"I can’t deny the fact that you like me. Right now, you like me!"
—Sally Field winning for Places in the Heart.
A list of people who have won and been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role.
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1920s
- 1927-28: Janet Gaynor for 7th Heaven as Diane, Street Angel as Angela, and Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans as the Wife
- Louise Dresser for A Ship Comes In as Mama Pleznik
- Gloria Swanson for Sadie Thompson as Sadie Thompson
- 1928-29: Mary Pickford for Coquette as Norma Besant
- Ruth Chatterton for Madame X as Jacqueline Floriot
- Betty Compson for The Barker as Carrie
- Jeanne Eagles (posthumous) for The Letter as Leslie Crosbie
- Corinne Griffith for The Divine Lady as Lady Emma Hamilton
- Bessie Love for The Broadway Melody as Harriet "Hank" Mahoney
- 1929-30: Norma Shearer for The Divorcee as Jerry Martin
- Nancy Carroll for The Devil's Holiday as Hallie Hobart
- Ruth Chatterton for Sarah and Son as Sarah Storm
- Greta Garbo for Anna Christie as Anna Christie and Romance as Madame Rita Cavallini
- Norma Shearer for Their Own Desire as Lucia "Lally" Marlett
- Gloria Swanson for The Trespasser as Marion Donnell
1930s
- 1930-31: Marie Dressler for Min and Bill as Min Divot
- Marlene Dietrich for Morocco as Mademoiselle Amy Jolly
- Irene Dunne for Cimarron as Sabra Cravat
- Ann Harding for Holiday as Linda Seton
- Norma Shearer for A Free Soul as Jan Ashe
- 1931-32: Helen Hayes for The Sin of Madelon Claudet as Madelon Claudet
- Marie Dressler for Emma as Emma Thatcher Smith
- Lynn Fontanne for The Guardsman as the Actress
- 1932-33: Katharine Hepburn for Morning Glory as Eva Lovelace
- May Robson for Lady for a Day as Apple Annie
- Diana Wynyard for Cavalcade as Jane Marryot
- 1934: Claudette Colbert for It Happened One Night as Ellen "Ellie" Andrews
- Grace Moore for One Night of Love as Mary Barrett
- Norma Shearer for The Barretts of Wimpole Street as Elizabeth Barrett
- Bette Davis (write-in; not official nomination) for Of Human Bondage as Mildred Rogers
- 1935: Bette Davis for Dangerous as Joyce Heath
- Elisabeth Bergner for Escape Me Never as Gemma Jones
- Claudette Colbert for Private Worlds as Dr. Jane Everest
- Katharine Hepburn for Alice Adams as Alice Adams
- Miriam Hopkins for Becky Sharp as Rebecca "Becky" Sharp
- Merle Oberon for The Dark Angel as Kitty Vane
- 1936: Luise Rainer for The Great Ziegfeld as Anna Held
- Irene Dunne for Theodora Goes Wild as Theodora Lynn / Caroline Adams
- Gladys George for Valiant Is the Word for Carrie as Carrie Snyder
- Carole Lombard for My Man Godfrey as Irene Bullock
- Norma Shearer for Romeo and Juliet as Juliet Capulet
- 1937: Luise Rainer for The Good Earth as O-Lan
- Irene Dunne for The Awful Truth as Lucy Warriner
- Greta Garbo for Camille as Marguerite Gautier
- Janet Gaynor for A Star Is Born as Esther Blodgett-Maine / Vicki Lester
- Barbara Stanwyck for Stella Dallas as Stella Dallas
- 1938: Bette Davis for Jezebel as Julie Marsden
- Fay Bainter for White Banners as Hannah Parmalee
- Wendy Hiller for Pygmalion as Eliza Doolittle
- Norma Shearer for Marie Antoinette as Queen Marie-Antoinette
- Margaret Sullavan for Three Comrades as Patrica "Pat" Hollmann
- 1939: Vivien Leigh for Gone with the Wind as Scarlett O’Hara
- Bette Davis for Dark Victory as Judith "Judy" Traherne
- Irene Dunne for Love Affair as Terry McKay
- Greta Garbo for Ninotchka as Nina Ivanova "Ninotchka" Yakushova
- Greer Garson for Goodbye, Mr. Chips as Katherine "Kathy" Ellis
