Sean Penn is an American actor, director and producer. He has earned acclaim for his intense broody roles in dramatic films. Over his career he has received numerous accolades including three Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, three Critics' Choice Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards as well as nominations for an Emmy Award and a Grammy Award. In 2015, he received an Honorary César.
Quick facts Awards and nominations, Award ...
Sean Penn awards and nominations |
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| Wins | 17 |
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| Nominations | 44 |
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Note
Certain award groups do not simply award one winner. They acknowledge several different recipients, have runners-up, and have third place. Since this is a specific recognition and is different from losing an award, runner-up mentions are considered wins in this award tally. For simplification and to avoid errors, each award in this list has been presumed to have had a prior nomination.
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Penn's early roles include the teen comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), the crime drama Bad Boys (1983), and the war drama Casualties of War (1989). He earned the Venice International Film Festival's Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his role in Hurlyburly (1989). He played a sleazy lawyer in the Brian de Palma crime drama Carlito's Way (1993), which earned him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture. He gained widespread acclaim for his portrayal of a killer on death row in the Tim Robbins crime drama Dead Man Walking (1995) earning him the Silver Bear for Best Actor as well as nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actor, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama, and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role.
For his role in the Nick Cassavettes romantic drama She's So Lovely (1997) he won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor. He earned further Academy Award for Best Actor nominations for his performances as a jazz guitarist in Woody Allen's romance Sweet and Lowdown (1999), and a mentally challenged man in Jessie Nelson's drama I Am Sam (2001). He won his second Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his role in the Alejandro González Iñárritu crime thriller 21 Grams (2003). That same year, he played a grieving father in the Clint Eastwood drama Mystic River (2003) for which he won the Academy Awards for Best Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama as well as nominations for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role.
Penn directed the adventure drama Into the Wild (2007) for which he was nominated for the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Director and the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film. The following year, he portrayed gay rights activist Harvey Milk in the Gus Van Sant political drama Milk (2008), for which he received his second Academy Award for Best Actor as well as the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actor and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role with nominations for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama, and the Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead.
In 2026, Penn won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in One Battle After Another (2025), and also won the Actor Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.
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