# Canadian Screen Award for Best Actress

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role to the best performance by a lead actress in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1968 by the Canadian Film Awards, and was presented annually until 1978 with the exception of 1969, when no eligible feature films were submitted for award consideration, and 1974 due to the cancellation of the awards that year.
From 1980 until 2012, the award was presented as part of the Genie Awards ceremony; since 2013, it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.
From 1980 to 1983, only Canadian actresses were eligible for the award; non-Canadian actresses appearing in Canadian films were instead considered for the separate Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actress. After 1983, the latter award was discontinued, and from 1986 both Canadian and foreign actresses were eligible for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role.
In August 2022, the Academy announced that it will discontinue its past practice of presenting gendered awards for film and television actors and actresses; beginning with the 11th Canadian Screen Awards in 2023, gender-neutral awards for Best Performance will be presented, with eight nominees per category instead of five. Lead performances are now honoured with the Canadian Screen Award for Best Lead Performance in a Film.

## 1960s

| Year | Nominee | Film |
| 1968 20th Canadian Film Awards |
| 1968 20th Canadian Film Awards | Geneviève Bujold | Isabel |
| 1969 21st Canadian Film Awards |
| 1969 21st Canadian Film Awards | No award presented this year | No award presented this year |

## 1970s

| Year | Nominee | Film |
| 1970 22nd Canadian Film Awards |
| 1970 22nd Canadian Film Awards | Geneviève Bujold | The Act of the Heart |
| 1971 23rd Canadian Film Awards |
| 1971 23rd Canadian Film Awards | Ann Knox | The Only Thing You Know |
| 1972 24th Canadian Film Awards |
| 1972 24th Canadian Film Awards | Micheline Lanctôt | The True Nature of Bernadette (La Vraie Nature de Bernadette) |
| 1973 25th Canadian Film Awards |
| 1973 25th Canadian Film Awards | Geneviève Bujold | Kamouraska |
| 1974 |
| 1974 | No award presented | No award presented |
| 1975 26th Canadian Film Awards |
| 1975 26th Canadian Film Awards | Margot Kidder | A Quiet Day in Belfast |
| 1976 27th Canadian Film Awards |
| 1976 27th Canadian Film Awards | Marilyn Lightstone | Lies My Father Told Me |
| 1977 28th Canadian Film Awards |
| 1977 28th Canadian Film Awards | Monique Mercure | J.A. Martin Photographer (J.A. Martin photographe) |
| 1977 28th Canadian Film Awards | Jayne Eastwood | One Man |
| 1977 28th Canadian Film Awards | Carole Laure | The Angel and the Woman (L'Ange et la femme) |
| 1977 28th Canadian Film Awards | Hollis McLaren | Outrageous! |
| 1978 29th Canadian Film Awards |
| 1978 29th Canadian Film Awards | Helen Shaver | In Praise of Older Women |
| 1978 29th Canadian Film Awards | Micheline Lanctôt | Blood and Guts |
| 1978 29th Canadian Film Awards | Celine Lomez | The Silent Partner |
| 1978 29th Canadian Film Awards | Andrée Pelletier | Marie-Anne |

