With the Academy Awards 2026 just days away, the conversation in Hollywood has already started. Every year, the Academy honours the industry’s finest, but while many spend a lifetime building their careers, a select few have reached the pinnacle of cinema before adulthood. Over the years, a few young stars have impressed the Academy with performances that audiences still remember.
Shirley Temple
Long before modern child stars became common, Shirley Temple was already a sensation. In the 1930s, she was one of the biggest names at the box office in the United States. Her films drew huge crowds, and her cheerful personality made her one of the most recognisable faces in Hollywood.
Temple made Oscar history when she received a special juvenile award for her performance in Bright Eyes. She was only six years old when she received the honour, making her the youngest person ever recognised by the Academy. Her success opened the door for many young performers who followed. Temple later stepped away from acting and eventually served as a diplomat. She died in 2014 at the age of 84.
Timothy Hutton
Timothy Hutton also entered Oscar history at a young age. He was twenty when he won the Best Supporting Actor award for his role in Ordinary People.
The film, directed by Robert Redford, tells the story of a family dealing with grief after a tragedy. Hutton’s performance as a troubled teenager received strong praise and helped him secure the award.
Marlee Matlin
Marlee Matlin created another memorable Oscar moment. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress at the age of twenty-one for her role in Children of a Lesser God.
Marlee Matlin gave a powerful performance that impressed both audiences and critics. Her win was historic because she became the first deaf actor to receive an Oscar.
Tatum O’Neal
Another name that still appears in Oscar record books is Tatum O’Neal. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at just ten years old. The award came for her performance in Paper Moon.
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich, the film starred Tatum alongside her father, actor Ryan O’Neal. She played a clever young girl travelling across America with a conman. Her natural acting style and confidence impressed both critics and the Academy. Even today, she remains the youngest winner in a competitive acting category.
Anna Paquin
Anna Paquin joined the list of young Oscar winners when she took home the Best Supporting Actress award at the age of eleven. She received the honour for her performance in the film The Piano.
It was her first film role, but that did not stop her from delivering a powerful performance. Her character, a young girl caught in a complicated emotional world, became one of the most talked-about roles of that year. The win marked the beginning of a long acting career.
Markéta Irglová
Not every young Oscar winner is an actor. Markéta Irglová, a musician and songwriter, was only nineteen when she won an Academy Award. She shared the Best Original Song honour for “Falling Slowly,” featured in the film Once.
The song, written and performed with Glen Hansard, became one of the highlights of the film and later gained a large international following.