List of actors, filmmakers, Hollywood figures who have NOT received the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Posted/Updated: July 2026
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is considered the nation’s highest civilian honor. It was established by President John F. Kennedy in 1963. President Harry S. Truman created the Medal of Freedom (without the word “Presidential”) in 1945 to recognize service to country during wartime and later, national emergencies. Kennedy reestablished and renamed the medal and expanded the scope, decreeing eligible “any person who has made an especially meritorious contribution to (1) the security or national interests of the United States, or (2) world peace, or (3) cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.”
The medal actually has two levels — it can be conferred by the president “with distinction.” Ronald Reagan is the only film figure to receive the award with distinction.
The medal is not limited to American citizens and has occasionally been awarded to deceased individuals. However, the list of honorees indicates that posthumous awardings are rare.
The award apparently is determined by a vote of 1: the president. There are countless candidates of consideration who might never be on the radar of a president of either party.
Some film/Hollywood figures who have not received the Presidential Medal of Freedom:
George Lucas — Creator/director of “Star Wars,” creator/director of “American Graffiti,” generous philanthropist
Jack Nicholson — 3-time Oscar winner, 12-time Oscar nominee over 5 decades, star of “Chinatown,” “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” “The Passenger,” “Broadcast News,” “Batman”
Clint Eastwood — 4-time Oscar winner, 11-time Oscar nominee, preeminent movie star of modern Westerns, acclaimed director, recipient of France’s Légion d’honneur, defier of age, star of “A Fistful of Dollars,” “Unforgiven,” “Escape From Alcatraz,” “In the Line of Fire,” “Dirty Harry”
Tom Cruise — champion of cinema, one of the world’s great entertainers, recipient of U.S. Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award for “outstanding contributions” to the military, recipient of humanitarian award from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, star of “Top Gun,” “Risky Business,” “Magnolia,”
Warren Beatty — Best Director Oscar winner, 14-time Oscar nominee, recipient of Irving G. Thalberg Award, twice an Oscar nominee for acting, directing, writing and producing the same film, adviser to George McGovern, pallbearer for John McCain, star of “McCabe & Mrs. Miller,” “Heaven Can Wait,” “Bonnie and Clyde,” “Shampoo”
Bob Iger — CEO of The Walt Disney Company of nearly 2 decades, Hollywood’s steadiest and most trusted hand, acquired, protected and enhanced the venerable Pixar, Marvel Entertainment and LucasFilm franchises
Jodie Foster: — 2-time Oscar winner, 5-time Oscar nominee, lifelong contribution to, and excellence in, acting and film, Ivy League student, director, producer, star of “The Silence of the Lambs,” “Freaky Friday,” “The Accused,” “Taxi Driver,” “Panic Room”
Sylvester Stallone — Creator/star of “Rocky,” Hollywood’s most humble hero, self-made global superstar, pioneer of cinema’s modern action hero, star of “Rocky II,” “First Blood,” “Paradise Alley,” “Cliffhanger”
Spike Lee — Oscar winner, honorary Oscar recipient, conscientious filmmaker of polarizing subjects, tenured professor at NYU, creator/director of “Do the Right Thing,” “Malcolm X,” “25th Hour”
Quentin Tarantino — Oscar winner, world’s most famous director under 70 and most famous film junkie, celebrated screenwriter, creator/director of “Pulp Fiction,” “Jackie Brown”
Orson Welles — Honorary Academy Award recipient “for superlative artistry and versatility in the creation of motion pictures,” creator/director/star of “Citizen Kane,” most vaunted name in Hollywood production to this day (died 1985)
Sean Penn — 3-time Oscar winner, twice for Best Actor, 6-time Oscar nominee; recipient of Bob Hope Humanitarian Award, staunch supporter of Ukraine, star of “Licorice Pizza,” “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” “Milk,” “Mystic River,” “Daddio”
Michael Douglas — 2-time Oscar winner, actor and producer, generous philanthropist, star of “Wall Street,” “Fatal Attraction,” “The China Syndrome,” “The American President”
List of actors, filmmakers, Hollywood figures who have received the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Below are people prominent in film of Hollywood who have received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, with year of award and president. This list does not include every recipient who was ever in a film or made a movie, only those known at least partly for an association with film. Some of these recipients had careers in film but are more famous for other professions or endeavors:
Walt Disney (Johnson) 1964 — Creator/founder of Walt Disney Productions, one of the world’s greatest artistic contributors and pioneers
