The Three Movies That Hold the Record for Winning the Most Oscars Also Earned the Best Costume Design Award

The 2023 Academy Awards takes place on Sunday in Los Angeles at 8 p.m. ET. The ceremony will see a slate of films battle it out for the most coveted awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress and Best Actor. “Everything Everywhere All at Once” currently leads the pack with the most Oscar nominations, earning 11 nods.

If the film wins in every category, it would join three other films that have won the most Oscars, including for Best Costume Design. The current record for films with 11 awards includes “Ben-Hur,” “Titanic” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”

WWD has rounded up standout facts about the films with the most Oscars.

“Ben-Hur” (1959); 12 nominations

A remake of the 1925 silent film of the same name, “Ben-Hur” had the largest sets built of any film produced at the time. The movie is an adaptation of Lew Wallace’s 1880 novel “Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ.” The film tells the story of an aristocrat living in Judaea who incurs the wrath of a childhood friend, now a Roman tribune.

As a period piece, much detail went into the costumes on the film. Costume designer Elizabeth Haffenden had a staff of over 100 wardrobe fabricators to make the costumes. At the 1960 Academy Awards, the film received 12 nominations, winning 11, including Best Costume Design. Haffenden would go on to win the Oscar for Best Costume Design again in 1966 for “A Man for All Seasons.”

The film won the following categories:

“Titanic” (1997); 14 nominations

Director James Cameron’s 1997 film “Titanic” arguably made stars out of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. At the time, “Titanic” was the most expensive film ever made with a $200 million budget. To date, the film has grossed $2.249 billion worldwide.

At the 1998 Academy Awards, Deborah Lynn Scott took home the award for Best Costume Design for her depiction of the wealthy and working class Titanic passengers in the 1910s. From the character Jack’s more everyman costumes to the character Rose’s more opulent gowns, she didn’t miss a beat when it came to outfitting the film. Scott would go on to costume more of Cameron’s films, including “Avatar” and “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

The film won the following categories:

“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”; 11 nominations

“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” made history when it won all 11 of its nominations. The film marked the final installment in the “Lord of the Rings” franchise, making its Oscars moment a momentous one for the trilogy’s conclusion.

Among the accolades was Best Costume Design for Ngila Dickson and Richard Taylor. The two were previously nominated for Best Costume Design for “Lord of the Rings: Return of the King.” They managed to bring the world of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy series to life with everything from wizard robes to elves’ armor.

The film won the following categories: