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This article lists the oldest and youngest Academy Award winners and nominees in the directing and acting award categories. This list is current as of the 98th Academy Awards ceremony held on March 15, 2026, and is based on statistics documented in The Official Academy Awards Database.
| Superlative | Overall | Director | Actor/Supporting Actor | Actress/Supporting Actress | ||||
| Oldest Nominee | Christopher Plummer | Age 88 | Martin Scorsese | Age 81 | Christopher Plummer | Age 88 | Gloria Stuart | Age 87 |
| Oldest Winner | Anthony Hopkins | Age 83 | Clint Eastwood | Age 74 | Anthony Hopkins | Age 83 | Jessica Tandy | Age 80 |
| Youngest Nominee | Justin Henry | Age 8 | John Singleton | Age 24 | Justin Henry | Age 8 | Quvenzhané Wallis | Age 9 |
| Youngest Winner | Tatum O'Neal | Age 10 | Damien Chazelle | Age 32 | Timothy Hutton | Age 20 | Tatum O'Neal | Age 10 |
| Rank | Age | Name | Film | Year in Film | Date of Birth | Date of Award | Notes |
| 1 | 74 years, 272 days | Clint Eastwood | Million Dollar Baby | 2004 | May 31, 1930 | February 27, 2005 | Has held record for 21 years (2005–present) |
| 2 | 69 years, 217 days | Roman Polanski | The Pianist | 2002 | August 18, 1933 | March 23, 2003 | Held record for 2 years (2003–2005) |
| 3 | 67 years, 331 days | Jane Campion | The Power of the Dog | 2021 | April 30, 1954 | March 27, 2022 | |
| 4 | 65 years, 272 days | George Cukor | My Fair Lady | 1964 | July 7, 1899 | April 5, 1965 | Held record for 38 years (1965–2003) |
| 5 | 64 years, 100 days | Martin Scorsese | The Departed | 2006 | November 17, 1942 | February 25, 2007 | |
| 6 | 62 years, 302 days | Clint Eastwood | Unforgiven | 1992 | May 31, 1930 | March 29, 1993 | |
| 7 | 62 years, 105 days | Carol Reed | Oliver! | 1968 | December 30, 1906 | April 14, 1969 | |
| 8 | 59 years, 346 days | Fred Zinnemann | A Man for All Seasons | 1966 | April 29, 1907 | April 10, 1967 | |
| 9 | 59 years, 225 days | Richard Attenborough | Gandhi | 1982 | August 29, 1923 | April 11, 1983 | |
| 10 | 59 years, 46 days | John Ford | The Quiet Man | 1952 | February 1, 1894 | March 19, 1953 | Held record for 12 years (1953–1965) |
| Rank | Age | Name | Film | Year in Film | Date of Birth | Date of Nomination | Notes |
| 1 | 81 years, 67 days | Martin Scorsese | Killers of the Flower Moon | 2023 | November 17, 1942 | January 23, 2024 | Has held record for 2 years (2024–present) |
| 2 | 79 years, 184 days | John Huston | Prizzi's Honor | 1985 | August 5, 1906 | February 5, 1986 | Held record for 38 years (1986–2024) |
| 3 | 78 years, 193 days | Charles Crichton | A Fish Called Wanda | 1988 | August 6, 1910 | February 15, 1989 | |
| 4 | 77 years, 57 days | Martin Scorsese | The Irishman | 2019 | November 17, 1942 | January 13, 2020 | |
| 5 | 76 years, 357 days | Robert Altman | Gosford Park | 2001 | February 20, 1925 | February 12, 2002 | |
| 6 | 76 years, 318 days | David Lean | A Passage to India | 1984 | March 25, 1908 | February 6, 1985 | Held record for 1 year (1985–1986) |
| 7 | 76 years, 237 days | Clint Eastwood | Letters from Iwo Jima | 2006 | May 31, 1930 | January 23, 2007 | |
| 8 | 76 years, 55 days | Woody Allen | Midnight in Paris | 2011 | November 30, 1935 | January 24, 2012 | |
| 9 | 76 years, 37 days | Steven Spielberg | The Fabelmans | 2022 | December 18, 1946 | January 24, 2023 | |
| 10 | 75 years, 319 days | Akira Kurosawa | Ran | 1985 | March 23, 1910 | February 5, 1986 |
| Rank | Age | Name | Film | Year in Film | Date of Birth | Date of Award | Notes |
| 1 | 32 years, 38 days | Damien Chazelle | La La Land | 2016 | January 19, 1985 | February 26, 2017 | Has held record for 9 years (2017–present) |
| 2 | 32 years, 260 days | Norman Taurog | Skippy | 1930/31 | February 23, 1899 | November 10, 1931 | Held record for 86 years (1931–2017) |
| 3 | 33 years, 228 days | Lewis Milestone | Two Arabian Knights | 1927/28 | September 30, 1895 | May 16, 1929 | Held record for 2 years (1929–1931) |
| 4 | 34 years, 238 days | Sam Mendes | American Beauty | 1999 | August 1, 1965 | March 26, 2000 | |
| 5 | 35 years, 23 days | Frank Borzage | 7th Heaven | 1927/28 | April 23, 1894 | May 16, 1929 | |
| 6 | 35 years, 30 days | Daniel Kwan | Everything Everywhere All at Once | 2022 | February 10, 1988 | March 12, 2023 | |
| 7 | 35 years, 36 days | Lewis Milestone | All Quiet on the Western Front | 1929/30 | September 30, 1895 | November 5, 1930 | |
| 8 | 35 years, 278 days | Daniel Scheinert | Everything Everywhere All at Once | 2022 | June 7, 1987 | March 12, 2023 | |
| 9 | 35 years, 313 days | Tony Richardson | Tom Jones | 1963 | June 5, 1928 | April 13, 1964 | |
| 10 | 36 years, 1 day | Francis Ford Coppola | The Godfather Part II | 1974 | April 7, 1939 | April 8, 1975 |
| Rank | Age | Name | Film | Year in Film | Date of Birth | Date of Nomination | Notes |
| 1 | 24 years, 44 days | John Singleton | Boyz n the Hood | 1991 | January 6, 1968 | February 19, 1992 | Has held record for 34 years (1992–present) |
| 2 | 26 years, 279 days | Orson Welles | Citizen Kane | 1941 | May 6, 1915 | February 9, 1942 | Held record for 50 years (1942–1992) |
| 3 | 29 years, 66 days | Kenneth Branagh | Henry V | 1989 | December 10, 1960 | February 14, 1990 | |
| 4 | 29 years, 113 days | Claude Lelouch | A Man and a Woman | 1966 | October 30, 1937 | February 20, 1967 | |
| 5 | 29 years, 193 days | M. Night Shyamalan | The Sixth Sense | 1999 | August 6, 1970 | February 15, 2000 | |
| 6 | 29 years, 281 days | George Lucas | American Graffiti | 1973 | May 14, 1944 | February 19, 1974 | |
| 7 | 30 years, 88 days | Benh Zeitlin | Beasts of the Southern Wild | 2012 | October 14, 1982 | January 10, 2013 | |
| 8 | 30 years, 95 days | Jason Reitman | Juno | 2007 | October 19, 1977 | January 22, 2008 | |
| 9 | 30 years, 116 days | Spike Jonze | Being John Malkovich | 1999 | October 22, 1969 | February 15, 2000 | |
| 10 | 31 years, 65 days | Steven Spielberg | Close Encounters of the Third Kind | 1977 | December 18, 1946 | February 21, 1978 |