## 1980s

| Year | Nominee | Film |
| 1980 1st Genie Awards |
| 1980 1st Genie Awards | Kate Lynch | Meatballs |
| 1980 1st Genie Awards | Micheline Lanctôt | A Scream from Silence (Mourir à tue-tête) |
| 1980 1st Genie Awards | Louise Marleau | Heartbreak (L'arrache-cœur) |
| 1980 1st Genie Awards | Claire Pimparé | Yesterday |
| 1980 1st Genie Awards | Louise Portal | Cordélia |
| 1981 2nd Genie Awards |
| 1981 2nd Genie Awards | Marie Tifo | Good Riddance (Les Bons débarras) |
| 1981 2nd Genie Awards | Geneviève Bujold | Final Assignment |
| 1981 2nd Genie Awards | Jennifer Dale | Suzanne |
| 1981 2nd Genie Awards | Charlotte Laurier | Good Riddance (Les Bons débarras) |
| 1981 2nd Genie Awards | Andrée Pelletier | The Handyman (L'Homme à tout faire) |
| 1982 3rd Genie Awards |
| 1982 3rd Genie Awards | Margot Kidder | Heartaches |
| 1982 3rd Genie Awards | Kim Cattrall | Ticket to Heaven |
| 1982 3rd Genie Awards | Lesleh Donaldson | Funeral Home |
| 1982 3rd Genie Awards | Ronalda Jones | Alligator Shoes |
| 1982 3rd Genie Awards | Monique Spaziani | Happy Memories (Les Beaux souvenirs) |
| 1983 4th Genie Awards |
| 1983 4th Genie Awards | Rae Dawn Chong | Quest for Fire |
| 1983 4th Genie Awards | Sara Botsford | By Design |
| 1983 4th Genie Awards | Hélène Loiselle | Sweet Lies and Loving Oaths (Doux aveux) |
| 1983 4th Genie Awards | Monique Mercure | Beyond Forty (La Quarantaine) |
| 1983 4th Genie Awards | Andrée Pelletier | Latitude 55° |
| 1984 5th Genie Awards |
| 1984 5th Genie Awards | Martha Henry | The Wars |
| 1984 5th Genie Awards | Carole Laure | Maria Chapdelaine |
| 1984 5th Genie Awards | Barbara March | Deserters |
| 1984 5th Genie Awards | Marie Tifo | Lucien Brouillard |
| 1984 5th Genie Awards | Marie Tifo | Just a Game (Rien qu'un jeu) |
| 1985 6th Genie Awards |
| 1985 6th Genie Awards | Louise Marleau | A Woman in Transit (La Femme de l'hôtel) |
| 1985 6th Genie Awards | Pascale Bussières | Sonatine |
| 1985 6th Genie Awards | Linda Griffiths | Reno and the Doc |
| 1985 6th Genie Awards | Isabelle Mejias | Unfinished Business |
| 1985 6th Genie Awards | Andrée Pelletier | Walls |
| 1985 6th Genie Awards | Sonja Smits | That's My Baby! |
| 1986 7th Genie Awards |
| 1986 7th Genie Awards | Margaret Langrick | My American Cousin |
| 1986 7th Genie Awards | Charlotte Laurier | The Dame in Colour (La Dame en couleurs) |
| 1986 7th Genie Awards | Christine Pak | 90 Days |
| 1986 7th Genie Awards | Monique Spaziani | The Alley Cat (Le Matou) |
| 1986 7th Genie Awards | Mary Steenburgen | One Magic Christmas |
| 1987 8th Genie Awards |
| 1987 8th Genie Awards | Martha Henry | Dancing in the Dark |
| 1987 8th Genie Awards | Dorothée Berryman | The Decline of the American Empire (Le Déclin de l'empire américain) |
| 1987 8th Genie Awards | Jackie Burroughs | John and the Missus |
| 1987 8th Genie Awards | Tantoo Cardinal | Loyalties |
| 1987 8th Genie Awards | Helen Shaver | Lost! |
| 1987 8th Genie Awards | Marie Tifo | Intimate Power (Pouvoir intime) |
| 1988 9th Genie Awards |
| 1988 9th Genie Awards | Sheila McCarthy | I've Heard the Mermaids Singing |
| 1988 9th Genie Awards | Frédérique Collin | Marie in the City (Marie s'en va-t-en ville) |
| 1988 9th Genie Awards | Jacinta Cormier | Life Classes |
| 1988 9th Genie Awards | Kate Lynch | Taking Care |
| 1988 9th Genie Awards | Gabrielle Rose | Family Viewing |
| 1989 10th Genie Awards |
| 1989 10th Genie Awards | Jackie Burroughs | A Winter Tan |
| 1989 10th Genie Awards | Geneviève Bujold | Dead Ringers |
| 1989 10th Genie Awards | Kerrie Keane | Hitting Home |
| 1989 10th Genie Awards | Josette Simon | Milk and Honey |
| 1989 10th Genie Awards | Monique Spaziani | The Revolving Doors (Les Portes tournantes) |

