Can two actors from the same movie both be nominated for best actor Oscars?

Answer 1

Not only can there be two, but there also was an instance in which three men from the same film vied for a Best Actor Oscar.

The 1935 race included three actors from "Mutiny on the Bounty": Clark Gable, who played mutineer Fletcher Christian; Charles Laughton, who starred as the oppressive Captain Bligh; and Franchot Tone, who appeared as midshipman Roger Byam.

The winner that year was Victor McLaglen for his performance in "The Informer" (the fifth nominee was Paul Muni for "Black Fury").

The 1944 Best Actor race was a bit bizarre because Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald were nominated for their performances as priests in "Going My Way." But Fitzgerald also was nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for the same role. The rules were later changed so this couldn't happen again. Crosby won the Best Actor Award; Fitzgerald won for Best Supporting Actor.

There also were two nominees from one picture in 1953, 1956, 1958, 1961, 1964, 1969, 1972, 1976 and 1983.

The last time two actors from the same movie received Best Actor nominations was in 1984. Both F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce were nominated for their performances in "Amadeus." The award went to Abraham, who played Salieri to Hulce's Mozart.