Walt Disney personally won 22 Academy Awards. That figure refers to his competitive Oscar wins, while broader counts often say he received 26 Oscars when four honorary awards are included. The quiz's stored answer uses the standard competitive-win count.
Disney's first Oscar came at the fifth Academy Awards in 1932, when he won Best Short Subject (Cartoon) for Flowers and Trees. At the same ceremony, he also received an honorary award for creating Mickey Mouse. His success was concentrated in short films, documentaries, and animated productions rather than acting or directing categories.
At the 26th Academy Awards in 1954, Disney won in all four categories in which he was nominated: two short-film categories and two documentary categories. He received his final Oscar posthumously in 1969 for Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, three years after his death.
The common confusion comes from mixing wins with total awards received. Disney's four honorary awards include recognition connected with Mickey Mouse, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, and the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. He also holds records for an individual winner's Oscar victories and nominations.