1940s
- 1940: Ginger Rogers for Kitty Foyle as Kitty Foyle
- Bette Davis for The Letter as Leslie Crosbie
- Joan Fontaine for Rebecca as the second Mrs. de Winter
- Katharine Hepburn for The Philadelphia Story as Tracy Lord
- Martha Scott for Our Town as Emily Webb
- 1941: Joan Fontaine for Suspicion as Lina McLaidlaw-Aysgarth
- Bette Davis for The Little Foxes as Regina Giddens
- Olivia de Havilland for Hold Back the Dawn as Emmy Brown
- Greer Garson for Blossoms in the Dust as Edna Gladney
- Barbara Stanwyck for Ball of Fire as Katherine "Sugarpuss" O’Shea
- 1942: Greer Garson for Mrs. Miniver as Kay Miniver
- Bette Davis for Now, Voyager as Charlotte Vale
- Katharine Hepburn for Woman of the Year as Tess Harding
- Rosalind Russell for My Sister Eileen as Ruth Sherwood
- Teresa Wright for The Pride of the Yankees as Eleanor Gehrig
- 1943: Jennifer Jones for The Song of Bernadette as Bernadette Soubirous
- Jean Arthur for The More the Merrier as Constance "Connie" Milligan
- Ingrid Bergman for For Whom the Bell Tolls as María
- Joan Fontaine for The Constant Nymph as Tessa Sanger
- Greer Garson for Madame Curie as Marie Curie
- 1944: Ingrid Bergman for Gaslight as Paula Alquist-Anton
- Claudette Colbert for Since You Went Away as Anne Hilton
- Bette Davis for Mr. Skeffington as Frances "Fanny" Trellis
- Greer Garson for Mrs. Parkington as Susie "Sparrow" Parkington
- Barbara Stanwyck for Double Indemnity as Phyllis Dietrichson
- 1945: Joan Crawford for Mildred Pierce as Mildred Pearce Beragon
- Ingrid Bergman for The Bells of St. Mary's as Sister Mary Benedict
- Greer Garson for The Valley of Decision as Mary Rafferty
- Jennifer Jones for Love Letters as Singleton / Victoria Morland
- Gene Tierney for Leave Her to Heaven as Ellen Berent-Harland
- 1946: Olivia de Havilland for To Each His Own for Josephine "Jody" Norris
- Celia Johnson for Brief Encounter as Laura Jesson
- Jennifer Jones for Duel in the Sun as Pearl Chavez
- Rosalind Russell for Sister Kenny as Sister Elizabeth Kenny
- Jane Wyman for The Yearling as Ora Baxter
- 1947: Loretta Young for The Farmer's Daughter as Katie Holstrom
- Joan Crawford for Possessed as Louise Howell
- Susan Hayward for Smash-Up, the Story of a Woman as Angelica "Angie" Evans
- Dorothy McGuire for Gentleman's Agreement as Kathy Lacey
- Rosalind Russell for Mourning Becomes Electra as Lavinia Mannon
- 1948: Jane Wyman for Johnny Belinda as Belinda MacDonald
- Ingrid Bergman for Joan of Arc as Joan of Arc
- Olivia de Havilland for The Snake Pit as Virginia Cunningham
- Irene Dunne for I Remember Mama as Marta "Mama" Hanson
- Barbara Stanwyck for Sorry, Wrong Number as Leona Stevenson
- 1949: Olivia de Havilland for The Heiress as Catherine Sloper
- Jeanne Crain for Pinky as Patricia "Pinky" Johnson
- Susan Hayward for My Foolish Heart as Eloise Winters
- Deborah Kerr for Edward, My Son as Evelyn Boult
- Loretta Young for Come to the Stable as Sister Margaret
1950s
- 1950: Judy Holliday for Born Yesterday as Emma "Billie" Dawn
- Anne Baxter for All About Eve as Eve Harrington
- Bette Davis for All About Eve as Margo Channing
- Eleanor Parker for Caged as Marie Allen
- Gloria Swanson for Sunset Boulevard as Norma Desmond
- 1951: Vivien Leigh for A Streetcar Named Desire as Blanche DuBois
- Katharine Hepburn for The African Queen as Rose Sayer
- Eleanor Parker for Detective Story as Mary McLeod
- Shelley Winters for A Place in the Sun as Alice Tripp
- Jane Wyman for The Blue Veil as Louise "LouLou" Mason
- 1952: Shirley Booth for Come Back, Little Sheba as Lola Delaney
