What Awards Do Actors Get? A Complete Guide to Major Acting Honors

Actors receive awards across film, television, theater, and digital streaming to recognize outstanding performances, career achievements, and artistic contributions. The most prestigious acting honors in the entertainment industry include the Academy Awards (Oscars) for film, the Primetime Emmy Awards for television, the Tony Awards for live theater, and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, where performers are judged directly by their peers.

Beyond the statuette or trophy itself, major acting awards carry substantial career weight. Winning or even earning a nomination raises an actor’s industry profile, increases box-office or streaming appeal, commands higher salaries, and opens doors to more complex creative projects. Understanding how these awards work, and who votes on them, helps clarify why certain honors hold more prestige than others.

The Big Four: EGOT Acting Awards

Michael B. Jordan delivers an acceptance speech at the SAG Awards with his Actor statuette beside him.

In American entertainment, four major award bodies represent the highest tier of recognition across different mediums. Winning at least one competitive award in all four categories earns an artist the rare distinction known as EGOT status (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony).

While Grammys primarily honor music, actors frequently win them for spoken-word albums, audiobooks, or musical theater cast recordings.

Academy Awards (The Oscars)

Presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), the Oscars are the most coveted honors in global cinema. Voting members include thousands of film professionals across different branches, though only members of the Actors Branch nominate performers before the full Academy votes on the winners.

The four competitive acting categories at the Oscars are:

• Best Actor in a Leading Role

• Best Actress in a Leading Role

• Best Actor in a Supporting Role

• Best Actress in a Supporting Role

Primetime Emmy Awards

Administered by the Television Academy, the Primetime Emmy Awards recognize excellence in American television programming. With the rise of major streaming platforms, Emmy eligibility now encompasses both traditional broadcast networks and original streaming series.

Emmy acting categories are divided by genre and role size:

• Drama Series: Lead Actor, Lead Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, and Guest Actor/Actress

• Comedy Series: Lead Actor, Lead Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, and Guest Actor/Actress

• Limited or Anthology Series or Movie: Lead Actor, Lead Actress, and Supporting Actor/Actress

Tony Awards

Officially known as the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, the Tony Awards celebrate live theatrical productions staged in eligible Broadway theaters in New York City. Theater voters—comprising producers, guild members, and theater professionals—evaluate performances across plays and musicals.

Standard Tony acting categories include:

• Best Performance by an Actor/Actress in a Leading Role in a Play

• Best Performance by an Actor/Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical

• Best Performance by an Actor/Actress in a Featured Role in a Play

• Best Performance by an Actor/Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical

Grammy Awards (For Spoken Word and Cast Albums)

Although the Recording Academy focuses on music, actors regularly earn Grammy recognition. Performers win in categories such as Best Audio Book, Narration & Storytelling Recording (for memoirs or fiction narration) and Best Musical Theater Album (awarded to principal vocalists and producers of Broadway cast recordings).

Peer-Voted and Guild Acting Awards

Michelle Yeoh celebrates an emotional victory on stage, raising her Actor statuette high.

While Academy and Television Academy voters include directors, writers, editors, and executives, guild awards are voted on exclusively by fellow performers. Because actors understand the technical and emotional demands of the craft firsthand, peer-voted trophies hold deep respect inside the industry.

Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards

Presented by SAG-AFTRA, the Screen Actors Guild Awards focus solely on acting performances in film and television. A rotating nominating committee selects the nominees, and the entire active union membership over 100,000 performers—votes on the winners.

A unique hallmark of the SAG Awards is its recognition of collective performance rather than just individual leads:

• Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (widely considered the SAG equivalent of Best Picture)

• Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series

• Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series

• Individual Film and Television Categories (Lead and Supporting roles, plus Stunt Ensembles)

Critic and Press-Voted Awards

Several high-profile ceremonies are decided by film journalists, entertainment reporters, and critics’ associations rather than industry practitioners. These ceremonies often serve as early indicators of momentum during awards season.

Golden Globe Awards

The Golden Globes honor achievements in both film and television during a single broadcast. Voters consist of an international body of entertainment journalists. Unlike the Oscars, the Golden Globes split film acting categories by genre, doubling the number of lead film acting winners each year:

• Best Actor and Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama

• Best Actor and Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

• Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress in any Motion Picture

• Television Categories across Drama, Musical/Comedy, and Limited Series

Critics Choice Awards

Voted on by members of the Critics Choice Association—the largest critics’ organization in North America, representing hundreds of television, radio, and online journalists—the Critics Choice Awards recognize both film and television. Their selections frequently mirror broader industry consensus and often align closely with eventual Oscar and Emmy winners.

International Acting Honors

Emma Stone happily accepts her award on stage, waving to the crowd with her BAFTA trophy.

Outside the United States, national film academies and major international festivals bestow prestigious acting awards that carry global acclaim.

