Will Be Blood
2009: Sean Penn – Milk