- Joan Crawford for Sudden Fear as Myra Hudson
- Bette Davis for The Star as Margaret Elliot
- Julie Harris for The Member of the Wedding as Frances "Frankie" Addams
- Susan Hayward for With a Song in My Heart as Jane Froman
- 1953: Audrey Hepburn for Roman Holiday as Princess Ann / Anya Smith
- Leslie Caron for Lili as Lili Daurier
- Ava Gardner for Mogambo as Eloise "Honey Bear" Kelly
- Deborah Kerr for From Here to Eternity as Karen Holmes
- Maggie McNamara for The Moon is Blue as Patty O'Neill
- 1954: Grace Kelly for The Country Girl as Georgie Elgin
- Dorothy Dandridge for Carmen Jones as Carmen Jones
- Judy Garland for A Star Is Born as Esther Blodgett-Maine / Vicki Lester
- Audrey Hepburn for Sabrina as Sabrina Fairchild
- Jane Wyman for Magnificent Obsession as Helen Phillips
- 1955: Anna Magnani for The Rose Tattoo as Serafina Delle Rose
- Susan Hayward for I'll Cry Tomorrow as Lillian Roth
- Katharine Hepburn for Summertime as Jane Hudson
- Jennifer Jones for Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing as Dr. Han Suyin
- Eleanor Parker for Interrupted Melody as Majorie Lawrence
- 1956: Ingrid Bergman for Anastasia as Anna Koreff / Anastasia
- Carroll Baker for Baby Doll as Baby Doll Meighan
- Katharine Hepburn for The Rainmaker as Lizzie Curry
- Nancy Kelly for The Bad Seed as Christine Penmark
- Deborah Kerr for The King and I as Anna Leonowens
- 1957: Joanne Woodward for The Three Faces of Eve as Eve White / Eve Black / Jane
- Deborah Kerr for Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison as Sister Angela
- Anna Magnani for Wild Is the Wind as Gioia
- Elizabeth Taylor for Raintree County as Susanna Drake
- Lana Turner for Peyton Place as Constance MacKenzie
- 1958: Susan Hayward for I Want to Live! as Barbara Graham
- Deborah Kerr for Separate Tables as Sibyl Railton-Bell
- Shirley MacLaine for Some Came Running as Ginny Moorehead
- Rosalind Russell for Auntie Mame as Mame Dennis
- Elizabeth Taylor for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof as Margaret "Maggie the Cat" Pollitt
- 1959: Simone Signoret for Room at the Top as Alice Aisgill
- Doris Day for Pillow Talk as Jan Morrow
- Audrey Hepburn for The Nun's Story as Gabrielle "Gaby" van der Mal / Sister Luke
- Katharine Hepburn for Suddenly, Last Summer as Violet Venable
- Elizabeth Taylor for Suddenly, Last Summer as Catherine Holly
1960s
- 1960: Elizabeth Taylor for BUtterfield 8 as Gloria Wandrous
- Greer Garson for Sunrise at Campobello as Eleanor Roosevelt
- Deborah Kerr for The Sundowners as Ida Carmody
- Shirley MacLaine for The Apartment as Fran Kubelik
- Melina Mercouri for Never on Sunday as Ilya
- 1961: Sophia Loren for Two Women as Cesira
- Audrey Hepburn for Breakfast at Tiffany's as Holly Golightly / Lula Mae Barnes
- Piper Laurie for The Hustler as Sarah Packard
- Geraldine Page for Summer and Smoke as Alma Winemiller
- Natalie Wood for Splendor in the Grass as Wilma Dean "Deanie" Loomis
- 1962: Anne Bancroft for The Miracle Worker as Annie Sullivan
- Bette Davis for What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? as Baby Jane Hudson
- Katharine Hepburn for Long Day's Journey Into Night as Mary Tyrone
- Geraldine Page for Sweet Bird of Youth as Alexandra Del Largo
- Lee Remick for Days of Wine and Roses as Kirsten Arnesen-Clay
- 1963: Patricia Neal for Hud as Alma Brown
- Leslie Caron for The L-Shaped Room as Jane Fossett
- Shirley MacLaine for Irma la Douce as Irma la Douce
- Rachel Roberts for This Sporting Life as Margaret Hammond