Specialized and Career Achievement Awards

Not all acting honors are tied to a single role or release year. Organizations also recognize emerging talent, daytime programming, independent productions, and lifetime contributions.

• Independent Spirit Awards: Presented by Film Independent, these honors celebrate low-budget and independent films and television. Notably, the Independent Spirit Awards replaced gendered acting categories with gender-neutral Best Lead Performance, Best Supporting Performance, and Best Breakthrough Performance categories.

• Daytime Emmy Awards: Separate from the Primetime Emmys, these recognize actors working in daytime dramas (soap operas), children’s programming, and daytime talk or lifestyle shows.

• Honorary and Lifetime Achievement Awards: Major bodies grant non-competitive career honors to celebrate decades of work. Examples include the Academy Honorary Award, the SAG Life Achievement Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award (Golden Globes), and the Kennedy Center Honors.

• Breakthrough and Rising Star Honors: Awards like the BAFTA Rising Star Award (voted on by the British public) or the Trophée Chopard at Cannes spotlight early-career actors demonstrating exceptional promise.

How Acting Awards Are Decided and Why They Matter?

Jack Quaid and Zazie Beetz host and present on stage in front of a giant Oscar statuette and red curtain backdrop.

Understanding how an actor wins an award involves looking at both eligibility rules and behind-the-scenes campaigning, as well as the legacy of Hollywood stars of the 1940s who helped shape the film industry’s award culture.

Eligibility and Submission

Studios, networks, or actors themselves must formally submit performances for consideration within strict release windows. For example, a film must generally complete a qualifying theatrical run in designated cities to contend for an Oscar, while a Broadway show must open before a spring cutoff date to qualify for the Tony Awards.

Lead vs. Supporting Placement

Studios strategically decide whether to campaign a performer in a Lead or Supporting category. Occasionally, a role with substantial screen time is submitted in the Supporting category to avoid competing against a co-star or a crowded Lead field a practice often referred to as category placement or category fraud by awards observers.

Do Actors Receive Money With Their Awards?

Most major acting trophies, including the Oscar, Emmy, Tony, and SAG Award, do not come with a cash prize. In fact, winners who wish to keep their Oscar statuette must agree to Academy rules stipulating that if they or their heirs ever decide to sell it, they must first offer it back to the Academy for $1.

The financial reward is indirect. Industry analysts refer to the “Oscar bump,” the measurable increase in an actor’s subsequent salary quotes, endorsement deals, and greenlighting power following a major win or nomination.

For actresses, professional representation can also play an important role in navigating these opportunities, negotiating better contracts, and building long-term careers. Resources such as agents for actresses offer further insight into the role agents play in an actress’s career.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most prestigious award an actor can win?

For film actors, the Academy Award (Oscar) is widely considered the highest honor in the world. For television actors, it is the Primetime Emmy Award, and for stage actors, it is the Tony Award (or the Olivier Award in the United Kingdom). Among peers, the SAG Award is also deeply prized because only fellow actors vote for the winners.

What does EGOT mean for an actor?

EGOT stands for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. An actor who achieves EGOT status has won at least one competitive award in television, recording/spoken word, film, and Broadway theater. Only a small number of performers in history—including Audrey Hepburn, Rita Moreno, Mel Brooks, John Legend, Whoopi Goldberg, and Viola Davis—have accomplished this feat.

Why are some acting awards split into Drama and Comedy?

Award bodies like the Emmys and Golden Globes separate Drama from Comedy (or Musical/Comedy) because the technical demands of comedic timing and dramatic weight differ significantly. Separating the genres ensures comedic performances—which historically receive fewer dramatic Academy nominations—get dedicated recognition.

Which acting awards use gender-neutral categories?

Several major organizations have adopted gender-neutral acting categories to promote inclusivity. Notable examples include the Film Independent Spirit Awards, the Gotham Awards, the MTV Movie & TV Awards, the British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs), and the Berlin International Film Festival (Silver Bear).

How are acting award nominees chosen?

The nomination process depends on the organization. For the Oscars, only actors within the Academy nominate other actors, while the full Academy votes on the final winners. For the SAG Awards, a randomly selected committee of union members nominates candidates before all eligible SAG-AFTRA members vote on the winners. Critics’ awards rely on ballots cast by accredited journalists.

Can an actor win an award for a voice-over role?

Yes. Actors frequently win Emmy Awards for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance in animated series, as well as Grammy Awards for narrating audiobooks. While animated voice performances are technically eligible for the Oscars, no voice-only performance has ever been nominated in the Academy’s acting categories.

Final Thoughts

The awards actors receive reflect the medium in which they work and the community evaluating their craft. While the Oscars, Emmys, and Tonys define the pinnacle of film, television, and stage achievement, peer-voted honors like the SAG Awards and international prizes from BAFTA, Cannes, and Venice play an equally vital role in shaping an actor’s legacy.

Together, these accolades celebrate the range of human storytelling rewarding everything from subtle independent film performances to commanding live stage roles.