American theatre award for Broadway actors
The Tony Award forBest Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play is an honor presented at theTony Awards , a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actors for quality leading roles in aBroadway play. The awards are named afterAntoinette Perry , an American actress who died in 1946.
Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the Tony Award Productions, a joint venture ofThe Broadway League and theAmerican Theatre Wing , to "honor the best performances and stage productions of the previous year."[ 1]
The award was originally called theTony Award for Actors—Play . It was first presented toJosé Ferrer andFredric March at the1st Tony Awards for their portrayals ofCyrano De Bergerac and Clinton Jones inCyrano de Bergerac Years Ago , respectively. Before1956 , nominees' names were not made public;[ 2] [ 3]
Nine actors hold the record for having the most wins in this category, with a total of two.Brian Bedford andJason Robards are tied with the most nominations, with a total of seven. George inWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Winners and nominees [ edit ] indicates the winner
José Ferrer won twice forCyrano de Bergerac (1947) andThe Shrike (1952)Fredric March won twiceYears Ago (1947) and inLong Day's Journey into Night (1957)Henry Fonda won forMister Roberts (1948)Sidney Blackmer won forCome Back, Little Sheba in 1950Ralph Bellamy won forSunrise at Campobello Jason Robards won forThe Disenchanted (1959)Melvyn Douglas won forThe Best Man Zero Mostel won forRhinoceros Paul Scofield won forA Man for All Seasons (1963)Alec Guinness won forDylan (1964)Walter Matthau won forThe Odd Couple (1965)Martin Balsam won forYou Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running James Earl Jones won forThe Great White Hope (1969) and forFences (1987)Alan Bates won twice, forButley (1973) andFortune's Fool (2002)Al Pacino won forThe Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel (1977)Ian McKellen won forAmadeus (1981)Harvey Fierstein won forTorch Song Trilogy (1983)Jeremy Irons won forThe Real Thing (1984)Derek Jacobi won forMuch Ado About Nothing (1985)Judd Hirsch won twice forI'm Not Rappaport (1986) andConversations with My Father (1992)Robert Morse wonTru (1990)Ralph Fiennes forHamlet (1995)Christopher Plummer won forBarrymore (1997)Brian Dennehy won twice forDeath of a Salesman (1999) andLong Days Journey into Night (2003)Jefferson Mays won forI Am My Own Wife in 2004Bill Irwin won forWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (2005)Richard Griffiths won forThe History Boys in 2006Frank Langella won twice for his roles inFrost/Nixon The Father Mark Rylance won forBoeing-Boeing (2008), andJerusalem (2011)Geoffrey Rush won forExit the King in 2009Denzel Washington won forFences James Corden won forOne Man, Two Guvnors (2012)Tracy Letts won forWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Bryan Cranston won twice, forAll the Way Network Kevin Kline won forPresent Laughter Andrew Garfield won forAngels in America Andrew Burnap won forThe Inheritance Simon Russell Beale won forThe Lehman Trilogy Sean Hayes won forGood Night, Oscar Jeremy Strong won forAn Enemy of the People Cole Escola won forOh, Mary! 2 wins 7 nominations 6 nominations 5 nominations 4 nominations 3 nominations 2 nominations Character win total [ edit ] 3 wins 2 wins Character nomination total [ edit ] 4 nominations 3 nominations 2 nominations Productions with multiple nominations [ edit ] boldface =winner
Multiple awards and nominations [ edit ] Actors who have been nominated multiple times in any acting categories ^ Kirkley, Donald (April 21, 1968)."Operation Frenzy Before the Tony Awards" .The Baltimore Sun the original on January 11, 2012. RetrievedDecember 24, 2011 . (subscription required) ^ Simons, Linda Keir (1994).The Performing Arts: a Guide to the Reference Literature ABC-CLIO . p. 137.ISBN 978-0-87287-982-9 Archived from the original on 2013-06-22. Retrieved2012-01-14 . ^ Gelb, Arthur (April 1, 1956)."Popularizing the Tony Awards" .The New York Times . RetrievedJanuary 14, 2011 . (subscription required) ^ "1956 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1957 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1958 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1959 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1960 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1961 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1962 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1963 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1964 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1965 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1966 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1967 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1968 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1969 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1970 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1971 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1972 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1973 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1974 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1975 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1976 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1977 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1978 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1979 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1980 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1981 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1982 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1983 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1984 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1985 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1986 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1987 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1988 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1989 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1990 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1991 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1992 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1993 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1994 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1995 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1996 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1997 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1998 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "1999 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2000 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2001 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2002 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2003 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2004 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2005 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2006 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2007 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2008 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2009 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 11, 2023 .^ "2010 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2011 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2012 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2013 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2014 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "Tony Nominations 2015: Full List" .Variety . April 28, 2015. RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2016 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2017 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2018 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2019 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2020 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2022 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ "2023 Tony Awards Nominees" .American Theatre Wing . May 2, 2023. RetrievedAugust 10, 2023 .^ " .NPR . RetrievedApril 30, 2024 .^ "2025 Tony Awards: 'Buena Vista Social Club,' 'Death Becomes Her,' 'Maybe Happy Ending' Lead Nominations" .The Hollywood Reporter . RetrievedMay 1, 2025 .^ Alter, Rebecca; Frank, Jason P.; Hoepfner, Fran (2025-06-09)."The Highs, Lows, and Whoas of the 2025 Tony Awards" .Vulture . Retrieved2025-06-09 .
1947–1975 1976–2000 2001–present
Play Musical Special (non-competitive) Retired Ceremonies Nominee demographics * Divided into separate awards for plays and musicals
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