- Natalie Wood for Love with the Proper Stranger as Angie Rossini
- 1964: Julie Andrews for Mary Poppins as Mary Poppins
- Anne Bancroft for The Pumpkin Eater as Jo Armitage
- Sophia Loren for Marriage Italian Style as Filumena Marturano
- Debbie Reynolds for The Unsinkable Molly Brown as Molly Brown
- Kim Stanley for Séance on a Wet Afternoon as Myra Savage
- 1965: Julie Christie for Darling as Diana Scott
- Julie Andrews for The Sound of Music as Maria von Trapp
- Samantha Eggar for The Collector as Miranda Grey
- Elizabeth Hartman for A Patch of Blue as Selina D’Arcey
- Simone Signoret for Ship of Fools as La Condesa
- 1966: Elizabeth Taylor for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? as Martha
- Anouk Aimée for A Man and a Woman as Anne Gauthier
- Ida Kamińska for The Shop on Main Street as Rozália Lautmannová
- Lynn Redgrave for Georgy Girl as Georgina "Georgy" Parkin
- Vanessa Redgrave for Morgan! as Leonie Delt
- 1967: Katharine Hepburn for Guess Who's Coming to Dinner as Christina Drayton
- Anne Bancroft for The Graduate as Mrs. Robinson
- Faye Dunaway for Bonnie and Clyde as Bonnie Parker
- Edith Evans for The Whisperers as Margaret "Maggie" Ross
- Audrey Hepburn for Wait Until Dark as Susy Hendrix
- 1968: Tie
- Katharine Hepburn for The Lion in Winter as Queen Eleanor Of Aquitaine
- Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl as Fanny Brice
- Patricia Neal for The Subject Was Roses as Nettie Cleary
- Vanessa Redgrave for Isadora as Isadora Duncan
- Joanne Woodward for Rachel, Rachel as Rachel Cameron
- 1969: Maggie Smith for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie as Jean Brodie
- Geneviève Bujold for Anne of the Thousand Days as Anne Boleyn
- Jane Fonda for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? as Gloria Beatty
- Liza Minnelli for The Sterile Cuckoo as Mary Ann "Pookie" Adams
- Jean Simmons for The Happy Ending as Mary Wilson
1970s
- 1970: Glenda Jackson for Women in Love as Gudrun Brangwen
- Jane Alexander for The Great White Hope as Eleanor Bachman
- Ali MacGraw for Love Story as Jennifer "Jenny" Cavalleri-Barrett
- Sarah Miles for Ryan's Daughter as Rosy Ryan
- Carrie Snodgress for Diary of a Mad Housewife as Bettina "Tina" Balser
- 1971: Jane Fonda for Klute as Bree Daniels
- Julie Christie for McCabe & Mrs. Miller as Constance Miller
- Glenda Jackson for Sunday Bloody Sunday as Alex Greville
- Vanessa Redgrave for Mary, Queen of Scots as Mary, Queen of Scots
- Janet Suzman for Nicholas and Alexandra as Empress Alexandra Feodrovna of Russia
- 1972: Liza Minnelli for Cabaret as Sally Bowles
- Diana Ross for Lady Sings the Blues as Billie Holiday
- Maggie Smith for Travels with My Aunt as Augusta Bertram
- Cicely Tyson for Sounder as Rebecca Morgan
- Liv Ullmann for The Emigrants as Kristina Nilsson
- 1973: Glenda Jackson for A Touch of Class as Vickie Alessio
- Ellen Burstyn for The Exorcist as Chris MacNeil
- Marsha Mason for Cinderella Liberty as Maggie Paul
- Barbra Streisand for The Way We Were as Katie Morosky
- Joanne Woodward for Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams as Rita Walden
- 1974: Ellen Burstyn for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore as Alice Hyatt
- Diahann Carroll for Claudine as Claudine Price
- Faye Dunaway for Chinatown as Evelyn Cross Mulwray
- Valerie Perrine for Lenny as Harriett Jolliff / Honey Bruce
- Gena Rowlands for A Woman Under the Influence as Mabel Longhetti
- 1975: Louise Fletcher for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest as Nurse Mildred Ratched
