TheOscarsset an incredible record 65 years ago as one actress got a nomination for only 2 minutes of screen time. The path to getting an Oscar nomination or win in any acting category ranges from year to year. Still, it is common for Academy Awards voters to recognize performances by actors who are central figures in a film, as seen with theOscar winners with the most screen time. This is a bit trickier in the Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress categories, as these nominees can sometimes only have a few scenes to leave an impression.
Not having a major screen presence has not stopped several people fromwinning Oscars with limited screen time. Anthony Hopkins inThe Silence of the Lambsand Anne Hathaway inLes Misérablesare memorable examples of winners who were on screen for less than 20 minutes.Beatrice Straight holds the Oscar recordfor shortest screen time as a winner after only being inNetworkfor five minutes. Unbelievably, there have been performances with shorter screen times to get nominated - including one actress who was only on screen for two minutes.
Hermione Baddeley Was Nominated For Best Supporting Actress In 1960 For Room At The Top After Minimal Role
She Lost The Oscar To Shelley Winters
The Oscars had a history of nominating short performances in the acting categories before 1960, butHermione Baddeley’s nomination forRoom at the Topwas shorter than ever before. Baddeley appeared in Jack Clayton’s British adaptation of the book by the same name as Elspeth, a friend to the lead female character, Alice Aisgill (Simone Signoret).Room at the Topbecame a major Oscars contender as it earned six nominations. This included Baddeley being one of three acting nominees for the film, which also got Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Room at the Top was released in 1959, making it eligible for the 32nd Academy Awards in 1960
Despite the great performance ofRoom at the Topat the 32nd Academy Awards, the movie only won a single Oscar, which went to Signoret’s lead performance. Baddeley was still recognized for the excellence of her work in only two minutes of screen time. She lost to Shelley Winters (The Diary of Anne Frank). This markedthe only Oscar nomination for Baddeley in her career. While she lost and was never nominated again, her nomination is still historic for the Oscars 65 years later.
Hermione Baddeley Still Holds The Record For Shortest Screen Time As An Oscar Nominee In Any Acting Category
Baddeley Broke A 12 Year Old Record In The Process
Hermione Baddeley’s performance immediately became the shortest-ever Oscar-nominated acting performance. She dethroned Ethel Barrymore (The Paradine Case), who held the record for shortest Oscar-nominated performance for 12 years, according to data fromScreen Time Central. Barrymore was on screen for 3 minutes and 52 seconds inThe Paradine Case, butBaddeley was only featured in 2 minutes and 19 seconds ofRoom at the Top. That’s a one minute and 33 second difference, which is not that great in the grand scheme but is a significant margin when talking about short performances.
Hermione Baddeley (Room at the Top)
2 minutes and 19 seconds
3 minutes and 52 seconds
4 minutes and 22 seconds
4 minutes and 57 seconds
5 minutes and 2 seconds
5 minutes and 9 seconds
5 minutes and 52 seconds
6 minutes and 0 seconds
Best Supporting Actress
6 minutes and 1 second
In the years since Baddeley setting the new Oscars record, no one has managed to beat her in any category. Beatrice Straight is the shortest nomination since 1960, but she still had 5 minutes and 2 seconds of screen time inNetwork. With over double the screen time as Baddeley, this record was not within reach of being broken. At this point, it would take a truly remarkable - and short - performance for anyone to beat thisOscarsrecord.
