Denis Villeneuve’s sweeping science fiction epic Dune leads the way in the BAFTA award nominations, which were announced today. Dune has 11 nominations and Jane Campion’s western The Power of the Dog has eight. Kenneth Branagh’s black-and-white memoir Belfast has six. Daniel Craig’s James Bond swan-song No Time to Die, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza and Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story all tie with five each.
The biggest surprises probably came in the Best Actress category, with Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter), Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos) and Kristen Stewart (Spencer) all missing out. A mostly young field (in their 20s and 30s) have been nominated, including Alana Haim (Licorice Pizza) and Emilia Jones (Coda) and Renate Reinsve (The Worst Person in the World).
Best Film has five nominees – Belfast, Dune, Don’t Look Up, Licorice Pizza, and The Power of the Dog. Best British Film has ten nominees, including some surprises including House of Gucci (which we all know is as Italian as it gets). Lesser-known titles include Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Boiling Point, After Love, and Ali and Ava.
The Best Actor nominations are Will Smith (King Richard), Leonardo DiCaprio (Don’t Look Up) and Benedict Cumberbatch (The Power of the Dog). More surprising names, from lesser-known films, were Mahershala Ali (Swan Song), Adeel Akhtar (Ali and Ava) and Stephen Graham (Boiling Point).
Best Director also offers up an eclectic list of names with Paul Thomas Anderson (Licorice Pizza) and Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog) being the most expected. Nominated alongside them were Aleem Khan (After Love), Ryûsuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car), Audrey Diwan (Happening), and Julia Ducournau (Titane).
BAFTA have shaken up their membership and the way voting is done in the last couple of years, after people pointed out that those nominated were overwhelmingly white and male. The diverse list of nominees this year certainly seems to reflect these changes.
If you’re excited to find out who will win, tune in on March 13 to find out. In the meantime, check out our guide to the best drama movies.