The Bafta nominations, announced on Wednesday, mark a pivotal moment in a dynamic and unpredictable awards season.
As a strong indicator for the Oscars, the British Academy’s selections often align closely with the Academy Awards.
Last year, winners in the top six categories matched perfectly between the two ceremonies.
This year, the Bafta Film Awards, hosted by David Tennant, will take place on February 16 at London’s Royal Festival Hall.
The nominations follow the Golden Globe Awards, where the Spanish-language musical Emilia Pérez took home the most prizes.
Demi Moore also bolstered her chances for Best Actress with her performance in the body horror film The Substance.
The Oscars, set for March 2 in Los Angeles, remain unpredictable in the Best Picture race.
Films like The Brutalist, Emilia Pérez, Anora, Conclave, Wicked, and A Complete Unknown have all been tipped as potential winners, each presenting a viable path to victory.
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) nominations last week highlighted a strong showing for Wicked and a surprise nod for Pamela Anderson’s performance in The Last Showgirl.
Meanwhile, the Bafta longlists released earlier this month included most frontrunners but omitted key names like Angelina Jolie and Golden Globe winner Fernanda Torres.
Family-friendly Paddington in Peru also failed to make the new children’s category.
Despite the longlists, surprises remain likely as the final nominees are revealed.
Emilia Pérez, a musical about a Mexican cartel leader transitioning to live as a woman, leads the Bafta longlists with the most mentions.
It’s closely followed by Conclave, about cardinals electing a new Pope, and A Complete Unknown, chronicling Bob Dylan’s rise in the 1960s.
Other contenders include The Brutalist, The Substance, and blockbusters like Wicked and Dune: Part Two. Films such as Anora and Gladiator II also scored heavily in the longlists.
In the Best Actress race, frontrunners include Demi Moore (The Substance), Karla Sofía Gascón (Emilia Pérez), Cynthia Erivo (Wicked), and Mikey Madison (Anora).
Potential surprises could come from Marianne Jean-Baptiste (Hard Truths), Saoirse Ronan (The Outrun), and Kate Winslet (Lee).
In the Best Actor category, Adrien Brody (The Brutalist), Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown), Colman Domingo (Sing Sing), and Sebastian Stan (The Apprentice) are strong contenders.
British stars Daniel Craig (Queer) and Ralph Fiennes (Conclave) also stand out, with potential surprises from Hugh Grant, Dev Patel, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Jude Law.
Supporting categories may feature Zoe Saldaña (Emilia Pérez), Ariana Grande (Wicked), Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain), and Yura Borisov (Anora).
Denzel Washington (Gladiator II), despite his illustrious career, has never received a Bafta nomination, making his potential inclusion particularly notable.
Bafta’s evolving voting system, introduced to improve diversity, has undergone further changes this year.
While juries helped compile the longlists, final nominations in most major categories are now fully determined by Bafta members.
This shift suggests a closer alignment with other awards ceremonies, reducing the outliers seen in recent years.
As the awards season unfolds, the Bafta nominations promise to be a significant precursor to the ultimate outcomes.
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