## 1990s

| Year | Nominee | Film |
| 1990 11th Genie Awards |
| 1990 11th Genie Awards | Rebecca Jenkins | Bye Bye Blues |
| 1990 11th Genie Awards | Colleen Dewhurst | Termini Station |
| 1990 11th Genie Awards | Megan Follows | Termini Station |
| 1990 11th Genie Awards | Margaret Langrick | Cold Comfort |
| 1990 11th Genie Awards | Gabrielle Rose | Speaking Parts |
| 1990 11th Genie Awards | Catherine Wilkening | Jesus of Montreal (Jésus de Montréal) |
| 1991 12th Genie Awards |
| 1991 12th Genie Awards | Pascale Montpetit | H |
| 1991 12th Genie Awards | Alice Diabo | The Company of Strangers |
| 1991 12th Genie Awards | Cissy Meddings | The Company of Strangers |
| 1991 12th Genie Awards | Kate Nelligan | White Room |
| 1991 12th Genie Awards | Nina Petronzio | Vincent and Me (Vincent et moi) |
| 1992 13th Genie Awards |
| 1992 13th Genie Awards | Janet Wright | Bordertown Café |
| 1992 13th Genie Awards | Janet-Laine Green | The Shower |
| 1992 13th Genie Awards | Viveca Lindfors | North of Pittsburgh |
| 1992 13th Genie Awards | Enrica Maria Modugno | The Saracen Woman (La Sarrasine) |
| 1992 13th Genie Awards | Valerie Pearson | Solitaire |
| 1993 14th Genie Awards |
| 1993 14th Genie Awards | Sheila McCarthy | The Lotus Eaters |
| 1993 14th Genie Awards | Élise Guilbault | Cap Tourmente |
| 1993 14th Genie Awards | Andrée Lachapelle | Cap Tourmente |
| 1993 14th Genie Awards | Pauline Lapointe | La Florida |
| 1993 14th Genie Awards | Aloka McLean | The Lotus Eaters |
| 1994 15th Genie Awards |
| 1994 15th Genie Awards | Sandra Oh | Double Happiness |
| 1994 15th Genie Awards | Nancy Beatty | Henry & Verlin |
| 1994 15th Genie Awards | Geneviève Bujold | My Friend Max (Mon amie Max) |
| 1994 15th Genie Awards | Valérie Kaprisky | Desire in Motion (Mouvements du désir) |
| 1994 15th Genie Awards | Marie Tifo | Les Pots cassés |
| 1995 16th Genie Awards |
| 1995 16th Genie Awards | Helena Bonham Carter | Margaret's Museum |
| 1995 16th Genie Awards | Pascale Bussières | Eldorado |
| 1995 16th Genie Awards | Pascale Bussières | When Night Is Falling |
| 1995 16th Genie Awards | Pascale Montpetit | Eldorado |
| 1995 16th Genie Awards | Isabel Richer | Eldorado |
| 1996 17th Genie Awards |
| 1996 17th Genie Awards | Martha Henry | Long Day's Journey into Night |
| 1996 17th Genie Awards | Marie Brassard | Polygraph (Le Polygraphe) |
| 1996 17th Genie Awards | Helene Clarkson | Blood and Donuts |
| 1996 17th Genie Awards | Brenda Fricker | Swann |
| 1996 17th Genie Awards | Louise Portal | Not Me! (Sous-sol) |
| 1997 18th Genie Awards | | |
| 1997 18th Genie Awards | Molly Parker | Kissed |
| 1997 18th Genie Awards | Isabelle Cyr | Karmina |
| 1997 18th Genie Awards | Sarah Polley | The Sweet Hereafter |
| 1997 18th Genie Awards | Gabrielle Rose | The Sweet Hereafter |
| 1997 18th Genie Awards | Alberta Watson | Shoemaker |
| 1998 19th Genie Awards |
| 1998 19th Genie Awards | Sandra Oh | Last Night |
| 1998 19th Genie Awards | Anne-Marie Cadieux | Nô |
| 1998 19th Genie Awards | Pascale Montpetit | Streetheart (Le Cœur au poing) |
| 1998 19th Genie Awards | Ginette Reno | It's Your Turn, Laura Cadieux (C't'à ton tour, Laura Cadieux) |
| 1998 19th Genie Awards | Pierrette Robitaille | It's Your Turn, Laura Cadieux (C't'à ton tour, Laura Cadieux) |
| 1999 20th Genie Awards |
| 1999 20th Genie Awards | Sylvie Moreau | Post Mortem |
| 1999 20th Genie Awards | Elaine Cassidy | Felicia's Journey |
| 1999 20th Genie Awards | Jennifer Ehle | Sunshine |
| 1999 20th Genie Awards | Rosemary Harris | Sunshine |
| 1999 20th Genie Awards | Mary-Louise Parker | The Five Senses |