- Isabelle Adjani for The Story of Adèle H as Adèle Hugo / Adèle Lewly
- Ann-Margret for Tommy as Nora Walker
- Glenda Jackson for Hedda as Hedda Gabler
- Carol Kane for Hester Street as Gitl
- 1976: Faye Dunaway for Network as Diana Christensen
- Marie Christine Barrault for Cousin Cousine as Marthe
- Talia Shire for Rocky as Adrian Pennino
- Sissy Spacek for Carrie as Carrie White
- Liv Ullmann for Face to Face as Dr. Jenny Isaksson
- 1977: Diane Keaton for Annie Hall as Annie Hall
- Anne Bancroft for The Turning Point as Emma Jacklin
- Jane Fonda for Julia as Lillian Hellman
- Shirley MacLaine for The Turning Point as DeeDee Rodgers
- Marsha Mason for The Goodbye Girl as Paula McFadden
- 1978: Jane Fonda for Coming Home as Sally Hyde
- Ingrid Bergman for Autumn Sonata as Charlotte Andergast
- Ellen Burstyn for Same Time, Next Year as Doris
- Jill Clayburgh for An Unmarried Woman as Erica Benton
- Geraldine Page for Interiors as Eve
- 1979: Sally Field for Norma Rae as Norma Rae Webster
- Jill Clayburgh for Starting Over as Marilyn Holmberg
- Jane Fonda for The China Syndrome as Kimberly Wells
- Marsha Mason for Chapter Two as Jennie MacLaine
- Bette Midler for The Rose as Mary Rose "The Rose" Foster
1980s
- 1980: Sissy Spacek for Coal Miner's Daughter as Loretta Lynn
- Ellen Burstyn for Resurrection as Edna Mae Harper-McCauley
- Goldie Hawn for Private Benjamin as Private Judith "Judy" Benjamin
- Mary Tyler Moore for Ordinary People as Beth Jarrett
- Gena Rowlands for Gloria as Gloria Swenson
- 1981: Katharine Hepburn for On Golden Pond as Ethel Thayer
- Diane Keaton for Reds as Louise Bryant
- Marsha Mason for Only When I Laugh as Georgia Hines
- Susan Sarandon for Atlantic City as Sally Matthews
- Meryl Streep for The French Lieutenant's Woman as Sarah Woodruff / Anna
- 1982: Meryl Streep for Sophie's Choice as Zofia "Sophie" Zawistowski
- Julie Andrews for Victor/Victoria as Victoria Grant / Count Victor Grazhinski
- Jessica Lange for Frances as Frances Farmer
- Sissy Spacek for missing. as Beth Horman
- Debra Winger for An Officer and a Gentleman as Paula Pokrifki
- 1983: Shirley MacLaine for Terms of Endearment as Aurora Greenway
- Jane Alexander for Testament as Carol Wetherly
- Meryl Streep for Silkwood as Karen Silkwood
- Julie Walters for Educating Rita as Susan White / Rita
- Debra Winger for Terms of Endearment as Emma Greenway-Horton
- 1984: Sally Field for Places in the Heart as Edna Spalding
- Judy Davis for A Passage to India as Adela Quested
- Jessica Lange for Country as Jewell Ivy
- Vanessa Redgrave for The Bostonians as Olive Chancellor
- Sissy Spacek for The River as Mae Garvey
- 1985: Geraldine Page for The Trip to Bountiful as Carrie Watts
- Anne Bancroft for Agnes of God as Mother Miriam Ruth / Anna Maria Burchetti
- Whoopi Goldberg for The Color Purple as Celie Harris-Johnson
- Jessica Lange for Sweet Dreams as Patsy Cline
- Meryl Streep for Out of Africa as Baroness Karen Blixen
- 1986: Marlee Matlin for Children of a Lesser God as Sarah Norman
- Jane Fonda for The Morning After as Alexandra "Alex" Sternberg / Viveca Van Loren
- Sissy Spacek for Crimes of the Heart as Rebecca "Babe" Magrath
- Kathleen Turner for Peggy Sue Got Married as Peggy Sue Kelcher-Bodell
- Sigourney Weaver for Aliens as Ellen Ripley
- 1987: Cher for Moonstruck as Loretta Castorini
- Glenn Close for Fatal Attraction as Alexandra "Alex" Forrest
- Holly Hunter for Broadcast News as Jane Craig
- Sally Kirkland for Anna as Anna
- Meryl Streep for Ironweed as Helen Archer
