Spoils were shared at the 2025 Bafta Film Awards on Sunday night (16 February) in a ceremony that saw The Brutalist and Conclave win big, and Emilia Perez sidestep its recent controversy.
Conclave, a political thriller surrounding the choosing of a new pope, won the top prize, Best Film, as well as Best British Film, while The Brutalist, Brady Corbet’s three-and-a-half-hour epic about a Hungarian architect (played by Adrien Brody) who immigrates to the US, won in directing and acting categories.
London’s Royal Festival Hall played host to the UK’s biggest film awards night, with A-list stars including Brody, Timothée Chalamet, and Ariana Grande in attendance. Former Doctor Who star David Tennant served as host for the evening, cracking wise about US president Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.
Over the past month, much has been made of the fluctuating awards season prospects of Emilia Perez, the Spanish-language musical released by Netflix. Once considered a frontrunner for many of the biggest awards going, the film has been embroiled in a controversy surrounding resurfaced racist tweets shared by its star, Spanish actor Karla Sofía Gascón. While Emilia Perez did miss out on nine of the 11 Bafta awards it was nominated for, it emerged victorious in both the international film category and Best Supporting Actress, with Zoe Saldaña winning the latter category over co-star Selena Gomez.
Accepting the award, Saldaña gave a tearful speech, describing the film as “a creative challenge of a lifetime”. When her speech overran, and the countdown began to speed her off-stage, the flustered actor exclaimed: “Oh my god I’m getting a countdown. F*** f*** f***!"
The film’s director, Jacques Audiard, thanked Gascón in his speech accepting the award for Best Film Not in the English Language, remarking: “I also thank you Karla Sofía, who I kiss.” The French filmmaker had previously distanced himself from Gascón following the controversy, describing the controversial tweets as “hateful”.
Best Actress went to Mikey Madison, whose performance as a sex worker in the comedy-drama Anora beat out heavyweight competition in the form of Demi Moore, for her role in the body horror The Substance, and Marianne Jean-Baptiste, for her role as a grieving and antisocial woman in Mike Leigh’s Hard Truths. In her acceptance speech, Madison paid tribute to sex workers, in a moment that drew an enthusiastic response from the audience.
Elsewhere, there was little drama in many of the wins. As expected, Kieran Culkin took home Best Supporting Actor for his role as a troubled American on a tour of Auschwitz in A Real Pain. Just as predictably, Best Director went to bookies’ favourite Corbet for the sensational, sweeping The Brutalist. A win for The Brutalist also followed in the Best Actor category, with star Adrien Brody beating Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown) to the win.
There was, however, no single film sweeping the awards this year, with major prizes being shared among several nominees. The Brutalist added Best Original Score and Best Cinematography to its haul, while Anora won the prize for casting. In the technical categories, glossy musical adaptation Wicked won the award for Production Design, while blockbuster sci-fi epic Dune: Part Two won Best Sound and Best Special Visual Effects.
Claymation charmer Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl may have been pipped to Best British Film, but did emerge from the night with some recognition, taking home the prize for Best Children’s & Family Film, as well as Best Animated Film. The documentary award, meanwhile, went to Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story.
Those hoping for irreverent Irish rap biopic Kneecap to seize an unlikely win for Best British Film may have left disappointed, but the celebrated film did earn an award for writer-director Rich Peppiatt, who took home the marque for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer.
Willow actor Warwick Davis was also present at the ceremony, accepting the Bafta Fellowship. In his speech, he paid tribute to his late wife Samantha Davis, who died last March at the age of 53. The ceremony also featured live musical performances from Take That, whose song “Greatest Day” featured prominently in Anora, and Jeff Goldblum, who performed “As Time Goes By” on the piano during the In Memoriam segment.
You can find a full list of the winners here.
