Oscars History: A Look Back at Rare Ties in Academy Awards

Oscars History: A Look Back at Rare Ties in Academy Awards

The Oscars on March 15th had a surprising twist as there was a tie in the Best Live Action Short Film category. Kumail Nanjiani announced that both The Singers and Two People Exchanging Saliva had won the prestigious award. This rare occurrence has only happened a few times in the history of the Academy Awards.

The first tie at the Oscars dates back to 1931/32 in the Best Actor category when Frederic March and Wallace Beery both received the award. Over the years, there have been six other instances of ties at the Oscars, including in categories like Best Documentary (Short Subject) and Best Actress.

In 1986, the Best Documentary (Feature) award was shared by Artie Shaw: Time Is All You Got and Down and Out in America. Another notable tie occurred in 1994 in the Best Short Film (Live Action) category with Franz Kafka’s It’s a Wonderful Life and Trevor both winning the award.

Before the recent tie in 2026, the most recent tie at the Oscars was in 2012 when Skyfall and Zero Dark Thirty tied for Best Sound Editing. Despite being a rare occurrence, ties at the Oscars have added an element of surprise and excitement to the prestigious awards ceremony.