- 1988: Jodie Foster for The Accused as Sarah Tobias
- Glenn Close for Dangerous Liaisons as Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil
- Melanie Griffith for Working Girl as Tess McGill
- Meryl Streep for Evil Angels as Alice Lynn "Lindy" Chamberlain
- Sigourney Weaver for Gorillas in the Mist as Dian Fossey
- 1989: Jessica Tandy for Driving Miss Daisy as Daisy "Miss Daisy" Werthan
- Isabelle Adjani for Camille Claudel as Camille Claudel
- Pauline Collins for Shirley Valentine as Shirley Valentine-Bradshaw
- Jessica Lange for Music Box as Ann Talbot
- Michelle Pfeiffer for The Fabulous Baker Boys as Susie Diamond
1990s
- 1990: Kathy Bates for Misery as Annie Wilkes
- Anjelica Huston for The Grifters as Lilly Dillon
- Julia Roberts for Pretty Woman as Vivian Ward
- Meryl Streep for Postcards from the Edge as Suzanne Vale
- Joanne Woodward for Mr. & Mrs. Bridge as India Bridge
- 1991: Jodie Foster for The Silence of the Lambs as Clarice Starling
- Geena Davis for Thelma & Louise as Thelma Dickinson
- Laura Dern for Rambling Rose as Rose
- Bette Midler for For the Boys as Dixie Leonard
- Susan Sarandon for Thelma & Louise as Louise Sawyer
- 1992: Emma Thompson for Howards End as Margaret Schlegel
- Catherine Deneuve for Indochine as Éliane Devries
- Mary McDonnell for Passion Fish as Mary-Alice Culhane
- Michelle Pfeiffer for Love Field as Louise Irene "Lurene" Hallett
- Susan Sarandon for Lorenzo's Oil as Michaela Odone
- 1993: Holly Hunter for The Piano as Ada McGrath
- Angela Bassett for What's Love Got to Do with It as Annie Mae Bullock / Tina Turner
- Stockard Channing for Six Degrees of Separation as Louisa "Ouisa" Kittredge
- Emma Thompson for The Remains of the Day as Sarah "Sally" Kenton
- Debra Winger for Shadowlands as Joy Davidman
- 1994: Jessica Lange for Blue Sky as Carly Marshall
- Jodie Foster for Nell as Nell Kellty
- Miranda Richardson for Tom & Viv as Vivienne Haigh-Wood Eliot
- Winona Ryder for Little Women as Josephine "Jo" March
- Susan Sarandon for The Client as Regina "Reggie" Love
- 1995: Susan Sarandon for Dead Man Walking as Sister Helen Prejean
- Elisabeth Shue for Leaving Las Vegas as Sera
- Sharon Stone for Casino as Ginger McKenna
- Meryl Streep for The Bridges of Madison County as Francesca Johnson
- Emma Thompson for Sense and Sensibility as Elinor Dashwood
- 1996: Frances McDormand for Fargo as Chief Marge Gunderson
- Brenda Blethyn for Secrets & Lies as Cynthia Rose Purley
- Diane Keaton for Marvin's Room as Bessie Wakefield
- Kristin Scott Thomas for The English Patient as Katharine Clifton
- Emily Watson for Breaking the Waves as Bess McNeill
- 1997: Helen Hunt for As Good as It Gets as Carol Connelly
- Helena Bonham Carter for The Wings of the Dove as Kate Croy
- Julie Christie for Afterglow as Phyllis Hart
- Judi Dench for Mrs Brown as Queen Victoria
- Kate Winslet for Titanic as Rose DeWitt Bukater
- 1998: Gwyneth Paltrow for Shakespeare in Love as Viola de Lesseps / Thomas Kent
- Cate Blanchett for Elizabeth as Queen Elizabeth I of England
- Fernanda Montenegro for Central Station as Isadora "Dora" Teixeido
- Meryl Streep for One True Thing as Kate Gulden
- Emily Watson for Hilary and Jackie as Jacqueline "Jackie" du Pré
- 1999: Hilary Swank for Boys Don't Cry as Brandon Teena
- Annette Bening for American Beauty as Carolyn Burnham
- Janet McTeer for Tumbleweeds as Mary Jo Walker
- Julianne Moore for The End of the Affair as Sarah Miles
- Meryl Streep for Music of the Heart as Roberta Guaspari
2000s
- 2000: Julia Roberts for Erin Brockovich as Erin Brockovich
