Joaquin Phoenix is an American actor who has received various awards and nominations, including one Academy Award, one British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and one Grammy Award. Additionally, he has been nominated for three Academy Awards, three British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards.
As a child he was briefly credited as Leaf Phoenix, appearing in various films including the 1984 ABC Afterschool Special Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia and the 1989 comedy Parenthood. For Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia he was nominated for the Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor in a Family Film Made for Television, with his brother River Phoenix. His performance in Parenthood led him to be nominated for the Young Artist Award for Best Leading Young Actor in a Feature Film. Phoenix’s breakthrough role in Ridley Scott’s critically acclaimed epic historical action-drama Gladiator (2000) earned him the Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Supporting Actor and the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor, and he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture, and the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. In 2005, Phoenix appeared in the biographical drama Walk the Line, in which he played the American singer Johnny Cash. For his performance, he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, the Hollywood Film Award for Best Actor, and the Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media, and he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role.
In 2012, Phoenix starred in the psychological drama The Master, in which he portrays a World War II Navy veteran struggling to adjust to a post-war society. He won the Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor, and he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama. In 2013, Phoenix starred in romantic science-fiction drama Her and received widespread critical acclaim for his performance. He was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, the Saturn Award for Best Actor, and the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor. In 2017, he appeared in the psychological thriller You Were Never Really Here which received critical acclaim. For this film, Phoenix won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor and the Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor. In 2019, Phoenix starred as Arthur Fleck/Joker, a failed stand-up comedian in the psychological thriller Joker. His performance went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actor, BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama.
Awards and nominations
| Award | Year | Work | Category | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | 2001 | Gladiator | Best Supporting Actor | Nominated | |
| 2006 | Walk the Line | Best Actor | Nominated | ||
| 2013 | The Master | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Joker | Won | |||
| Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards | 2013 | The Master | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2020 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| American Latino Media Arts Award | 2009 | Two Lovers | Year in Film – Actor | Nominated | |
| Alliance of Women Film Journalists Awards | 2013 | The Master | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2014 | Her | Nominated | |||
| Best Depiction of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction (shared with Scarlett Johansson) | Won | ||||
| 2020 | Joker | Best Actor | Nominated | ||
| Austin Film Critics Association Awards | 2012 | The Master | Best Actor | Won | |
| 2019 | You Were Never Really Here | Nominated | |||
| British Academy Film Awards | 2001 | Gladiator | Best Actor in a Supporting Role | Nominated | |
| 2006 | Walk the Line | Best Actor in a Leading Role | Nominated | ||
| 2013 | The Master | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Joker | Won | |||
| British Independent Film Awards | 2003 | Buffalo Soldiers | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2018 | You Were Never Really Here | Nominated | |||
| Blockbuster Entertainment Award | 2001 | Gladiator | Favorite Villain | Won | |
| Boston Society of Film Critics Award | 2019 | Joker | Best Actor | Runner-up | |
| Chicago Film Critics Association Awards | 2005 | Walk the Line | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2012 | The Master | Nominated | |||
| 2018 | You Were Never Really Here | Nominated | |||
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Critics’ Choice Movie Awards | 2001 | Gladiator / Quills / The Yards | Best Supporting Actor | Won | |
| 2006 | Walk the Line | Best Actor | Nominated | ||
| 2013 | The Master | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Joker | Won | |||
| Cannes Film Festival Award | 2017 | You Were Never Really Here | Best Actor | Won | |
| Capri Hollywood International Film Festival Award | 2019 | Joker | Best Actor | Won | |
| Dorian Awards | 2013 | The Master | Film Performance of the Year – Actor | Nominated | |
| 2020 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards | 2005 | Walk the Line | Best Actor | 4th place | |
| 2012 | The Master | Runner-up | |||
| 2019 | Joker | Runner-up | |||
| Detroit Film Critics Society Awards | 2012 | The Master | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Dublin Film Critics’ Circle Awards | 2012 | The Master | Best Actor | Won | |
| 2014 | Her | Best Actor (tied with Bill Hader for The Skeleton Twins, Chiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years a Slave and Tom Hardy for Locke) | 10th place | ||
| 2018 | You Were Never Really Here | Best Actor | Runner-up | ||
| 2019 | Joker | Runner-up | |||
| Florida Film Critics Circle Awards | 2013 | Her | Best Actor | Runner-up | |
| 2018 | You Were Never Really Here | Won | |||