## 2000s

| Year | Nominee | Film |
| 2000 21st Genie Awards |
| 2000 21st Genie Awards | Marie-Josée Croze | Maelström |
| 2000 21st Genie Awards | Kim Hunter | Here's to Life! |
| 2000 21st Genie Awards | Ginette Reno | Laura Cadieux II (Laura Cadieux...la suite) |
| 2000 21st Genie Awards | Pierrette Robitaille | Laura Cadieux II (Laura Cadieux...la suite) |
| 2000 21st Genie Awards | Tilda Swinton | Possible Worlds |
| 2001 22nd Genie Awards |
| 2001 22nd Genie Awards | Élise Guilbault | The Woman Who Drinks (La Femme qui boit) |
| 2001 22nd Genie Awards | Jillian Fargey | Protection |
| 2001 22nd Genie Awards | Anna Friel | The War Bride |
| 2001 22nd Genie Awards | Sarah Polley | The Law of Enclosures |
| 2001 22nd Genie Awards | Katja Riemann | Desire |
| 2002 23rd Genie Awards | | |
| 2002 23rd Genie Awards | Arsinée Khanjian | Ararat |
| 2002 23rd Genie Awards | Isabelle Blais | Savage Messiah |
| 2002 23rd Genie Awards | Molly Parker | Men With Brooms |
| 2002 23rd Genie Awards | Deborah Kara Unger | Between Strangers |
| 2002 23rd Genie Awards | Polly Walker | Savage Messiah |
| 2003 24th Genie Awards |
| 2003 24th Genie Awards | Sarah Polley | My Life Without Me |
| 2003 24th Genie Awards | Rebecca Jenkins | Marion Bridge |
| 2003 24th Genie Awards | Micheline Lanctôt | How My Mother Gave Birth to Me During Menopause (Comment ma mère accoucha de moi durant sa ménopause) |
| 2003 24th Genie Awards | Molly Parker | Marion Bridge |
| 2003 24th Genie Awards | Karine Vanasse | Séraphin: Heart of Stone (Séraphin: un homme et son péché) |
| 2004 25th Genie Awards |
| 2004 25th Genie Awards | Pascale Bussières | Bittersweet Memories (Ma vie en cinémascope) |
| 2004 25th Genie Awards | Isabelle Blais | Love and Magnets (Les Aimants) |
| 2004 25th Genie Awards | Céline Bonnier | Machine Gun Molly (Monica la mitraille) |
| 2004 25th Genie Awards | Emily Hampshire | Blood |
| 2004 25th Genie Awards | Jacinthe Laguë | The Five of Us (Elles étaient cinq) |
| 2005 26th Genie Awards |
| 2005 26th Genie Awards | Seema Biswas | Water |
| 2005 26th Genie Awards | Gina Chiarelli | See Grace Fly |
| 2005 26th Genie Awards | Macha Grenon | Familia |
| 2005 26th Genie Awards | Arsinée Khanjian | Sabah |
| 2005 26th Genie Awards | Sylvie Moreau | Familia |
| 2006 27th Genie Awards |
| 2006 27th Genie Awards | Julie Le Breton | The Rocket (Maurice Richard) |
| 2006 27th Genie Awards | Jodelle Ferland | Tideland |
| 2006 27th Genie Awards | Fatou N'Diaye | A Sunday in Kigali (Un dimanche à Kigali) |
| 2006 27th Genie Awards | Ginette Reno | A Family Secret (Le secret de ma mère) |
| 2006 27th Genie Awards | Sigourney Weaver | Snow Cake |
| 2007 28th Genie Awards |
| 2007 28th Genie Awards | Julie Christie | Away from Her |
| 2007 28th Genie Awards | Anne-Marie Cadieux | You (Toi) |
| 2007 28th Genie Awards | Elliot Page | The Tracey Fragments |
| 2007 28th Genie Awards | Molly Parker | Who Loves the Sun |
| 2007 28th Genie Awards | Béatrice Picard | My Aunt Aline (Ma tante Aline) |
| 2008 29th Genie Awards |
| 2008 29th Genie Awards | Ellen Burstyn | The Stone Angel |
| 2008 29th Genie Awards | Isabelle Blais | Borderline |
| 2008 29th Genie Awards | Marianne Fortier | Mommy Is at the Hairdresser's (Maman est chez le coiffeur) |
| 2008 29th Genie Awards | Susan Sarandon | Emotional Arithmetic |
| 2008 29th Genie Awards | Preity Zinta | Heaven on Earth |
| 2009 30th Genie Awards |
| 2009 30th Genie Awards | Karine Vanasse | Polytechnique |
| 2009 30th Genie Awards | Madeline Ivalu | Before Tomorrow (Le Jour avant le lendemain) |
| 2009 30th Genie Awards | Karen LeBlanc | Nurse.Fighter.Boy |
| 2009 30th Genie Awards | Carinne Leduc | 3 Seasons (3 saisons) |
| 2009 30th Genie Awards | Gabrielle Rose | Mothers & Daughters |