Bob Hope (Johnson) 1969 — Hollywood’s ambassador, 19-time Academy Awards host, 5-time recipient of special Academy Awards honors for unselfish contributions to academy, industry and ‘American premise”; tireless entertainer and supporter of troops
Gregory Peck (Johnson) 1969 — Best Actor Oscar winner, 5-time Oscar nominee, recipient of Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, AMPAS president, chairman of AFI, starred in “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “Roman Holiday,”
Samuel Goldwyn (Nixon) 1971 — Recipient of Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award, Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, early motion-picture mogul of Paramount and other studios
John Ford (Nixon) 1973 — 4-time Oscar winner, auteur director of “The Searchers,” “The Grapes of Wrath,” “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance,” commander in the United States Navy Reserve, documentarian of wartime films
John Wayne (Carter) 1980 — Best Actor Oscar winner, preeminent Western hero of Old Hollywood, star of “The Searchers,&rdquoi; “Stagecoach,” “Rio Bravo,” “True Grit,” recipient of Congressional Gold Medal
Kirk Douglas (Carter) 1981 — Honorary Academy Award recipient “for 50 years as a creative and moral force in the motion picture community,” 3-time Oscar nominee, star of “Spartacus,” “The Bad and the Beautiful,” “The Final Countdown,” at one time, oldest celebrity blogger in the world
James Cagney (Reagan) 1984 — Best Actor Oscar winner, 3-time Oscar nominee, star of “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” “Angels with Dirty Faces,” “White Heat,” “Ragtime,” Irish tough guy, dancer
Frank Sinatra (Reagan) 1985 — Oscar winner, recipient of Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, one of world’s most famous voices, star of “From Here to Eternity,” “Ocean’s 11,” “The Manchurian Candidate”
Jimmy Stewart (Reagan) 1985 — Honorary Academy Award recipient, Best Actor Oscar winner, 5-time Best Actor nominee, World War II pilot, recipient of Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross, star of “It’s a Wonderful Life,” “Vertigo,” “Rear Window,” “Airport ’77”
Helen Hayes (Reagan) 1986 — 2-time Oscar winner 39 years apart, first woman of EGOT achievement, star of “Airport,” “Anastasia,” “A Farewell to Arms,” “Herbie Rides Again,” prominent philanthropist
Danny Kaye (Reagan) 1987 — Honorary Academy Award recipient “For his unique talents, his service to the Academy, the motion picture industry, and the American people,” Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award recipient, famed comedian/comic actor, starred in “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” “Wonder Man”
Lucille Ball (Bush) 1989 — Prolific film star turned sitcom titan, pioneering television mogul, starred in “The Dark Corner,” “Stage Door,” “The Facts of Life”
Audrey Hepburn (Bush) 1992 — Best Actress Oscar winner, 5-time nominee, recipient of Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, EGOT achiever, prominent UNICEF ambassador, starred in “My Fair Lady,” “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” “Roman Holiday”
Ronald Reagan (Bush) 1993 — 2-term president of the United States, governor of California, twice president of Screen Actors Guild, recipient of Congressional Gold Medal, produced World War II training films, starred in “Knute Rockne, All American,” “Kings Row,” “The Killers”
Martha Raye (Clinton) 1993 — First woman recipient of Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, prominent USO entertainer, starred in “Waikiki Wedding,” “Mountain Music,” “The Concorde... Airport ’79”
Lew R. Wasserman (Clinton) 1995 — One of Hollywood’s last kings, MCA agency upstart-turned-movie mogul ran Universal Pictures, revolutionized the business model
Nancy Reagan (Bush) 2002 — First lady of the United States, recipient of Congressional Gold Medal, starred in “The Next Voice You Hear..., “Shadow on the Wall,” “Hellcats of the Navy”
Charlton Heston (Bush) 2003 — Best Actor Oscar winner, recipient of Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, supporter of Civil Rights Movement, outspoken conservative, starred in “Ben-Hur,” “The Ten Commandments,” “Planet of the Apes,” “Airport 1975”
Rita Moreno (Bush) 2004 — Oscar winner, EGOT achiever, extraordinary actor, singer, dancer over 9 decades, star of “West Side Story,” “Singin’ in the Rain,” “The King and I” “80 for Brady”
Doris Day (Bush) 2004 — champion of box office and pop-music charts, prominent advocate for animals, starred in “Pillow Talk,” “The Man Who Knew Too Much,” “ “Calamity Jane”
Andy Griffith (Bush) 2005 — Debuted in landmark “A Face in the Crowd,” quickly became TV juggernaut, symbol of the South, starred in “No Time for Sergeants,” “Spy Hard,” “Waitress”
Sidney Poitier (Obama) 2009 — Best Actor Oscar winner, first Black actor to win Best Actor, Honorary Academy Award recipient, ambassador from Bahamas, honorary knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II, starred in “Lilies of the Field,” “A Raisin in the Sun,” “In the Heat of the Night,” “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?”
