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Only Four Movies Have Done This in History

Creatix / January 18, 2025


It's exceptionally rare for a movie to satisfy Hollywood’s highest institutional honor and the world’s most demanding art-film jury. In more than 75 years of modern cinema, only four movies have won both the Academy Award for Best Picture and Cannes’ top prize, the Palme d'Or.

That rarity is not accidental. The Oscars and Cannes reward different philosophies of cinema, and only four exceptional films in history have managed to bridge the gap.

What Are the Oscars?

The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the United States. Voted on by thousands of industry professionals, the Oscars reflect Hollywood’s collective judgment about excellence in filmmaking.

Best Picture

Best Picture is the Academy’s highest award. It recognizes the film that best combines:

  • Storytelling

  • Direction

  • Acting

  • Technical craft

  • Cultural impact

Winning Best Picture usually means a film has broad appeal and professional respect across the industry.

What Is the Cannes Film Festival?

The Cannes Film Festival, held annually in Cannes, France, is the world’s most prestigious international film festival. Unlike the Oscars, Cannes prizes artistic risk, originality, and directorial vision.

Palme d’Or

The Palme d’Or is Cannes’ highest honor. Awarded by a small international jury, it often goes to films that:

  • Push cinematic boundaries

  • Defy commercial formulas

  • Challenge audiences intellectually or emotionally

Many Palme d’Or winners never become mainstream hits. By the way, many Oscar winners are ignored at Cannes.

Why Winning Both Is So Rare

  • The Oscars reward consensus and craftsmanship

  • Cannes rewards boldness and artistic identity

For a film to win both, it must be:

  • Artistically daring without alienating audiences

  • Accessible without being conventional

  • Deeply local yet universally understood

Only four films have achieved that balance in the history of modern filmmaking. 

The Only Films to Win Both (Without Any Spoilers)

The Lost Weekend (1945)

  • One of the earliest Hollywood films to treat a serious social issue with psychological depth and realism.

  • Visually and narratively bold for its era, influencing decades of dramatic filmmaking.

  • Demonstrated that challenging subject matter could still earn top honors on both sides of the Atlantic.

Marty (1955)

  • A quiet, human-scale story that triumphed over larger, more spectacular productions.

  • Brought everyday speech, ordinary lives, and emotional authenticity into prestige cinema.

  • Proved that subtlety and sincerity could resonate internationally.

Parasite (2019)

  • The first non-English-language film to win the Oscar for Best Picture.

  • Seamlessly blends entertainment and social observation without sacrificing either.

  • Marked a historic shift toward truly global recognition in mainstream cinema.

Anora (2024)

  • A landmark victory for contemporary independent filmmaking.

  • Showed that grounded, modern storytelling can succeed at the very highest level of prestige.

  • Signaled growing overlap between Cannes’ artistic values and the Academy’s evolving tastes.

The Bigger Picture

This list is short because it represents rare moments of global agreement. Rare instances when:

  • Art and accessibility aligned

  • Risk and recognition coexisted

  • Cinema spoke across cultures without compromise

Being nominated for either Best Picture or the Palme d'Or is remarkable. Winning either is extraordinary. Winning both places a film in a category of its own.

Now go ahead and explore these remarkable movies. We intentionally left out any spoilers to spark your curiosity. 

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