In almost 100 years of the Oscars, only 10 movie musicals have been honored with the Academy Award for Best Picture, and can you believe it has been over 20 years since a musical took home the gold in this category!? With 10 Oscar nominations this year, including the coveted Best Picture, will Wicked be the film to defy...the odds and take top prize at 97th Academy Awards? Does gold go good with green?
As we countdown to Oscars night on Sunday March 2, let’s take a look back at some of the movie musicals that have sparkled on the silver screen and left their mark on Hollywood history with the Academy Award for Best Picture. And the winners are...
An American in Paris (1952)
An American in Paris was the first musical shot in color to win Best Picture. Starring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron, the film tells the story of two friends who fall in love with the same Parisian woman. Kelly took home an honorary Academy Award for his work as an actor, singer, director, and choreographer for the film. The movie was adapted for the stage in a 2015 Broadway musical production.
Gigi (1959)
Based on a 1944 novella by French writer Collette, Gigi is about an unexpected romance between a young girl and a charming French playboy. Despite its somewhat controversial plotline today, the film won nine Oscars. It was adapted for the stage in 1973 and again in 2015 in a production starring Vanessa Hudgens.
West Side Story (1962)
Adapted from the 1957 Broadway musical, West Side Story is a twist on Romeo & Juliet that tells the tale of two star-crossed lovers from opposite sides of their neighborhood in New York City during a modern-day gang war. Rita Moreno won the award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in this film. In 2021, the musical returned to the big screen, directed by Steven Spielberg. It received seven nominations from the Academy, and although it didn’t win Best Picture, Ariana Debose won Best Supporting Actress for her role as Anita.
My Fair Lady (1965)
After winning six Tony awards for the stage musical, My Fair Lady was finally adapted to a film version in 1964. The storyline follows an arrogant phonetics professor trying to transform a poor flower seller into a proper English woman. One of the lead stars, Rex Harrison, won Best Actor for his role in the movie. The film won eight awards in total, beating out others like Mary Poppins and Becket.
The Sound of Music (1966)
The Sound of Music is a film adaptation from the 1959 Tony award-winning stage musical. It follows a young Austrian nun who becomes a private tutor to the seven children of a retired naval officer. Although Julie Andrews did not win any awards for her leading role, The Sound of Music was the highest-grossing film of its year and took home five Oscars.
Oliver! (1969)
Based on Charles Dickens’ novel Oliver Twist, Oliver! follows a young runaway orphan boy who eventually gets involved with a band of thieves. The stage musical premiered in London in 1960 and on Broadway in 1963. The film was the last movie musical to win Best Picture in the 20th century.
Chicago (2003)
After a 34-year dry spell, Chicago is the most recent movie musical that has won the Best Picture award at the Oscars. Directed by Rob Marshall, the film is an adaption of the 1975 stage musical about two women in the 1920s willing to do anything to survive the upcoming executions in their prison. Catherine-Zeta Jones won the award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film.
Since Chicago, no movie musical has won the coveted Best Picture statuette; however, many have been nominated for the award like La La Land, Les Misérables, A Star is Born, and Bohemian Rhapsody. Tune in to the Academy Awards on Sunday, March 2 to see if Wicked will thrillify film’s biggest night with an Oscar win!
