AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama

AACTA Award for; Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama
Country	Australia
Presented by	Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA)
First awarded	1986
Currently held by	Lachy Hulme, Power Games: The Packer-Murdoch War (2013)
Website	http://www.aacta.org

The AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama is an accolade given by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA), a non-profit organisation whose aim is to "identify, award, promote and celebrate Australia's greatest achievements in film and television."[1] The award is handed out at the annual AACTA Awards, which rewards achievements in Australian feature film, television, documentaries and short films.[2] From 1986 to 2010, the category was presented by the Australian Film Institute (AFI), the Academy's parent organisation, at the annual Australian Film Institute Awards (known as the AFI Awards).[3] When the AFI launched the Academy in 2011, it changed the annual ceremony to the AACTA Awards, with the current prize being a continuum of the AFI Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama.[3]

The award was first presented in 1986, as two separate categories for performances in a miniseries and tele feature. These were then merged in 1990 to become Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Telefeature or Mini Series, and by 1991, the award was renamed Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Television Drama. In 2000, the Best Performance in a Telefeature or Mini Series accolade was re-introduced as a separate prize from the drama award. All of these were then combined in 2002, under the title Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Television Drama, and two years later, in 2004, was renamed Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Television Drama or Comedy. A separate comedy award was established in 2006, and the name reverted to Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama.[4]

The AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama is given for performances in television drama series, miniseries, telefeature, children's animation or children's drama series.[5] Candidates for this award must be human and male, and cannot be nominated for best guest or supporting actor in a television drama in the same year, for the same production.[5]

Winners and nominees

In the following table, the years listed correspond to the year that the television programme aired on Australian television; the ceremonies are usually held the following year.^[A] The actor whose name is emphasised in boldface and highlighted in yellow have won the award. Those that are neither highlighted nor in bold are the nominees. When sorted chronologically, the table always lists the winning actor first and then the other nominees.[6] There was no nomination announcement for television categories leading up to the 1986 awards, and therefore only the winners are known.[7]

All sources used in this article make no mention of the episode or series that the actor was nominated for prior to 1991, and therefore have "N/A" template in the "Episode/Series" column. After 1991, the winners and nominees with the "N/A" template in the "Episode/Series" column are television films or miniseries. Those winners and nominees which have the "N/A" template and crosses (†) in the "Episode/Series" column, are TV series, but all reliable sources do not indicate which episode or series the actor was nominated for.

Contents
AFI Awards (1986–2010) AACTA Awards (2011–present)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Mini Series (1986–1989)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
1986 (28th)	Simon Chilvers	The Dunera Boys	Col. Berry	N/A	ABC
1987 (29th)
	Nicholas Eadie	Vietnam	Phil Goddard	N/A	Network Ten
	Martyn Sanderson	The Harp in the South	Hughie Darcy	N/A	Network Ten
	Vichea Ten	In Between	Saret	N/A	SBS
	John Wood	The Challenge	Alan Bond	N/A	Nine Network
1988 (30th)
	Ed Devereaux	True Believers	Ben Chifley	N/A	ABC
	Simon Chilvers	True Believers	H. V. Evatt	N/A	ABC
	Shane Connor	Poor Man's Orange	Charlie Rothe	N/A	Network Ten
	Keith Michell	Captain James Cook	Captain James Cook	N/A	ABC
1989 (31st)
	Peter Kowitz	Bodysurfer	David Lang	N/A	ABC
	Patrick Bergin	Act of Betrayal	Michael McGurk	N/A	ABC
	John Jarratt	Fields of Fire III	Jacko	N/A	Nine Network
	John Polson	Barlow & Chambers: A Long Way From Home	Kevin Barlow	N/A	Nine Network