- Joan Allen for The Contender as Senator Laine Hanson
- Juliette Binoche for Chocolat as Vianne Rocher
- Ellen Burstyn for Requiem for a Dream as Sara Goldfarb
- Laura Linney for You Can Count on Me as Samantha "Sammy" Prescott
- 2001: Halle Berry for Monster's Ball as Leticia Musgrovenote
- Judi Dench for Iris as Iris Murdoch
- Nicole Kidman for Moulin Rouge! as Satine
- Sissy Spacek for In the Bedroom as Ruth Fowler
- Renée Zellweger for Bridget Jones' Diary as Bridget Jones
- 2002: Nicole Kidman for The Hours as Virginia Woolf
- Salma Hayek for Frida as Frida Kahlo
- Diane Lane for Unfaithful as Constance "Connie" Sumner
- Julianne Moore for Far from Heaven as Cathleen "Cathy" Whitaker
- Renée Zellweger for Chicago as Roxanne "Roxie" Hart
- 2003: Charlize Theron for Monster as Aileen "Lee" Wuornos
- Keisha Castle-Hughes for Whale Rider as Paikea "Pai" Apirana
- Diane Keaton for Something's Gotta Give as Erica Barry
- Samantha Morton for In America as Sarah Sullivan
- Naomi Watts for 21 Grams as Cristina "Cris" Williams-Peck
- 2004: Hilary Swank for Million Dollar Baby as Margaret "Maggie" Fitzgerald
- Annette Bening for Being Julia as Julia Lambert
- Catalina Sandino Moreno for Maria Full of Grace as Maria Álvarez
- Imelda Staunton for Vera Drake as Vera Drake
- Kate Winslet for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind as Clementine Kruczynski
- 2005: Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line as June Carter Cash
- Judi Dench for Mrs Henderson Presents as Laura Foster-Henderson
- Felicity Huffman for Transamerica as Sabrina "Bree" Osbourne / Stanley Schupak
- Keira Knightley for Pride and Prejudice as Elizabeth Bennet
- Charlize Theron for North Country as Josephine "Josey" Aimes
- 2006: Helen Mirren for The Queen as Queen Elizabeth II of England
- Penélope Cruz for Volver as Raimunda
- Judi Dench for Notes on a Scandal as Barbara Covett
- Meryl Streep for The Devil Wears Prada as Miranda Priestly
- Kate Winslet for Little Children as Sarah Pierce
- 2007: Marion Cotillard for La Vie en Rose as Édith Piaf
- Cate Blanchett for Elizabeth: The Golden Age as Queen Elizabeth I of England
- Julie Christie for Away from Her as Fiona Anderson
- Laura Linney for The Savages as Wendy Savage
- Elliot Page for Juno as Juno MacGuff
- 2008: Kate Winslet for The Reader as Hanna Schmitz
- Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married as Kym Buchman
- Angelina Jolie for Changeling as Christine Collins
- Melissa Leo for Frozen River as Ray Eddy
- Meryl Streep for Doubt as Sister Aloysius Beauvier
- 2009: Sandra Bullock for The Blind Side as Leigh Anne Tuohy
- Helen Mirren for The Last Station as Countess Sophia Tolstaya
- Carey Mulligan for An Education as Jenny Mellor
- Gabourey Sidibe for Precious as Claireece "Precious" Jones
- Meryl Streep for Julie & Julia as Julia Child
2010s
- 2010: Natalie Portman for Black Swan as Nina Sayers / The White Swan
- Annette Bening for The Kids Are All Right as Dr. Nicole "Nic" Allgood
- Nicole Kidman for Rabbit Hole as Rebecca "Becca" Corbett
- Jennifer Lawrence for Winter's Bone as Ree Dolly
- Michelle Williams for Blue Valentine as Cynthia "Cindy" Heller
- 2011: Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady as Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
- Glenn Close for Albert Nobbs as Albert Nobbs
- Viola Davis for The Help as Aibileen Clark
- Rooney Mara for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo as Lisbeth Salander
- Michelle Williams for My Week with Marilyn as Marilyn Monroe
