6 Best Oscar Best Actor Winners of the 1970s

By Vlad Zakh · June 20, 2026

Drama intensethought provoking

The Academy Award for Best Actor in the 1970s crowned a bold, transformative decade of raw and unflinching leading performances.

Coming Home (1978) 01

Coming Home (1978)

IMDb ★ 6.8

A woman volunteering at a veterans hospital falls for a paralyzed soldier while her husband serves in Vietnam.

The Goodbye Girl (1977) 02

The Goodbye Girl (1977)

IMDb ★ 6.9

A struggling actor sublets an apartment already occupied by a single mother and her precocious daughter.

Network (1976) 03

Network (1976)

IMDb ★ 7.9

A washed-up news anchor's on-air breakdown is cynically exploited by network executives desperate for ratings.

Harry and Tonto (1974) 04

Harry and Tonto (1974)

IMDb ★ 7.0

An elderly widower and his beloved cat embark on a cross-country journey after being evicted from their home.

Save the Tiger (1973) 05

Save the Tiger (1973)

IMDb ★ 6.9

A disillusioned garment manufacturer contemplates arson and moral compromise to save his failing business.

Patton (1970) 06

Patton (1970)

IMDb ★ 7.9

A brilliant but controversial general's relentless drive to victory clashes with his volatile temperament during World War II.

Vlad Zakh

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix, built to fix a specific annoyance: most recommendation sites are just algorithm-driven noise. Our lists are researched and organized by who's in a film, where it's from, and the mood you're actually in tonight.