Women Who Made History At The Oscars: Female Firsts At The Academy Awards

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March 7, 2023 11:30AM EST

With Women’s History Month in full swing and the Oscars around the corner, let’s take a look at historic moments for women at the Academy Awards.

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Women Who Made History At The Oscars: Photos

Women Who Made History At The Oscars: Photos — Women have always been essential to the film world, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. Unfortunately, it took some time for fabulous female filmmakers to get the recognition they deserved. Though the Academy Awards have been happening since 1929, it took decades for a woman to win top honors like Best Director and Best Picture.

Mary J. Blige is among the legendary ladies who pioneered their Oscar categories. The songstress, seen here at the 89th annual Academy Awards in 2017, made history that year as the first person to be nominated for an acting honor and Best Original Song simultaneously. She shared the trophy for the track “Mighty River” from the movie Mudbound with co-writers Raphael Saadiq and Taura Stinson.

In honor of Women’s History Month and the upcoming Academy Awards, learn more about the amazing women who broke boundaries at the Oscars with our gallery here.

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Ariana DeBose

Ariana DeBose — Ariana DeBose was the first openly queer woman of color to snag the Best Supporting Actress trophy, taking home the gold at the 2022 awards. She won for playing Anita in West Side Story. While accepting the honor, an awestruck Ariana told the audience, “Even in this weird world we live in, dreams do come true.”

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Lina Wertmuller

Lina Wertmuller — Italian filmmaker Lina Wertmuller, here biking in Rome in May of 1978, was the first woman to be nominated for Best Director. She was recognized for the 1976 film ‘Seven Beauties’.

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Kathryn Bigelow

Kathryn Bigelow — It took until 2009 for a lady to win Best Director. Kathryn Bigelow earned the top honor for ‘The Hurt Locker’. Making the win even sweeter, she beat ex-husband James Cameron and his film ‘Avatar’ for the trophy.

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Melissa Etheridge

Melissa Etheridge — Melissa Etheridge, seen here with her 2007 Oscar on Feb. 25, won Best Original Song for “I Need to Wake Up” from the Al Gore climate change doc ‘An Inconvenient Truth’. She was the first openly gay woman to win an Oscar in the category.

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Emma Thompson

Emma Thompson — Emma Thompson won double during the 1995 Academy Awards. She remains the only actress (to date) to win for writing and acting in the same year, for her work on ‘Sense & Sensibility’.

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Chloé Zhao

Chloé Zhao — Chloé Zhao was the first woman (and the first woman of color, overall) to be nominated for directing, editing, writing, and producing in the same year. The ‘Nomadland’ creator took home Best Picture and Director, seen here after the Apr. 25, 2021 ceremony.

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Hattie McDaniel

Hattie McDaniel — An original. Hattie McDaniel has to be remembered as the first Black women to take home an acting Oscar for her supporting role in ‘Gone With The Wind’ at the 1939 honors. A Black woman wouldn’t win in the leading lady trophy until Halle Berry in 2002 for ‘Monster’s Ball’.

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Jane Campion

Jane Campion — Jane Campion was the 2nd woman in history to earn the Best Director nom, a full 17 years after Lina Wertmüller. She didn’t win for ‘The Piano’ but in 2022 became the first female director to be nominated in the Best Director category twice. We’ll see if she makes history with ‘The Power Of The Dog’ at the 2022 ceremony.

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Buffy Sainte-Marie

Buffy Sainte-Marie — Buffy Sainte-Marie was the first Indigenous person to win a competitive award in 1982. She took home Best Original Song for the classic “Up Where We Belong” from ‘An Officer and a Gentleman’. She shared the honor with Jack Nitzche (music) and Will Jennings (lyrics).

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Rachel Morrison

Rachel Morrison — A long time coming. Rachel Morrison, here at the 90th Annual Academy Awards, was the first woman ever to be nominated for Best Cinematography for 2017’s ‘Mudbound’. First woman to be nominated for Best Cinematography.

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Irene Cara

Irene Cara — Dancing queen! Irene Cara, here at the 1984 Governors Ball, was the first black woman to win in a non-acting category for her song “What A Feeling” from 1983’s ‘Flashdance’.

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Dorothy Fields

Dorothy Fields — Dorothy Fields, right, won for Best Original Song along with partner Jerome Kern (seen together in 1945 here) in 1936. It was for “The Way You Look Tonight” in the movie ‘Swing Time.’

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