- 2012: Jennifer Lawrence for Silver Linings Playbook as Tiffany Maxwell
- Jessica Chastain for Zero Dark Thirty as Maya Harris
- Emmanuelle Riva for Amour as Anne Laurent
- Quvenzhané Wallis for Beasts of the Southern Wild as Hushpuppy
- Naomi Watts for The Impossible as Maria Bennett
- 2013: Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine as Jeanette "Jasmine" Francis
- Amy Adams for American Hustle as Sydney Prosser / Lady Edith Greensly
- Sandra Bullock for Gravity as Dr. Ryan Stone
- Judi Dench for Philomena as Philomena Lee
- Meryl Streep for August: Osage County as Violet Weston
- 2014: Julianne Moore for Still Alice as Dr. Alice Howland
- Marion Cotillard for Two Days, One Night as Sandra Bya
- Felicity Jones for The Theory of Everything as Jane Hawking
- Rosamund Pike for Gone Girl as Amy Elliott-Dunne / Nancy
- Reese Witherspoon for Wild as Cheryl Strayed
- 2015: Brie Larson for Room as Joy "Ma" Newsome
- Cate Blanchett for Carol as Carol Aird
- Jennifer Lawrence for Joy as Joy Mangano
- Charlotte Rampling for 45 Years as Kate Mercer
- Saoirse Ronan for Brooklyn as Ellis Lacey
- 2016: Emma Stone for La La Land as Amelia "Mia" Dolan
- Isabelle Huppert for Elle as Michèle Leblanc
- Ruth Negga for Loving (2016) as Mildred Loving
- Natalie Portman for Jackie as Jacqueline "Jackie" Kennedy
- Meryl Streep for Florence Foster Jenkins as Florence Foster Jenkins
- 2017: Frances McDormand for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri as Mildred Hayes
- Sally Hawkins for The Shape of Water as Elisa Esposito
- Margot Robbie for I, Tonya as Tonya Harding
- Saoirse Ronan for Lady Bird as Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson
- Meryl Streep for The Post as Katharine "Kay" Graham
- 2018: Olivia Colman for The Favourite as Anne, Queen of Great Britain
- Yalitza Aparicio for Roma as Cleodegaria "Cleo" Gutiérrez
- Glenn Close for The Wife as Joan Castleman
- Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born as Ally Campana-Maine
- Melissa McCarthy for Can You Ever Forgive Me? as Lee Israel
- 2019: Renée Zellweger for Judy as Judy Garland
- Cynthia Erivo for Harriet as Harriet Tubman
- Scarlett Johansson for Marriage Story as Nicole Barber
- Saoirse Ronan for Little Women as Josephine "Jo" March
- Charlize Theron for Bombshell as Megyn Kelly
2020s
- 2020-21: Frances McDormand for Nomadland as Fern
- Viola Davis for Ma Rainey's Black Bottom as Gertrude "Ma" Rainey
- Andra Day for The United States vs. Billie Holiday as Billie Holiday
- Vanessa Kirby for Pieces of a Woman as Martha Weiss
- Carey Mulligan for Promising Young Woman as Casandra "Cassie" Thomas
- 2021: Jessica Chastain for The Eyes of Tammy Faye as Tammy Faye Bakker
- Olivia Colman for The Lost Daughter as Leda Caruso
- Penélope Cruz for Parallel Mothers as Janis Martínez Moreno
- Nicole Kidman for Being the Ricardos as Lucille Ball
- Kristen Stewart for Spencer as Diana, Princess of Wales
- 2022: Michelle Yeoh for Everything Everywhere All at Once as Evelyn Quan Wang
- Cate Blanchett for Tár as Lydia Tár
- Ana de Armas for Blonde as Norma Jeane Mortensen / Marilyn Monroe
- Andrea Riseborough for To Leslie as Leslie Rowlands
- Michelle Williams for The Fabelmans as Mitzi Schildkraut-Fabelman
- 2023: Emma Stone for Poor Things as Bella Baxter / Victoria Blessington
- Annette Bening for Nyad as Diana Nyad
- Lily Gladstone for Killers of the Flower Moon as Mollie Burkhart
- Sandra Hüller for Anatomy of a Fall as Sandra Voyter
- Carey Mulligan for Maestro as Felicia Montealegre Bernstein