## 2010s

| Year | Nominee | Film |
| 2010 31st Genie Awards |
| 2010 31st Genie Awards | Lubna Azabal | Incendies |
| 2010 31st Genie Awards | Tatiana Maslany | Grown Up Movie Star |
| 2010 31st Genie Awards | Molly Parker | Trigger |
| 2010 31st Genie Awards | Rosamund Pike | Barney's Version |
| 2010 31st Genie Awards | Tracy Wright | Trigger |
| 2011 32nd Genie Awards |
| 2011 32nd Genie Awards | Vanessa Paradis | Café de Flore |
| 2011 32nd Genie Awards | Catherine De Léan | Nuit #1 |
| 2011 32nd Genie Awards | Pascale Montpetit | The Girl in the White Coat |
| 2011 32nd Genie Awards | Rachel Weisz | The Whistleblower |
| 2011 32nd Genie Awards | Michelle Williams | Take This Waltz |
| 2012 1st Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2012 1st Canadian Screen Awards | Rachel Mwanza | War Witch (Rebelle) |
| 2012 1st Canadian Screen Awards | Evelyne Brochu | Inch'Allah |
| 2012 1st Canadian Screen Awards | Geneviève Bujold | Still Mine |
| 2012 1st Canadian Screen Awards | Marilyn Castonguay | L'Affaire Dumont |
| 2012 1st Canadian Screen Awards | Suzanne Clément | Laurence Anyways |
| 2013 2nd Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2013 2nd Canadian Screen Awards | Gabrielle Marion-Rivard | Gabrielle |
| 2013 2nd Canadian Screen Awards | Cara Gee | Empire of Dirt |
| 2013 2nd Canadian Screen Awards | Isabelle Guérard | The Storm Within (Rouge sang) |
| 2013 2nd Canadian Screen Awards | Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs | Rhymes for Young Ghouls |
| 2013 2nd Canadian Screen Awards | Tatiana Maslany | Cas & Dylan |
| 2014 3rd Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2014 3rd Canadian Screen Awards | Anne Dorval | Mommy |
| 2014 3rd Canadian Screen Awards | Ahn Ji-hye | In Her Place |
| 2014 3rd Canadian Screen Awards | Julianne Côté | You're Sleeping Nicole (Tu dors Nicole) |
| 2014 3rd Canadian Screen Awards | Julianne Moore | Maps to the Stars |
| 2014 3rd Canadian Screen Awards | Yoon Da-gyeong | In Her Place |
| 2015 4th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2015 4th Canadian Screen Awards | Brie Larson | Room |
| 2015 4th Canadian Screen Awards | Céline Bonnier | The Passion of Augustine (La Passion d'Augustine) |
| 2015 4th Canadian Screen Awards | Leah Fay Goldstein | Diamond Tongues |
| 2015 4th Canadian Screen Awards | Karelle Tremblay | Our Loved Ones (Les Êtres chers) |
| 2015 4th Canadian Screen Awards | Hadas Yaron | Felix and Meira (Félix et Meira) |
| 2016 5th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2016 5th Canadian Screen Awards | Tatiana Maslany | The Other Half |
| 2016 5th Canadian Screen Awards | Nathalie Doummar | Boundaries (Pays) |