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Telefeature (1986–1989)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
1986 (28th)	Peter Kowitz	The Long Way Home	Graham	N/A	ABC
1987 (29th)
	Steve Jacobs	A Single Life	Richard Bennett	N/A	ABC
	Shane Connor	Army Wives	Grant	N/A	Network Ten
	Ernie Dingo	Tudawali	Robert Tudawali	N/A	SBS
	Brendan Higgins	Hunger	Michael Radulesco	N/A	ABC
1988 (30th)
	Ernie Dingo	A Waltz Through the Hills	Frank Smith	N/A	Nine Network
	Nicholas Eadie	Fragments of War: The Story of Damien Parer	Damien Parer	N/A	Network Ten
	John Hargreaves	The Lizard King	^[B]	N/A	ABC
	Nick Tate	Olive	Anthony Wheeler	N/A	ABC
1989 (31st)
	Bill Hunter	Police State	Graeme Parker	N/A	ABC
	Bob Baines	Malpractice	Doug Davis	N/A	ABC
	Gary Sweet	Police Rescue	Sgt. Steve 'Mickey' McClintock	N/A	ABC
	Max Phipps	Police State	Terry Lewis	N/A	ABC

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, in a Mini-Series or Telefeature (1990)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
1990 (32nd)
	Frankie J. Holden	Police Crop: The Winchester Conspiracy	Det. Con. Max Chapman	N/A	ABC
	Terry Gill	Police Crop: The Winchester Conspiracy	Det. Sgt. Bill Cullen	N/A	ABC
	Rhys McConnochie	Come in Spinner	Angus McFarland	N/A	ABC
	Franco Nero	The Magistrate	Paolo Pizzi	N/A	ABC

Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Television Drama (1991–2002)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
1991 (33rd)
	Gary Sweet	Police Rescue	Sgt. Steve "Mickey" McClintock	Series 1, Episode 1: "Mates"	ABC
	Steve Bastoni	Police Rescue	Yiannis Angelopoulos	Series 1, Episode 2: "Angel After Hours"	ABC
	Nico Lathouris	Police Rescue	Nicos Angelopoulos	Series 1, Episode 2: "Angel After Hours"	ABC
	Cameron Nugent	More Winners	CW	N/A	ABC
1992 (34th)
	Gary Sweet	Police Rescue	Sgt. Steve "Mickey" McClintock	Series 2, Episode 2: "Off the Track"	ABC
	Alan Fletcher	Embassy	Michael Clayton	Series 3, Episode 12: "Hostage"	ABC
	Marshall Napier	Police Rescue	Sgt. Fred "Frog" Catteau	Series 2, Episode 5: "Judgement Day"	ABC
	Sean Scully	Phoenix	Ian "Goose" Cochrane	Series 1, Episode 10: "Blessed Are the Peacemakers"	ABC
1993 (35th)
	Peter Phelps	G.P.	Sam Hill	Series 5, Episode 20: "Exposed"	ABC
	Jeremy Callaghan	Police Rescue	Const. Brian Morley	Series 3, Episode 10: "Whirlwind"	ABC
	John Howard	Joh's Jury	Hedley	N/A	ABC
	Malcolm Kennard	Joh's Jury	Luke	N/A	ABC
1994 (36th)
	Aaron Blabey	The Damnation of Harvey McHugh	Harvey McHugh	Episode 1: "Spray Misty for Me"	ABC
	Hugh Baldwin	Heartbreak High	Graham Brown	Series 1, Episode 14	Network Ten
	Bradley Byquar	Heartland	Ricky Dyer	Episode 4	ABC
	Ernie Dingo	Heartland	Vincent Burunga	Episode 7	ABC
	Peter Kowitz	G.P.	Neil Hatton	Series 6, Episode 8: "Innocent Bystander"	ABC
1995 (37th)
	Colin Friels	Halifax f.p.	Kevin Tait	Series 1, Episode 5: "Hard Corps"	Nine Network
	Steven Vidler	Halifax f.p.	Steve Kingsley	Series 1, Episode 5: "Hard Corps"	Nine Network
	Steve Bisley	Halifax f.p.	Jonah Cole	Series 1, Episode 3: "The Feeding"	Nine Network
	Grant Piro	Janus	Cassidy	Series 1, Episode 4: "A Rare Crushing Reversal"	ABC
	Richard Roxburgh	Halifax f.p.	Sergeant Paul Santos	Series 1, Episode 6: "Lies of the Mind"	Nine Network
1996 (38th)
	Tony Martin	Blue Murder	Arthur "Neddy" Smith	N/A	ABC
	Steve Bastoni	Police Rescue	Yiannis Angelopoulos	Series 5, Episode 8: "Tomorrow Never Knows"	ABC
	Marton Csokas	G.P.	Mr Paul Deacon	Series 8, Episode 8: "Ceremony of Innocence"	ABC
	Richard Roxburgh	Blue Murder	Roger Rogerson	N/A	ABC
1997 (39th)
	David Wenham	Simone de Beauvoir's Babies	Ian	N/A	ABC
	Marcus Graham	Good Guys, Bad Guys	Elvis Maginnis	N/A	Nine Network
	Geoff Morrell	Fallen Angels	Jack Landers	Series 1, Episode 15: "Pig in Shit"	ABC
	Jeremy Sims	Kangaroo Palace	Jack Gill	N/A	Seven Network
1998 (40th)
	Stephen Dillane	Kings in Grass Castles	Patsy	N/A	Seven Network
	Shane Connor	Halifax f.p.	Ray	Series 3, Episode 3: "Afraid of the Dark"	Nine Network
	Tony Martin	Wildside	Detective Bill McCoy	N/A †	ABC
	David Wenham	SeaChange	Daniel Della Bosca	Series 1, Episode 9: "Balls and Friggin' Good Luck"	ABC
1999 (41st)
	Jeremy Sims	Aftershocks	John Constable	N/A	SBS
	John Howard	SeaChange	Bob Jelly	Series 2, Episode 13: "Law and Order"	ABC
	Samuel Johnson	Wildside	Troy Cunningham	Series 2, Episode 19	ABC
	David Tredinnick	Halifax f.p.	David Neilson	Series 4, Episode 2: "Swimming with Sharks"	Nine Network
2000 (42nd)
	Geoff Morrell	Grass Roots	Col Dunkley	Series 1, Episode 8: "The Whole Year"	ABC
	Tom Long	SeaChange	Angus Kabiri	Series 3, Episode 2: "How Much Greener Was My Neighbour's Valley"	ABC
	Geoff Morrell	Grass Roots	Col Dunkley	Series 1, Episode 7: "Late July, Friday 4pm to 10.30pm"	ABC
	Rhys Muldoon	Grass Roots	Greg Dominelli	Series 1, Episode 7: "Late July, Friday 4pm to 10.30pm"	ABC
2001 (43rd)
	Samuel Johnson	The Secret Life of Us	Evan Wylde	N/A †	Network Ten
	Nicholas Bell	The Games	Nicholas	N/A †	ABC
	John Howard	SeaChange	Bob Jelly	N/A †	ABC
	William McInnes	SeaChange	Max Connors	N/A †	ABC
2002 (44th)
	Joel Edgerton	The Secret Life of Us	Will McGill	N/A †	Network Ten
	Shane Bourne	MDA	Bill "Happy" Henderson	N/A †	ABC
	Tom Long	Young Lions	Det Snr Constable Guy "Guido" Martin	N/A †	Nine Network
	Peter O'Brien	White Collar Blue	Detective Joe Hill	N/A †	Network Ten

Best Performance by an Actor in a Telefeature or Mini Series (2000–2001)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
2000 (42nd)
	Andy Anderson	Halifax f.p.	Laurie Downes	Series 5, Episode 1: "A Person of Interest"	Nine Network
	Simon Baker	Secret Men's Business	Andy Greville	N/A	ABC
	Nicholas Eadie	Halifax f.p.	Simon Laser	Series 5, Episode 3: "A Hate Worse Than Death"	Nine Network
	Joel Edgerton	The Secret Life of Us	Will McGill	Series 1	Network Ten
2001 (43rd)
	David Field	My Husband My Killer	Bill Vandenberg	N/A	Network Ten
	Simon Lyndon	My Brother Jack	Jack Meredith	N/A	Network Ten
	William McInnes	My Brother Jack	Mr Meredith	N/A	Network Ten
	Geoff Morrell	Changi	Dr Rowdy Lawson	N/A	ABC

Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Television Drama or Comedy (2003–2004)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
2003 (45th)
	Shane Bourne	MDA	Bill "Happy" Henderson	Series 2	ABC
	Ray Barrett	After the Deluge	Old Cliff Kirby	N/A	Network Ten
	Geoff Morrell	Grass Roots	Col Dunkley	Series 2	ABC
	Glenn Robbins	Kath & Kim	Kel Knight	Series 2	ABC
2004 (46th)
	Abe Forsythe	Marking Time	Hal Fleming	N/A	ABC
	Geoff Morrell	Marking Time	Geoff Fleming	N/A	ABC
	Sam Neil	Jessica	Richard Runche	N/A	Network Ten
	David Wenham	The Brush-Off	Murray Whelan	N/A	Seven Network

Best Lead Actor in Television (2005)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
2005 (47th)
	Shane Bourne	MDA	Bill "Happy" Henderson	Series 3	ABC
	Chris Lilley	We Can Be Heroes: Finding The Australian of the Year	Daniel Sims, Ja'mie King, Pat Mullins, Phil Olivetti and Ricky Wong	N/A	ABC
	Alex O'Loughlin	The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant	Will Bryant	N/A	Network Ten
	Daniel Wyllie	Love My Way	Charlie Jackson	Series 1	Fox8

Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama (2006–current)

Year	Actor	Program	Character(s)	Episode/Series	Network
2006 (48th)
	David Wenham	Answered by Fire	Mark Waldman	N/A	ABC
	Charles Passi	RAN Remote Area Nurse	Russ Gaibui	N/A	SBS
	Richard Roxburgh	The Silence	Richard Treloar	N/A	ABC
	Daniel Wyllie	Love My Way	Charlie Jackson	Series 2	W
2007 (49th)
	Stephen Curry	The King	Graham Kennedy	N/A	TV1
	Khan Chittenden	Dangerous	Dean	N/A	Fox8
	Daniel Frederiksen	Bastard Boys	Greg Combet	N/A	ABC
	Ben Mendelsohn	Love My Way	Lewis Feingold	Series 3	Showcase
2008 (50th)
	Gyton Grantley	Underbelly	Carl Williams	N/A	Nine Network
	Don Hany	East West 101	Detective Zane Malik	Series 1	SBS One
	William McInnes	East West 101	Detective Sergeant Ray Crowley	Series 1	SBS One
	Callan Mulvey	Rush	Brendan "Josh" Joshua	Series 1	Network Ten
2009 (51st)
	Roy Billing	Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities	Robert Trimbole	N/A	Nine Network
	Don Hany	East West 101	Detective Zane Malik	Series 2	SBS One
	Robert Menzies	3 Acts of Murder	Arthur Upfield	N/A	ABC
	Dougray Scott	False Witness	Ian Porter	N/A	UKTV
2010 (52nd)
	Richard Roxburgh	Hawke	Bob Hawke	N/A	Network Ten
	Garry McDonald	A Model Daughter: The Killing of Caroline Byrne	Tony Byrne	N/A	Network Ten
	Corey McKernan^[C]	Lockie Leonard	Phillip Leonard	N/A	Nine Network
	Aaron Pedersen	The Circuit	Drew Ellis	Series 2	SBS
AACTA Awards
2011 (1st)
	Alex Dimitriades	The Slap	Harry	N/A	ABC1
	Rob Carlton	Paper Giants: The Birth of Cleo	Kerry Packer	N/A	ABC1
	Don Hany	East West 101	Detective Zane Malik	Season 3, Episode 1: "The Hero's Standard"	SBS One
	Jonathan LaPaglia	The Slap	Hector	N/A	ABC1
2012 (2nd)
	Richard Roxburgh	Rake	Cleaver Greene	Series 2	ABC1
	Jimi Bani	Mabo	Eddie Mabo	N/A	ABC1
	Anthony Hayes	Devil's Dust	Bernie Banton	N/A	ABC1
	Lachy Hulme	Howzat! Kerry Packer's War	Kerry Packer	N/A	Nine Network
2013 (3rd)
	Lachy Hulme	Power Games: The Packer-Murdoch War	Frank Packer	N/A	Nine Network
	Ernie Dingo	Redfern Now	Ernie Johnson	Series 2, Episode 6: "Dogs of War"	ABC1
	Remy Hii	Better Man	Van Tuong Nguyen	N/A	SBS
	Meyne Wyatt	Redfern Now	Justin	Series 2, Episode 3: "Babe in Arms"	ABC1
2014 (4th)
	Ashley Zukerman	The Code			ABC
	Luke Arnold	INXS: Never Tear Us Apart			Seven Network
	Richard Roxburgh	Rake		Series 3	ABC
	Dan Spielman	The Code			ABC
2015 (5th)
	Joel Jackson	Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door			Seven Network
	Wayne Blair	Redfern Now			ABC
	Joel Jackson	Deadline Gallipoli			FOXTEL
	Oliver Jackson-Cohen	The Secret River			ABC
2016 (6th)
	Samuel Johnson	Molly			Seven Network
	Matt Nable	Barracuda			ABC
	Richard Roxburgh	Rake			ABC
	Ashley Zukerman	The Code			ABC