Chita Rivera (Obama) 2009 — Broadway superstar, 10-time Tony nominee, prolific actress/dancer/singer, inspiration to Latino performers, starred in “Sweet Charity,” “Chicago,” “tick, tick... Boom!”
Meryl Streep (Obama) 2014 — 3-time Oscar winner, 21-time nominee, world’s most respected actress, star of “Kramer vs. Kramer,” “Sophie’s Choice,” “The Iron Lady,” “The Bridges of Madison County,” “Manhattan”
Steven Spielberg (Obama) 2015 — 3-time Oscar winner, 24-time nominee, Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award recipient, conscience of Hollywood, EGOT achiever, maestro of blockbuster films, founder of USC Shoah Foundation, director of “Jaws,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “Schindler’s List,” “E.T.,” “Jurassic Park”
Barbra Streisand (Obama) 2015 — 2-time Oscar winner, 10-time Grammy winner, EGOT achiever, singer, actress, director, producer, philanthropist, star of “The Way We Were,” “The Prince of Tides,” “Funny Girl,” “What’s Up, Doc?”
Robert De Niro (Obama) 2016 — 2-time Oscar winner, 9-time nominee, among the most celebrated actors of his generation, champion of New York, star of “The Godfather Part II,” “Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull,” “The Deer Hunter” “Jackie Brown”
Tom Hanks (Obama) 2016 — 2-time Best Actor Oscar winner, 6-time Oscar nominee, everyman superstar of film, advocate for “Band of Brothers” World War II veterans and space program, star of “Forrest Gump,” “Philadelphia,” “Cast Away,” “Apollo 13,” “Elvis”
Robert Redford (Obama) 2016 — Best Director Oscar winner, Honorary Academy Award recipient, “inspiration to independent and innovative filmmakers everywhere,” creator of Sundance festival, supporter of Native American rights, one of world’s most famous movie stars, starred in “All the President’s Men,” “The Way We Were,” “The Sting,” “The Electric Horseman”
Diana Ross (Obama) 2016 — Oscar nominee, Motown legend, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, star of “Lady Sings the Blues,” “Mahogany,” “The Wiz”
Cicely Tyson (Obama) 2016 — Honorary Academy Award recipient, “unforgettable performances and personal integrity have inspired generations of filmmakers, actors and audiences,” pioneering film actress and Broadway star, starred in “Sounder,” “Fried Green Tomatoes,” “The Help”
Elvis Presley (Trump) 2018 — The King of Rock ’n’ Roll, American entertainment icon, starred in “Love Me Tender,” “Jailhouse Rock,” “Viva Las Vegas”
Denzel Washington (Biden) 2022 — 2-time Oscar winner, 10-time Oscar nominee, ambassador for Boys & Girls Clubs, Honorary Sergeant Major of the Army, spiritually guided, star of “Glory,” “Philadelphia,” “Malcolm X,” “Training Day”
Michelle Yeoh (Biden) 2024 — Best Actress Oscar winner, global advocate for road safety, endangered animals, other charities, star of “Tomorrow Never Dies,” “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” “Crazy Rich Asians,” “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
Michael J. Fox (Biden) 2025 — Recipient of Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, tireless advocate for finding cure for Parkinson’s, founder of The Michael J. Fox Foundation, star of “Back to the Future,” “The Secret of My Success,” “For Love or Money,” “The American President”
George Stevens Jr. (Biden) 2025 — Founder of the American Film Institute who established the AFI Life Achievement Award, production assistant on “Giant,” “Shane,” made training films for Air Force
(July 2026)
