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Britain’s Prince William and Kate, Princess of Wales arrive with Jane Millichip, CEO of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and Lord-Lieutenant of Greater London Ken Olisa to the 79th British Academy Film Awards, at the Royal Festival Hall, in London, Sunday Feb. 22, 2026. (Jaimi Joy\/Pool Photo via AP)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
LONDON (AP) \u2014 Politically charged thriller \u201cOne Battle After Another\u201d<\/a> won six prizes, including best picture, at the British Academy Film Awards<\/a> on Sunday, building momentum ahead of Hollywood’s Academy Awards next month.<\/p>\n Blues-steeped vampire epic \u201cSinners\u201d<\/a> and gothic horror story \u201cFrankenstein\u201d<\/a> won three awards each, while Shakespearean family tragedy \u201cHamnet\u201d<\/a> won two including best British film.<\/p>\n \u201cOne Battle After Another,\u201d Paul Thomas Anderson\u2019s explosive film about a group of revolutionaries in chaotic conflict with the state, won awards for directing, adapted screenplay, cinematography and editing, as well as for Sean Penn\u2019s supporting performance as an obsessed military officer.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is very overwhelming and wonderful,\u201d Anderson said as he accepted the directing prize. He paid tribute to his longstanding assistant director, Adam Somner, who died of cancer in November 2024 a few weeks into production.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have a line from Nina Simone that we used in our film, \u2018I know what freedom is: It\u2019s no fear,\u2019\u201d the director said. \u201cLet\u2019s keep making things without fear. It\u2019s a good idea.\u201d<\/p>\n Bookies’ favorite Jessie Buckley won the best actress prize for playing grieving mother Agnes Hathaway, wife of William Shakespeare, in \u201cHamnet.\u201d Buckley, 36, is the first Irish performer to win a best actress prize at the awards, known as BAFTAs.<\/p>\n She dedicated her award “to the women past, present and future who taught me and continue to teach me how to do it differently.\u201d<\/p>\n In a major upset, Robert Aramayo won the best actor category for his performance in \u201cI Swear,\u201d a fact-based British indie drama about a campaigner for people with Tourette syndrome.<\/p>\n The 33-year-old British actor looked stunned and called the victory over Ethan Hawke, Michael B. Jordan, Leonardo DiCaprio and Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet \u201cabsolutely mad.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI absolutely can\u2019t believe this,\u201d he said. \u201cEveryone in this category blows me away.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSinners\u201d took home trophies for director Ryan Coogler’s original screenplay, the film’s musical score and for Wunmi Mosaku’s supporting actress performance as herbalist and healer Annie.<\/p>\n The British-Nigerian actor said that in the role she found \u201ca part of my hopes, my ancestral power and my connection, parts I thought I had lost or tried to dim as an immigrant trying to fit in.\u201d<\/p>\n Stars and royalty<\/strong><\/p>\n Hollywood stars and British celebrities, from Paddington Bear to the Prince and Princess of Wales, gathered at London\u2019s Royal Festival Hall for the awards. DiCaprio, Chalamet, Emma Stone, Cillian Murphy, Glenn Close and Ethan Hawke were among the stars walking the red carpet before a black-tie ceremony hosted by Scottish actor Alan Cumming<\/a>.<\/p>\n Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales also attended, three days after William\u2019s uncle Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested<\/a> by police and held for 11 hours over allegations he sent sensitive government information to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.<\/p>\n The scandal has rocked the royal family<\/a> led by King Charles III, though William and Kate remain popular standard-bearers for the monarchy. William presented an award in his role as president of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.<\/p>\n Among the biggest receptions from gathered fans was for Paddington, the puppet bear who stars in a musical stage adaption of the beloved children’s classic.<\/p>\n Oscars bellwether<\/strong><\/p>\n The British prizes, officially called the EE BAFTA Film Awards, often provide hints about who will win at Hollywood\u2019s Academy Awards, held this year on March 15. \u201cSinners\u201d has a record 16 Oscar nominations<\/a>, followed by \u201cOne Battle After Another\u201d with 13.<\/p>\n \u201cOne Battle\u201d went into the BAFTAs ceremony with 14 nominations. \u201cSinners\u201d was just behind with 13, while \u201cHamnet\u201d had 11.<\/p>\n Ping-pong odyssey \u201cMarty Supreme\u201d <\/a> also had 11 nominations but went home empty=handed.<\/p>\n