2) Robert De Niro – “Raging Bull” (2 of 10)
2) Robert De Niro – “Raging Bull” (2 of 10)
Category: Best Actor
Year: 1980
Robert De Niro had been absolutely on fire when he was nominated for Best Actor for “Raging Bull”. He had already been nominated for Best Actor for “The Deer Hunter” and “Taxi Driver”, but his transformative performance as boxer Jake LaMotta in “Raging Bull” that firmly established him as “actor of his generation”.
He took method acting to another level, with physical training in an unfamiliar art, along with dramatic weight loss and gain. Not to mention the emotional switchbacks and the kind of empathy his acting inspired in a character that wasn’t very likable. It all translates into one of the finest Oscar winning performances of all time.