Sean Penn Winner of Oscar Best Actor (VIDEO )

Sean Penn wins the 2009 Best Actor award at the Academy Awards for his role in the movie Milk. See his Oscar performance video from Milk and meet the five phenomenal actors nominated for the 2009 Academy Awards Best Actor - Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Mickey Rourke, Frank Langella, and Richard Jenkins.Five fabulous actors battled it out on the greatest stage there is - the Academy Awards.

Sean Penn stars as Harvey Milk in Gus Van Sant’s ‘Milk’, which chronicles the life of the first openly gay elected official. Many, including fellow nominee Mickey Rourke, feel that Sean will win the Oscar with his portrayal of the San Francisco gay rights activist. This marks Sean’s fifth Academy Awards nomination for Best Actor, and will be his second Oscar if he wins. He previously won for his role in ‘Mystic River’ in 2003. He has already won several awards from various critics for Best Actor for this role, and he also took home the SAG award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

Mickey Rourke dons a spandex suit to play a washed up, steroid using wrestler in ‘The Wrestler’. Mickey, who is doing a great job at making an acting comeback, has already taken home numerous awards from critics, and he won both the BAFTA and Golden Globe awards for Best Actor for this role. While he believes he will be applauding Sean Penn’s win on Oscar night, many feel he’ll nab the golden statue. This marks Mickey’s first Academy Awards nomination.

Frank Langella received a nod for his portrayal of disgraced president Richard Nixon in ‘Frost/Nixon’. The film focuses on Nixon’s failed attempt to revive his career through a series of interviews with British television presenter David Frost. The real David Frost is pulling for Frank to get the win. Despite a long acting career that started in the 1970s, this is Frank’s first Oscar nomination.

Brad Pitt stars in ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ as a guy who ages backwards. While the film leads the Oscar race in terms of nominations with 13, and despite nominations from the BAFTAs, SAGs, and Golden Globes for this role, Brad is not a favorite to take home the golden statue. This marks Brad’s second Academy Awards nomination, the first being for Best Supporting Actor for his role in ‘Twelve Monkeys’.

Richard Jenkins, who stars in ‘The Visitor’, was surprised by his nod from the Academy. Jenkins, who is best known for his role as the dead patriarch on HBO’s ‘Six Feet Under’, is an underdog for this year’s Oscars. His performance was recognized by nominations by several film critic associations, as well as the SAG awards and the Independent Spirit Awards. Despite the long-shot at a win, I believe that Richard is the one nominee who truly means “it’s an honor just to be nominated.”

Sean Penn ‘Milk’ Video