1997 Oscars: Winners and Nominees

65 films were recognised at the 1997 Academy Awards, across 24 categories. 15 of them took home at least one award.

The biggest winner of the year was The English Patient, with 9 awards, ahead of Fargo with 2. The categories below run from Actor in a Leading Role, Actor in a Supporting Role and Actress in a Leading Role 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

Actor in a Leading Role

Shine(1996)
Geoffrey Rush
Winner
Jerry Maguire(1996)
Tom Cruise
Sling Blade(1996)
Billy Bob Thornton
The English Patient(1996)
Ralph Fiennes
The People vs. Larry Flynt(1996)
Woody Harrelson

Actor in a Supporting Role

Jerry Maguire(1996)
Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Winner
Fargo(1996)
William H. Macy
Ghosts of Mississippi(1996)
James Woods
Primal Fear(1996)
Edward Norton
Shine(1996)
Armin Mueller-Stahl

Actress in a Leading Role

Fargo(1996)
Frances McDormand
Winner
Breaking the Waves(1996)
Emily Watson
Marvin's Room(1996)
Diane Keaton
Secrets & Lies(1996)
Brenda Blethyn
The English Patient(1996)
Kristin Scott Thomas

Actress in a Supporting Role

The English Patient(1996)
Juliette Binoche
Winner
Secrets & Lies(1996)
Marianne Jean-Baptiste
The Crucible(1996)
Joan Allen
The Mirror Has Two Faces(1996)
Lauren Bacall
The Portrait of a Lady(1996)
Barbara Hershey

Art Direction

The English Patient(1996)
Art Direction: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan
Winner
Evita(1996)
Art Direction: Brian Morris; Set Decoration: Philippe Turlure
Hamlet(1996)
Tim Harvey
The Birdcage(1996)
Art Direction: Bo Welch; Set Decoration: Cheryl Carasik
William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet)(1996)
Art Direction: Catherine Martin; Set Decoration: Brigitte Broch

Best Picture

The English Patient(1996)
Saul Zaentz, Producer
Winner
Fargo(1996)
Ethan Coen, Producer
Jerry Maguire(1996)
James L. Brooks, Laurence Mark, Richard Sakai and Cameron Crowe, Producers
Secrets & Lies(1996)
Simon Channing-Williams, Producer
Shine(1996)
Jane Scott, Producer

Cinematography

The English Patient(1996)
John Seale
Winner
Evita(1996)
Darius Khondji
Fargo(1996)
Roger Deakins
Fly Away Home(1996)
Caleb Deschanel
Michael Collins(1996)
Chris Menges

Costume Design

The English Patient(1996)
Ann Roth
Winner
Angels and Insects(1995)
Paul Brown
Emma(1996)
Ruth Myers
Hamlet(1996)
Alex Byrne
The Portrait of a Lady(1996)
Janet Patterson

Directing

The English Patient(1996)
Anthony Minghella
Winner
Fargo(1996)
Joel Coen
Secrets & Lies(1996)
Mike Leigh
Shine(1996)
Scott Hicks
The People vs. Larry Flynt(1996)
Milos Forman

Documentary (Feature)

When We Were Kings(1996)
Leon Gast, David Sonenberg
Winner
Mandela(1996)
Jo Menell, Angus Gibson
Suzanne Farrell: Elusive Muse(1996)
Anne Belle, Deborah Dickson
Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press(1996)
Rick Goldsmith
The Line King: The Al Hirschfeld Story(1996)
Susan W. Dryfoos

Documentary (Short Subject)

Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien(1996)
Jessica Yu
Winner
An Essay on Matisse(1996)
Perry Wolff
Cosmic Voyage(1996)
Jeffrey Marvin, Bayley Silleck
Special Effects: Anything Can Happen(1996)
Susanne Simpson, Ben Burtt
The Wild Bunch: An Album in Montage(1996)
Paul Seydor, Nick Redman

Film Editing

The English Patient(1996)
Walter Murch
Winner
Evita(1996)
Gerry Hambling
Fargo(1996)
Roderick Jaynes
Jerry Maguire(1996)
Joe Hutshing
Shine(1996)
Pip Karmel

