These 23 actors have been nominated for Oscars in non-acting categories

Kenneth Branagh can do it all. He's been racking up Oscar nominations for all sorts of creative works - including writing, directing, and performing - since the '90s. His win came in 2022 for the script he wrote for Belfast. 

Kevin Costner isn't just the lead from Yellowstone. He's got all sorts of cinematic knowledge. While he was nominated for his performance in Dances with Wolves, he won Oscars for directing and producing. 

You probably recognize Taika Waititi from his roles in What We Do in the Shadows and Jojo Rabbit, but acting isn't all Waititi does. He's also a very accomplished writer, and he was nominated for and won an Oscar for writing the screenplay for Jojo Rabbit. 

Widely considered one of the best actors of his generation, Brad Pitt has won two Oscars and received a handful of nominations. His first Oscar was for Best Picture as he produced the film 12 Years a Slave. He was nominated in the same category for The Big Short a couple of years later. 

Margot Robbie has been nominated for Oscars for her performances in I, Tonya and Bombshell, but she’s also been nominated as a producer. Although (according to some) she was snubbed at the 2024 Oscars for her role in Barbie, she was nominated as a producer for Best Picture. 

Emma Stone now has two performance wins at the Oscars, one for La La Land and another for Poor Things. But one of her five total nominations comes from her work as a producer of Poor Things, making her one of the only people to be Oscar-nominated for their performance and production on the same film. 

Ben Affleck hasn’t ever been nominated for an Oscar for his acting work, but he’s got two statues anyway. He won his first for his work writing Good Will Hunting and his second for producing the Best Picture winner Argo. 

Matt Damon, unlike his buddy Ben Affleck, has received multiple Oscar nominations for his acting. His win came from writing Good Will Hunting with Affleck, and he was nominated for Best Picture for producing Manchester by the Sea. 

George Clooney has been nominated for and won Oscars in all sorts of categories. Aside from his performance win, he’s won for Best Picture and been nominated as a director and a screenwriter. Can’t say he’s not talented. 

Fans know that Owen Wilson is a funny guy who stars in funny movies, but he’s also a fantastic writer. Wilson was nominated alongside acclaimed writer/director Wes Anderson for writing the Anderson-directed film The Royal Tenenbaums. 

Successful Saturday Night Live actors often go on to have great careers, but few of them manage to be nominated for Oscars. Kristen Wiig is one of those select few, nabbing a nod for writing Bridesmaids. 

For a while, Billy Bob Thornton was too busy getting engaged to women and wearing vials of their blood around his neck for people to remember that he was actually incredibly talented. Thornton has one Oscar and multiple nominations to his name, and his win comes from writing the film Sling Blade. 

Emma Thompson won two Oscars for the same film. She wasn’t the first person to do this, and she certainly wasn’t the last, but hers is quite unique in that she won for both her performance and the adapted screenplay for Sense and Sensibility. 

Jordan Peele might be best recognized as an actor, and his comedic work is certainly laudable. But none of his Oscar nominations have come from acting. He’s been nominated four times across three categories, with his win coming from writing the 2017 horror film Get Out. 

Sylvester Stallone is best known for his work in the titular role in the Rocky series, but one of his Oscar nominations comes from writing the film’s screenplay. He was also nominated for his performance in that film, making him one of the few actors ever to be nominated in those distinct categories for the same film. 

Denzel Washington is one fine actor, and he’s got two Oscars to prove it. But he’s also a fine producer, and his one Oscar nomination outside of acting categories is for producing the film Fences. Washington was also nominated for his performance in that film. 

Bradley Cooper has been nominated for an Oscar a mind-boggling 12 times, and the accomplished filmmaker has yet to win. Only a handful of Cooper’s nominations are for his performances, with the others coming from producing and writing films such as Joker and Maestro. 

Ron Howard has had plenty of happy days since he rose to fame as a sitcom actor. Howard’s two Oscar wins come from directing and producing A Beautiful Mind, and he was nominated again in those same categories for the film Frost/Nixon. 

Older generations will know Rob Reiner best from his work on All in the Family, and younger generations will recognize him from his appearances on New Girl. His one Oscar nomination isn’t for acting, though. It comes from producing the film A Few Good Men. 

When you’ve been in the business as long as Robert De Niro, it’s natural to branch out beyond acting. The two-time Oscar winner earned both his statues for acting, but he was once nominated as a producer for the 2019 film The Irishman. 

Warren Beatty has tons of Oscar nominations, and they span categories. His win comes from directing the film Reds, and he’s been nominated for writing, producing, and acting multiple times. His other Academy-recognized films include Bonnie and Clyde and Heaven Can Wait. 

Emerald Fennell isn’t an A-list actor like others on this list, but many will recognize her from her performances in Call the Midwife, The Crown, and even Barbie. Her Oscar nominations come from directing and producing the film Promising Young Woman, and her Oscar win comes from writing the film. 

Clint Eastwood has a whopping four Oscar wins, but none of them are for acting (although he has been nominated for one of his performances). Eastwood is also an accomplished producer and director, lending his magic to films like American Sniper and Million Dollar Baby.