| 2016 5th Canadian Screen Awards | Carmen Ejogo | Born to Be Blue |
| 2016 5th Canadian Screen Awards | Sasha K. Gordon | Natasha |
| 2016 5th Canadian Screen Awards | Bhreagh MacNeil | Werewolf |
| 2017 6th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2017 6th Canadian Screen Awards | Sally Hawkins | Maudie |
| 2017 6th Canadian Screen Awards | Denise Filiatrault | It's the Heart That Dies Last (C'est le cœur qui meurt en dernier) |
| 2017 6th Canadian Screen Awards | Shirley Henderson | Never Steady, Never Still |
| 2017 6th Canadian Screen Awards | Mahour Jabbari | Ava |
| 2017 6th Canadian Screen Awards | Marine Johnson | The Little Girl Who Was Too Fond of Matches (La petite fille qui aimait trop les allumettes) |
| 2018 7th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2018 7th Canadian Screen Awards | Émilie Bierre | A Colony (Une colonie) |
| 2018 7th Canadian Screen Awards | Valeria Henríquez | The Padre |
| 2018 7th Canadian Screen Awards | Rose-Marie Perreault | Fake Tattoos (Les faux tatouages) |
| 2018 7th Canadian Screen Awards | Brigitte Poupart | Les Salopes, or the Naturally Wanton Pleasure of Skin (Les salopes ou le sucre naturel de la peau) |
| 2018 7th Canadian Screen Awards | Carla Turcotte | Sashinka |
| 2019 8th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2019 8th Canadian Screen Awards | Nahéma Ricci | Antigone |
| 2019 8th Canadian Screen Awards | Deragh Campbell | Anne at 13,000 Ft. |
| 2019 8th Canadian Screen Awards | Violet Nelson | The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open |
| 2019 8th Canadian Screen Awards | Kacey Rohl | White Lie |
| 2019 8th Canadian Screen Awards | Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers | The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open |

## 2020s

| Year | Nominee | Film |
| 2020 9th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2020 9th Canadian Screen Awards | Michelle Pfeiffer | French Exit |
| 2020 9th Canadian Screen Awards | Carrie Coon | The Nest |
| 2020 9th Canadian Screen Awards | Carmen Moore | Rustic Oracle |
| 2020 9th Canadian Screen Awards | Rosalie Pépin | Vacarme |
| 2020 9th Canadian Screen Awards | Madeleine Sims-Fewer | Violation |
| 2021 10th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2021 10th Canadian Screen Awards | Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers | Night Raiders |
| 2021 10th Canadian Screen Awards | Aviva Armour-Ostroff | Lune |
| 2021 10th Canadian Screen Awards | Alana Hawley Purvis | Range Roads |
| 2021 10th Canadian Screen Awards | Aliya Kanani | Scarborough |
| 2021 10th Canadian Screen Awards | Julia Sarah Stone | Come True |