International Feature Film

Kolya(1996)
Czech Republic
Winner
A Chef in Love(1996)
Georgia
Prisoner of the Mountains(1996)
Russia
Ridicule(1996)
France
The Other Side of Sunday(1996)
Norway

Music (Original Dramatic Score)

The English Patient(1996)
Gabriel Yared
Winner
Hamlet(1996)
Patrick Doyle
Michael Collins(1996)
Elliot Goldenthal
Shine(1996)
David Hirschfelder
Sleepers(1996)
John Williams

Music (Original Musical or Comedy Score)

Emma(1996)
Rachel Portman
Winner
James and the Giant Peach(1996)
Randy Newman
The First Wives Club(1996)
Marc Shaiman
The Hunchback of Notre Dame(1996)
Music by Alan Menken; Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz; Orchestral Score by Alan Menken
The Preacher's Wife(1996)
Hans Zimmer

Music (Original Song)

Evita(1996)
You Must Love Me in "Evita" Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber; Lyric by Tim Rice
Winner
One Fine Day(1996)
For The First Time in "One Fine Day" Music and Lyric by James Newton Howard, Jud J. Friedman and Allan Dennis Rich
That Thing You Do!(1996)
That Thing You Do! in "That Thing You Do!" Music and Lyric by Adam Schlesinger
The Mirror Has Two Faces(1996)
I Finally Found Someone in "The Mirror Has Two Faces" Music and Lyric by Barbra Streisand, Marvin Hamlisch, Bryan Adams and Robert "Mutt" Lange
Up Close & Personal(1996)
Because You Loved Me in "Up Close and Personal" Music and Lyric by Diane Warren

Short Film (Live Action)

Dear Diary(1996)
David Frankel, Barry Jossen
Winner
De Tripas, Corazón(1996)
Antonio Urrutia
Ernst & the Light(1996)
Kim Magnusson, Anders Thomas Jensen
Linked(1996)
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
Wordless(1996)
Bernadette Carranza, Antonello De Leo

Sound

The English Patient(1996)
Walter Murch, Mark Berger, David Parker, Chris Newman
Winner
Evita(1996)
Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Ken Weston
Independence Day(1996)
Chris Carpenter, Bill W. Benton, Bob Beemer, Jeff Wexler
The Rock(1996)
Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell, Keith A. Wester
Twister(1996)
Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker, Kevin O'Connell, Geoffrey Patterson

Writing (Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published)

Sling Blade(1996)
Billy Bob Thornton
Winner
Hamlet(1996)
Kenneth Branagh
The Crucible(1996)
Arthur Miller
The English Patient(1996)
Anthony Minghella
Trainspotting(1996)
John Hodge

Writing (Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen)

Fargo(1996)
Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Winner
Jerry Maguire(1996)
Cameron Crowe
Lone Star(1996)
John Sayles
Secrets & Lies(1996)
Mike Leigh
Shine(1996)
Screenplay by Jan Sardi; Story by Scott Hicks

Short Film (Animated)

Quest(1997)
Tyron Montgomery, Thomas Stellmach
Winner
Canhead(1996)
Timothy Hittle, Chris Peterson
La Salla(1996)
Richard Condie
Wat's Pig(1996)
Peter Lord

Makeup

The Nutty Professor(1996)
Rick Baker, David LeRoy Anderson
Winner
Ghosts of Mississippi(1996)
Matthew W. Mungle, Deborah La Mia Denaver
Star Trek: First Contact(1996)
Michael Westmore, Scott Wheeler, Jake Garber

Sound Effects Editing

The Ghost and the Darkness(1996)
Bruce Stambler
Winner
Daylight(1996)
Richard L. Anderson, David A. Whittaker
Eraser(1996)
Alan Robert Murray, Bub Asman

Visual Effects

Independence Day(1996)
Volker Engel, Douglas Smith, Clay Pinney, Joseph Viskocil
Winner
DragonHeart(1996)
Scott Squires, Phil Tippett, James Straus, Kit West
Twister(1996)
Stefen Fangmeier, John Frazier, Habib Zargarpour, Henry La Bounta