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Golden Globe Awards | 2001 | Gladiator | Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture | Nominated | |
| 2006 | Walk the Line | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Won | ||
| 2013 | The Master | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama | Nominated | ||
| 2014 | Her | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Nominated | ||
| 2015 | Inherent Vice | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Joker | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama | Won | ||
| Grammy Award | 2007 | Walk the Line | Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media | Won | |
| Georgia Film Critics Association Awards | 2013 | The Master | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2014 | Her | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Hollywood Critics Association Award | 2020 | Joker | Best Actor | Won | |
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | 2013 | The Master | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2020 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Hollywood Film Festival Award | 2005 | Walk the Line | Best Actor | Won | |
| Independent Spirit Awards | 2015 | Inherent Vice | Robert Altman Award (shared with cast of Inherent Vice) | Won | |
| 2019 | You Were Never Really Here | Best Male Lead | Nominated | ||
| Irish Film & Television Academy Award | 2013 | The Master | Best International Actor | Nominated | |
| IndieWire Critics Poll Awards | 2009 | Two Lovers | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2018 | You Were Never Really Here | Best Actor | Runner-up | ||
| 2019 | Joker | 4th place | |||
| International Cinephile Society Awards | 2010 | Two Lovers | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2013 | The Master | Nominated | |||
| 2014 | Her | Runner-up | |||
| London Film Critics’ Circle Awards | 2013 | The Master | Actor of the Year | Won | |
| 2019 | You Were Never Really Here | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Joker | Won | |||
| Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award | 2012 | The Master | Best Actor | Won | |
| MTV Movie & TV Awards | 2001 | Gladiator | Best Villain | Nominated | |
| Best Line from a Movie (for “It vexes me, I am terribly vexed!”) | Nominated | ||||
| 2006 | Walk the Line | Best Performance | Nominated | ||
| National Board of Review Award | 2000 | Gladiator / Quills / The Yards | Best Supporting Actor | Won | |
| National Society of Film Critics Awards | 2013 | The Master | Best Actor (tied with Denis Lavant for Holy Motors) | Runner-up | |
| 2015 | Inherent Vice | Best Actor (tied with Ralph Fiennes for The Grand Budapest Hotel) | 3rd place | ||
| New York Film Critics Circle Award | 2013 | The Master | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| New York Film Critics Online Award | 2019 | Joker | Best Actor | Won | |
| Online Film Critics Society Awards | 2006 | Walk the Line | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2009 | Two Lovers | Nominated | |||
| 2012 | The Master | Nominated | |||
| 2013 | Her | Nominated | |||
| 2019 | You Were Never Really Here | Nominated | |||
| 2020 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| People’s Choice Award | 2008 | We Own the Night | Favorite Leading Man | Won | |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival Award | 2020 | Joker | Chairman’s Award | Won | |
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | 2001 | Gladiator | Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture | Nominated | |
| Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Motion Picture | Nominated | ||||
| 2005 | Hotel Rwanda | Nominated | |||
| 2006 | Walk the Line | Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role in a Motion Picture | Nominated | ||
| 2020 | Joker | Won | |||
| Satellite Awards | 2012 | The Master | Best Actor – Motion Picture | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| San Diego Film Critics Society Awards | 2000 | Gladiator / Quills / The Yards | Body of Work | Won | |
| 2012 | The Master | Best Actor | Nominated | ||
| 2013 | Her | Nominated | |||
| 2019 | Joker | Best Actor (tied with Adam Driver for Marriage Story) | Won | ||
| San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle Awards | 2012 | The Master | Best Actor | Won | |
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Seattle Film Critics Society Awards | 2018 | You Were Never Really Here | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Best Villain of the Year | Nominated | ||||
| St. Louis Film Critics Association Award | 2019 | Joker | Best Actor | Runner-up | |
| San Diego International Film Festival Award | 2005 | — | Humanitarian Award | Won | |
| Toronto Film Critics Association Award | 2012 | The Master | Best Actor | Runner-up | |
| Teen Choice Award | 2005 | Ladder 49 | Choice Movie Actor: Drama | Nominated | |
| Toronto International Film Festival Award | 2019 | — | TIFF Tribute Actor Award | Won | |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards | 2013 | The Master | Best Actor | Won | |
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Village Voice Film Poll Awards | 2009 | Two Lovers | Best Actor | 4th place | |
| 2012 | The Master | Won | |||
| 2013 | Her | 3rd place | |||
| Venice Film Festival Award | 2012 | The Master | Volpi Cup for Best Actor (tied with Philip Seymour Hoffman) | Won | |
| Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards | 2005 | Walk the Line | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2012 | The Master | Nominated | |||
| 2013 | Her | Nominated | |||
| 2019 | Joker | Nominated | |||
| Women Film Critics Circle Award | 2019 | Joker | Best Actor | Runner-up | |
| Young Artist Awards | 1984 | Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia | Best Young Actor in a Family Film Made for Television (with River Phoenix) | Nominated | |
| 1990 | Parenthood | Best Leading Young Actor in a Feature Film | Nominated |