Initially,Bradley Cooperfound success as an actor in movies that weren’t exactly the kinds that got Oscar nominations.The Hangovergave him a pretty big early role, and had its merits as a comedy (the less said about the sequels, the better), but Cooper didn’t really find Oscar success until he branched out a little and started starring in more dramatic movies. Some of these are dramedies, sure, while others are full-on dramas, and Cooper has also directed himself in two feature films to date, and received acting nominations for those movies, too.
As of 2025, there are five movies for which Bradley Cooper has received an acting nomination at the Academy Awards, and they’re all ranked below, starting with something of a misfire and ending with his best work as an actor. Things may change, but for now, his filmography stands out for how many nominations he’s received without a win, as if you include nominations for Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Picture, he’s received a total of 12. He might get there one day. For now, though,here’s a ranking focused on those times he’s got an acting nomination at Hollywood’s biggest annual awards show.
5’Maestro' (2023)
Nominated for Best Actor for playing Leonard Bernstein
There’s no nice way to say this, butMaestrois one of the most desperate movies ever made. What does that mean? It’s another way of saying that it just oozes this energy of trying too hard. As mentioned before, Academy Award wins have eluded Bradley Cooper for more than a decade now, and not for a lack of trying, since he has received so many nominations. After a successful 2018 film about music that he both starred in and directed, Cooper pushed further and tried to make lightning not just strike twice, but strike harder and with more electricity, or force, or whatever.
Cooper’s work in front of and behind the camera isn’t even terrible; it’s just all trying a bit too hard.
And it didn’t work.Maestroisa tribute toLeonard Bernsteinthat can be admired for some of the ambition on offer, but it’s all a bit misguided. Big swings can only be appreciated so much when all those big swings result in misses.Cooper’s work in front ofand behind the camera isn’t even terrible; it’s just all trying a bit too hard.Carey Mulliganleans into the melodrama of it all a little more effectively, but not even she can make some of the more tedious scenes here work. Itends up feeling like a fairly mediocre biopic, andone that was – it really has to be stressed –trying way too hard to win Oscars.
4’American Hustle' (2013)
Nominated for Best Supporting Actor for playing Richie DiMaso
Forming one part ofan overall remarkable cast,American Hustle, to date, contains the only performance of Bradley Cooper’s that was for Best Supporting Actor, since the other four nominations were for leading roles. In the film, he plays a hot-headed FBI agent who ends up getting a pair of con artists to work with him. The alliance isn’t really an alliance, owing to how uneasy such cooperation is, but they’re all purportedly working to take down corrupt New Jersey politicians. Complications, naturally, ensue, and things get more hectic when the mafia becomes involved.
There’s a rambling quality toAmerican Hustlethat’s kind of fun at first, but does eventually make things feel a little exhausting, and it doesn’t help that the movie might be a tad too long, too. But when it’s on, it’s pretty entertaining, and the acting is what really helps carry it, even during the points when the story might lose you. Cooper is good, as are his co-stars, withthree others earningnominations: Christian Bale for Best Actor, Amy Adams for Best Actress, and Jennifer Lawrence for Best Supporting Actress.
American Hustle
3’American Sniper' (2014)
Nominated for Best Actor for playing Chris Kyle
One year on fromAmerican Hustle, Bradley Cooper starred in another “American” movie that saw him get some recognition from the Oscars:American Sniper. This one wasdirected byClint Eastwoodin typically efficient fashion,being a no-nonsenselook at the life of Chris Kyle, who was a Navy SEAL recognized for his effectiveness as a sniper. There’s a contrast between the war scenes and the parts of the film with Kyle back in America, more or less exploring how being wrapped up in conflict might change – or not change – a person’s life back home.
If it all sounds a bit dicey or divisive, it’s surprisingly not, sinceAmerican Sniperdoesn’t really preach, and more just presents. Of course, depending on your outlook, maybe you’d think that such an approach in itself is troubling because itdoesn’t totally pick a side or criticize warin an in-your-face way (it can be compared to the more recentWarfare, in this regard). Overall, though, the movie is interesting both for what it does and what it doesn’t do, and is the kind that should be approached with as open a mind as possible.American Sniper, though imperfect, does avoid feeling like Oscar bait as far as its acting goes, since Cooper is more low-key and less showy than usual, and gives such a performance in a surprisingly effective manner.
American Sniper
2’A Star Is Born' (2018)
Nominated for Best Actor for playing Jackson Maine
As a directorial debut,A Star Is Bornis pretty impressive. Sure, it’s another take on a well-worn story that’s been told before (quite well, on most occasions), but it had been more than four decadessince the lastStarwasBorn, and this 2018 take on the story brings enough new to the table. Once more, it’s about two people who form a relationship and then get challenged because, professionally, both are at very different points in their lives. One is starting to achieve fame, and the other is falling further away from the spotlight.
Admittedly,Lady Gaga does get to shine brighter here, but that’s fitting in its own way, considering her character’s the one on the rise, and Cooper’s character is the one who’s fading away from public consciousness.A Star Is Bornwon’t offer a ton of surprises to anyone, even people who might not have seenany other movie calledA Star Is Born, but that’s not why this story is appealing. It’s inevitable, tragic, and timeless kind of because it always goes in the direction it inevitably does, and Cooper’s work here is much stronger, as both an actor and director, than it was inMaestrofive years later.
A Star is Born
1’Silver Linings Playbook' (2012)
Nominated for Best Actor for playing Pat Solitano Jr.
Silver Linings Playbookmarked the first time Bradley Cooper received an Oscar nomination for acting and, to date, it still probably has the best performance he’s ever given. It is a showier one than the performances he gave in eitherAmerican SniperorA Star Is Born, but it’s a big performance that suits the grand emotions the entire film is going for; namely, it attempts toride a line between comedy and drama throughout, and does so surprisingly well.
Also,Silver Linings Playbookis a romance film, centering on a troubled man who tries to be amicable with an ex-partner while trying to start up a relationship with another woman, all the while also dealing with family drama after he moves back in with his parents. There’s a lot going on with the characters here, even if there’s not much by way of a complex plot, but that’s okay when it’s clearly trying to be character-focused. It navigates some difficult waters thematically and tonally rather well, and remains perhapsthe best showcase for what Bradley Cooper is capable of, as a leading man.
