The 2016 Academy Awards have fallen under some of their biggest criticism this year not only due to the lack of nominee diversity but also for the alleged snub of an up-and-coming actor. Nine-year-old Jacob Tremblay stole hearts with his acceptance speech at the Critics’ Choice Awards, but he somehow failed to achieve an Oscar nomination for his performance in the drama “Room.”
Was Tremblay too young? This would be a strange this for Hollywood as they’ve always lived and breathed youth and the next big thing no matter how young they were. Far from being a pint-sized novelty in Hollywood, child actors have a long history of competing for the prestigious award.
Our friends at Pretty Famous queried its celebrity database to compile the youngest Oscar nominees and winners.* This impressive group of 22 competed against Hollywood veterans before they reached their 18th birthdays. Although these young stars had a valuable jump-start in the industry, did their careers continue to burn brightly or sizzle out?
*This list does not include people that won the honorary Oscar called the “Academy Juvenile Award.”