1940 Oscars: Winners and Nominees

50 films were recognised at the 1940 Academy Awards, across 21 categories. 11 of them took home at least one award.

The biggest winner of the year was Gone with the Wind, with 9 awards, ahead of Stagecoach with 2. The categories below run from Music (Scoring), Art Direction and Music (Original Score) to the smaller prizes, and in every one the winner is listed first, followed by the other nominees.

Each title links to the film's full award history at all four awards, and the links at the bottom step to the previous and next ceremony.

Last updated August 12, 2026

Music (Scoring)

Stagecoach(1939)
Richard Hageman, Frank Harling, John Leipold, Leo Shuken
Winner
Babes in Arms(1939)
George E. Stoll, Roger Edens
First Love(1939)
Charles Previn
Intermezzo: A Love Story(1939)
Lou Forbes
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Dimitri Tiomkin
Of Mice and Men(1939)
Aaron Copland
She Married a Cop(1939)
Cy Feuer
Swanee River(1939)
Louis Silvers
The Great Victor Herbert(1939)
Phil Boutelje, Arthur Lange
The Hunchback of Notre Dame(1939)
Alfred Newman
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex(1939)
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
They Shall Have Music(1939)
Alfred Newman
Way Down South(1939)
Victor Young

Art Direction

Gone with the Wind(1939)
Lyle Wheeler
Winner
Beau Geste(1939)
Hans Dreier, Robert Odell
Captain Fury(1939)
Charles D. Hall
First Love(1939)
Jack Otterson, Martin Obzina
Love Affair(1939)
Van Nest Polglase, Al Herman
Man of Conquest(1939)
John Victor Mackay
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Lionel Banks
Stagecoach(1939)
Alexander Toluboff
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex(1939)
Anton Grot
The Rains Came(1939)
William Darling, George Dudley
The Wizard of Oz(1939)
Cedric Gibbons, William A. Horning
Wuthering Heights(1939)
James Basevi

Music (Original Score)

The Wizard of Oz(1939)
Herbert Stothart
Winner
Dark Victory(1939)
Max Steiner
Eternally Yours(1939)
Werner Janssen
Golden Boy(1939)
Victor Young
Gone with the Wind(1939)
Max Steiner
Gulliver's Travels(1939)
Victor Young
Man of Conquest(1939)
Victor Young
Nurse Edith Cavell(1939)
Anthony Collins
Of Mice and Men(1939)
Aaron Copland
The Man in the Iron Mask(1939)
Lud Gluskin, Lucien Moraweck
The Rains Came(1939)
Alfred Newman
Wuthering Heights(1939)
Alfred Newman

Sound Recording

When Tomorrow Comes(1939)
Universal Studio Sound Department, Bernard B. Brown, Sound Director
Winner
Balalaika(1939)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Sound Department, Douglas Shearer, Sound Director
Gone with the Wind(1939)
Samuel Goldwyn Studio Sound Department, Thomas T. Moulton, Sound Director
Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1939)
Denham Studio Sound Department, A. W. Watkins, Sound Director
Man of Conquest(1939)
Republic Studio Sound Department, Charles L. Lootens, Sound Director
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Columbia Studio Sound Department, John Livadary, Sound Director
Of Mice and Men(1939)
Hal Roach Studio Sound Department, Elmer A. Raguse, Sound Director
The Great Victor Herbert(1939)
Paramount Studio Sound Department, Loren L. Ryder, Sound Director
The Hunchback of Notre Dame(1939)
RKO Radio Studio Sound Department, John Aalberg, Sound Director
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex(1939)
Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, Nathan Levinson, Sound Director
The Rains Came(1939)
20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, E. H. Hansen, Sound Director

Best Picture

Gone with the Wind(1939)
Selznick International Pictures
Winner
Dark Victory(1939)
Warner Bros.-First National
Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1939)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Love Affair(1939)
RKO Radio
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Columbia
Ninotchka(1939)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Of Mice and Men(1939)
Hal Roach (production company)
Stagecoach(1939)
Walter Wanger (production company)
The Wizard of Oz(1939)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Wuthering Heights(1939)
Samuel Goldwyn Productions

Special Effects

The Rains Came(1939)
Fred Sersen, E. H. Hansen
Winner
Gone with the Wind(1939)
John R. Cosgrove, Fred Albin, Arthur Johns
Only Angels Have Wings(1939)
Roy Davidson, Edwin C. Hahn
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex(1939)
Byron Haskin, Nathan Levinson
The Wizard of Oz(1939)
A. Arnold Gillespie, Douglas Shearer
Topper Takes a Trip(1938)
Roy Seawright
Union Pacific(1939)
Farciot Edouart, Gordon Jennings, Loren Ryder

Actor

Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1939)
Robert Donat
Winner
Babes in Arms(1939)
Mickey Rooney
Gone with the Wind(1939)
Clark Gable
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
James Stewart
Wuthering Heights(1939)
Laurence Olivier

Actor in a Supporting Role

Stagecoach(1939)
Thomas Mitchell
Winner
Beau Geste(1939)
Brian Donlevy
Juarez(1939)
Brian Aherne
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Harry Carey
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Claude Rains

Actress

Gone with the Wind(1939)
Vivien Leigh
Winner
Dark Victory(1939)
Bette Davis
Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1939)
Greer Garson
Love Affair(1939)
Irene Dunne
Ninotchka(1939)
Greta Garbo

Actress in a Supporting Role

Gone with the Wind(1939)
Hattie McDaniel
Winner
Drums Along the Mohawk(1939)
Edna May Oliver
Gone with the Wind(1939)
Olivia de Havilland
Love Affair(1939)
Maria Ouspenskaya
Wuthering Heights(1939)
Geraldine Fitzgerald

Directing

Gone with the Wind(1939)
Victor Fleming
Winner
Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1939)
Sam Wood
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Frank Capra
Stagecoach(1939)
John Ford
Wuthering Heights(1939)
William Wyler

Film Editing

Gone with the Wind(1939)
Hal C. Kern, James E. Newcom
Winner
Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1939)
Charles Frend
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Gene Havlick, Al Clark
Stagecoach(1939)
Otho Lovering, Dorothy Spencer
The Rains Came(1939)
Barbara McLean

Writing (Original Story)

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Lewis R. Foster
Winner
Bachelor Mother(1939)
Felix Jackson
Love Affair(1939)
Mildred Cram, Leo McCarey
Ninotchka(1939)
Melchior Lengyel
Young Mr. Lincoln(1939)
Lamar Trotti

Writing (Screenplay)

Gone with the Wind(1939)
Sidney Howard
Winner
Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1939)
R. C. Sherriff, Claudine West, Eric Maschwitz
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939)
Sidney Buchman
Ninotchka(1939)
Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder, Walter Reisch
Wuthering Heights(1939)
Charles MacArthur, Ben Hecht

Music (Song)

The Wizard of Oz(1939)
Over The Rainbow in "The Wizard of Oz" Music by Harold Arlen; Lyrics by E. Y. Harburg
Winner
Gulliver's Travels(1939)
Faithful Forever in "Gulliver's Travels" Music by Ralph Rainger; Lyrics by Leo Robin
Love Affair(1939)
Wishing in "Love Affair" Music and Lyrics by Buddy de Sylva
Second Fiddle(1939)
I Poured My Heart Into A Song in "Second Fiddle" Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin