| | 1928 - Wings - First (and only) silent film to win Best Picture |
| | 1928 - Wings - Winner of the first Academy award for Best Picture |
| | 1928 - Wings - First war film to be nominated and win Best Picture |
| | 1929 - The Broadway Melody - First winner for Best Picture to receive an acting nomination |
| | 1929 - The Broadway Melody - First musical to win Best Picture |
| | 1929 - The Broadway Melody - First film to win Best Picture without winning any other Academy Awards |
| | 1929 - The Broadway Melody - First sound film to win Best Picture |
| | 1931 - Cimarron - First Western to win Best Picture |
| | 1931 - Cimarron - First film to be nominated for every major Academy Award, including Best Picture |
| | 1931 - Skippy - First (and only) film based on a comic book, comic strip, or graphic novel to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1932 - Grand Hotel - First (and only) film to win Best Picture without receiving any other nominations |
| | 1933 - She Done Him Wrong - Shortest film to be nominated for Best Picture (1 hour 6 minutes) |
| | 1934 - It Happened One Night - First of only three films to win every major Academy Award, including Best Picture |
| | 1934 - It Happened One Night - First Best Picture nominee to win both Best Actor and Best Actress |
| | 1934 - It Happened One Night - First comedy to win Best Picture |
| | 1935 - Mutiny on the Bounty - Last film to date to win Best Picture without winning any other Academy Awards |
| | 1935 - A Midsummer Night's Dream - First Shakespeare adaptation to be nominated for Best Picture (*one of its two Oscars was a write-in winner) |
| | 1937 - A Star Is Born - First all-color film nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1937 - The Life of Emile Zola - First biographical picture (biopic) to win Best Picture |
| | 1939 - Gone with the Wind - First all-color film to win Best Picture |
| | 1939 - The Wizard of Oz - First children's film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1939 - Gone with the Wind - Longest film to win Best Picture (3 hours 54 minutes) |
| | 1940 - Rebecca - First thriller to win Best Picture |
| | 1942 - Mrs. Miniver - First Best Picture nominee to receive nominations in all of the four acting categories |
| | 1943 - The Ox-Bow Incident - Last film to date to be nominated for Best Picture and no other award |
| | 1945 - The Bells of St. Mary's - First sequel to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1950 - All About Eve - First of only two films to receive 14 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture |
| | 1951 - Decision Before Dawn - First film to be nominated for Best Picture and only one other award after the switch to five nominees in 1944 |
| | 1953 - From Here to Eternity - Last Best Picture winner to date to receive nominations in all of the four acting categories |
| | 1953 - The Robe - First motion picture (and Best Picture nominee) in CinemaScope |
| | 1955 - Marty - Shortest film to win Best Picture (1 hour 31 minutes) |
| | 1955 - Marty - First (and only) film based on a television movie or mini-series to win Best Picture |
| | 1959 - Ben-Hur - First of only three films to win 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture |
| | 1960 - The Apartment - Last black-and-white film before 1993 (and last entirely in B&W) to win Best Picture |
| | 1961 - West Side Story - First of only two Best Picture winners to have more than one credited director (Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise) |
| | 1962 - Lawrence of Arabia - Only Best Picture winner to have credited roles for actors of only one gender |
| | 1966 - Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? - First (and only) Best Picture nominee to be nominated for every award category in which it was eligible |
| | 1967 - In the Heat of the Night - First (and only) mystery to win Best Picture |
| | 1968 - Oliver! - First (and only) G-rated film to date to win Best Picture |
| | 1968 - Oliver! - First film with an MPAA rating to win Best Picture |
| | 1969 - Midnight Cowboy - First (and only) X-rated film to win Best Picture |
| | 1970 - Patton - First PG-rated film to win Best Picture |
| | 1971 - A Clockwork Orange - Last X-rated film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1971 - A Clockwork Orange - First science Fiction film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1971 - The French Connection - First R-rated film to win Best Picture |
| | 1972 - Cabaret - Best Picture nominee to win the most Academy Awards (8) without winning Best Picture |
| | 1973 - The Exorcist - First horror film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1974 - The Godfather Part II - First sequel to win Best Picture. |
| | 1975 - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Second of only three films to win every major Academy Award, including Best Picture |
| | 1976 - Rocky - First sports film to win Best Picture |
| | 1977 - The Turning Point - First of two Best Picture nominees to receive 11 nominations without winning any Academy Awards |
| | 1980 - Ordinary People - Last film to date to win Best Picture without a Best Film Editing nomination. |
| | 1981 - Reds - Last Best Picture nominee to date to receive nominations in all four of the acting categories |
| | 1985 - The Color Purple - First PG-13-rated to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1985 - Kiss of the Spider Woman - First Independent film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1985 - The Color Purple - Second of two Best Picture nominees to receive 11 nominations without winning any Academy Awards |
| | 1986 - Children of a Lesser God - First film directed by a woman (Randa Haines) to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1987 - The Last Emperor - First PG-13-rated film to win Best Picture |
| | 1989 - Driving Miss Daisy - Last film to date to win Best Picture without being nominated for Best Director |
| | 1989 - Driving Miss Daisy - Last Best Picture winner to date with a PG rating (or lower) |
| | 1990 - The Godfather Part III - First of only two trilogies to have all three films nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1991 - Beauty and the Beast - First animated film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1991 - The Silence of the Lambsa - Last Best Picture winner to date to win both Best Actor and Best Actress |
| | 1991 - The Silence of the Lambs - First (and only) horror film to win Best Picture |
| | 1991 - The Silence of the Lambs - Third of only three films to win every major Academy Award, including Best Picture |
| | 1991 - Beauty and the Beast - First and only hand drawn animated film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1993 - Schindler's List - First (and only) black-and-white film after 1960 to win Best Picture (though with some color sequences) |
| | 1993 - The Fugitive - First film based on a television series to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 1997 - Titanic - First Best Picture winner to be produced, directed, written, and edited by the same person (James Cameron) |
| | 1997 - Titanic - Last film to date to win Best Picture without a screenplay nomination (Adapted or Original) |
| | 1997 - Titanic - Second of only two films to receive 14 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picturea |
| | 1997 - Titanic - First Best Picture winner to gross over US$1,000,000,000, worldwide.[10] |
| | 1997 - As Good As It Gets - Last Best Picture nominee to date to win both Best Actor and Best Actress |
| | 1998 - Shakespeare in Love - Last comedy to date to win Best Picture |
| | 1998 - Shakespeare in Love - Most Oscars without a Best Director win |
| | 2000 - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - First (and only) martial arts film to date to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 2000 - Traffic - Last Best Picture nominee to date to have been based on a television movie or mini-series |
| | 2001 - A Beautiful Mind - Last biopic to date to win Best Picture |
| | 2002 - Chicago - Last musical to date to win (or be nominated for) Best Picture |
| | 2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - Third of only three films to date to win 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture |
| | 2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - Last film to date to win Best Picture and all of its other nominated categories |
| | 2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - Second of only two trilogies to have all three films nominated for Best Picture, and only one to have the third installment win. |
| | 2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - First (and only) fantasy film to date to win Best Picture |
| | 2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - First (and only) film to date with ten or more nominations (11) to win in every nomination it received including Best Picture |
| | 2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - First (and only) film to win more than 10 awards (including Best Picture) and not receive an acting nomination |
| | 2004 - Million Dollar Baby - Last film to date to be nominated for every major Academy Award, including Best Picture |
| | 2004 - The Aviator - Last film to date to win the most Academy Awards (5) in its year without winning Best Picture |
| | 2005 - Good Night, and Good Luck - Last black-and-white film to date to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 2006 - The Departed - First (and only) remake of an original film (Infernal Affairs) to win Best Picture |
| | 2007 - No Country for Old Men - Last Best Picture winner to date to have more than one credited director (Joel and Ethan Coen) |
| | 2008 - Slumdog Millionaire - Last film to date to win Best Picture without receiving any acting nominations |
| | 2009 - The Hurt Locker - First (and only) Best Picture winner directed by a woman (Kathryn Bigelow) |
| | 2009 - The Hurt Locker - Lowest-grossing film after 1955 to win Best Picture |
| | 2009 - Avatar - First nominee to be entirely filmed using 3D technology |
| | 2009 - Precious - First (and only) Best Picture nominee directed by a black person (Lee Daniels) |
| | 2009 - Up - First computer animated film to be nominated for Best Picture |
| | 2010 - Toy Story 3 - Only sequel to be nominated for Best Picture without any of its predecessors being nominated |