Notes

A^ : From 1958–2010, the awards were held during the year of the films release. However, the 1974–75 awards was held in 1975 for films released in 1974 and 1975, and the first AACTA Awards was held in 2012 for films released in 2011.[8][9]

B^ : All sources used in this article do not mention the name of John Hargreaves' character in The Lizard King.

C^ : The official AACTA website lists Corey McKernan's nomination in 2010 for The Legend of Enyo. However, there are no sources which indicates McKernan's involvement with the aforementioned series, and the original nominations list from the AFI website has him short listed for his performance in Lockie Leonard.[10]

References

"AACTA – The Academy". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Archived from the original on 2012-06-24. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
"AACTA – The Academy – The Awards". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 8 September 2013.
"AACTA – The Academy – Background". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 8 September 2013.
"Television categories 1986 - 2009". AFI Award Winners. Australian Film Institute. 2009. Archived from the original on 2011-03-07. Retrieved 2010-11-12.
"Part2: Rule 8.10 (b) – Special Conditions for Television Programs; Award Specific Rules" (PDF). 2013 AACTA Awards Rule Book. Australian Film Institute. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-10-29. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
"AFI/AACTA Award, Winners and Nominees". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 8 January 2014. (User must click on the appropriate decades to access the winners and nominees of each year.)
"AFI/AACTA Award, Winners and Nominees - 1986". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 12 February 2014.
"AACTA – Past Winners – 1970–1979 – 1974–1975". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 16 January 2014.
Bodey, Michael (8 November 2011). "Industry academy announces new awards". The Australian. News Limited (News Corporation). Retrieved 16 January 2014.
"2010 Samsung Mobile AFI Awards Nominees & Winners". Australian Film Institute (AFI). Archived from the original on 2013-12-16. Retrieved 14 February 2014.

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[1] "AACTA – The Academy". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Archived from the original on 2012-06-24. Retrieved 8 September 2013.

[2] "AACTA – The Academy – The Awards". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 8 September 2013.

[background-3] "AACTA – The Academy – Background". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 8 September 2013.

[AFI2009-4] "Television categories 1986 - 2009". AFI Award Winners. Australian Film Institute. 2009. Archived from the original on 2011-03-07. Retrieved 2010-11-12.

[awardrules-5] "Part2: Rule 8.10 (b) – Special Conditions for Television Programs; Award Specific Rules" (PDF). 2013 AACTA Awards Rule Book. Australian Film Institute. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-10-29. Retrieved 6 January 2014.

[6] "AFI/AACTA Award, Winners and Nominees". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 8 January 2014. (User must click on the appropriate decades to access the winners and nominees of each year.)

[7] "AFI/AACTA Award, Winners and Nominees - 1986". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 12 February 2014.

[8] "AACTA – Past Winners – 1970–1979 – 1974–1975". Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Retrieved 16 January 2014.

[9] Bodey, Michael (8 November 2011). "Industry academy announces new awards". The Australian. News Limited (News Corporation). Retrieved 16 January 2014.

[10] "2010 Samsung Mobile AFI Awards Nominees & Winners". Australian Film Institute (AFI). Archived from the original on 2013-12-16. Retrieved 14 February 2014.

[A]

[B]

[C]