Best Picture Winner
Last 10 Years (2015-2025)
The Academy's choices tell a story of their own. From historic firsts to surprising upsets, these ten films represent the evolving tastes of Hollywood's most prestigious award.
#10. Green Book (2018)
The Controversial Winner
Regarded by many as one of the worst Best Picture winners ever, Green Book follows Tony Vallelonga and Dr. Don Shirley on a road trip through the American South. Despite decent performances by Viggo Mortensen and Oscar-winning Mahershala Ali, the film's questionable white savior narrative and surface-level treatment of racism make it a weak winner.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Mahershala Ali), Best Original Screenplay
⚠️ Controversy: Faced criticism for its white savior narrative and historical inaccuracies throughout its awards campaign.
#9. CODA (2021)
The Feel-Good Winner
Turns out mid movies can win Oscars, too. This feel-good family dramedy about a hearing girl from a deaf family who dreams of a music career has great performances (including Troy Kotsur's Oscar-winning turn) but doesn't scream "Best Picture material." While competently made, it feels clichéd compared to its more groundbreaking peers.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Troy Kotsur), Best Adapted Screenplay
✓ Historic First: First Best Picture winner from a streaming service (Apple TV+)
#8. Nomadland (2020)
The Minimalist Winner
Some have dared to call Chloé Zhao's Nomadland one of the most boring Best Picture winners, but this road trip drama about a van-dwelling nomad is cinema stripped down to its bare elements. Anchored by Frances McDormand's Oscar-winning performance, it's a phenomenal one-off experience but not particularly memorable in the long run.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Director (Chloé Zhao), Best Actress (Frances McDormand)
✓ Historic First: Second woman and first woman of color to win Best Director
#7. The Shape of Water (2017)
The Fantasy Winner
Mexican auteur Guillermo del Toro's bizarre yet beautiful Cold War tale of a romance between a woman and a monster remains one of the most divisive Best Picture wins of the 2010s. While far from del Toro's best, it's a visually striking and emotionally stirring gem that builds upon his usual thematic concerns in wonderful ways.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Production Design, Best Original Score
✓ Genre Breakthrough: Rare fantasy film to win Best Picture
#6. Anora (2024)
The Bold Winner
The most recent Best Picture winner stirred up controversy with its victory. Sean Baker's dramedy about a young stripper who impulsively marries the son of a Russian oligarch is one of the most richly detailed, sympathetic, and complex portrayals of a sex worker in cinema's history. Mikey Madison's Oscar-winning performance ties the whole thing together beautifully.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture
✓ Groundbreaking: Unprecedented win for a raw, unflinching look at sex work
#5. Spotlight (2015)
The Journalistic Winner
Based on the true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation within the local Catholic Archdiocese, Spotlight is the best kind of Oscar bait. Supported by an incredible ensemble and a breathtaking Oscar-winning script, it's undoubtedly the most harrowing Best Picture winner of the last decade.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay
✓ Rare Achievement: One of few films to win Best Picture with only one other award
#4. Moonlight (2016)
The Poetic Winner
Stories of queer pain and tragedy are aplenty, but films like Moonlight that explore gay characters without shying away from darkness while being ultimately hopeful aren't common. Sweet, vulnerable, and raw, this gorgeously tender coming-of-age story has only gotten better and lovelier with age since its historic (and scandal-interrupted) Oscar win.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Mahershala Ali), Best Adapted Screenplay
✓ Historic First: First LGBTQ+ film and first all-Black cast film to win Best Picture
#3. Parasite (2019)
The Historic Winner
The first—and so far only—foreign film to win Best Picture, Parasite made history at the 2020 Academy Awards. Bong Joon Ho's magnum opus about the symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Parks and the destitute Kims swept the ceremony with four Oscars. Thematically scathing and tonally adventurous, this modern masterpiece had one of the most universally loved Best Picture victories.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best International Feature
✓ Historic First: First non-English language film to win Best Picture
#2. Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
The Multiversal Winner
A hyperactive sci-fi comedy isn't the type of movie that typically sweeps awards season, but the Daniels' story about a middle-aged Chinese woman swept into an existence-saving multiversal adventure took home a whopping seven Oscars. With an exquisitely quirky sense of humor, hilarious action scenes, and masterful performances, it's a blast of fun throughout its entire runtime.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Michelle Yeoh), Best Supporting Actor (Ke Huy Quan), Best Supporting Actress (Jamie Lee Curtis), Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing
✓ Historic First: First Asian-American Best Actress winner (Michelle Yeoh)
#1. Oppenheimer (2023)
The Epic Winner
Christopher Nolan cemented his status as Hollywood's premier filmmaker with Oppenheimer, a 3-hour epic that became a cultural phenomenon and the third-highest-grossing R-rated film ever. This masterful biography of the controversial physicist represents the culmination of Nolan's auteur style, delivering a hard-hitting masterpiece that transcends its lengthy runtime.
🏆 Oscar Wins: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Cillian Murphy), Best Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr.), Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score
✓ Box Office Phenomenon: Highest-grossing Best Picture winner since The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King