DE Entertainment Desk:
“Oppenheimer” was a big winner at the 2024 BAFTA Film Awards, which were presented Sunday at the Royal Festival Hall in London, England.
The Christopher Nolan-directed award season favorite led the nominees with 13 nods this year and won seven awards, including director, lead actor and the coveted best film award.
Winning his first-ever BAFTA, Nolan expressed his thanks to studio Universal, “for letting us take on something dark, and seeing the potential for that” during his acceptance speech.
“Poor Things” was the other stand-out winner of the ceremony with five wins, including Emma Stone’s award for lead actress.
“The Holdovers” star Da’Vine Joy Randolph continues to dominate the supporting actress category through this award season cycle. Thanking her co-star Paul Giamatti while accepting her BAFTA, Randolph said, “Gosh, I cry every time I say your name. You represent everything that is great and good in our craft.”
The chilling Holocaust drama “The Zone of Interest” by director Jonathan Glazer took home the prestigious award for outstanding British film, as well as best film not in the English language. The “Barbie” movie, “Saltburn,” “Maestro” and the Martin Scorsese-directed epic “Killers of the Flower Moon,” meanwhile, came away empty on Sunday.
The ceremony also featured appearances by some cinematic legends including Tom Cruise (via video link) and Michael J. Fox, who presented the best film category. Prince William also stepped out to attend the ceremony on public duty following the hospitalization of Catherine, Princess of Wales and the cancer diagnosis of his father, King Charles.
After the BAFTAs, the Screen Actors Guild Awards (to air on Netflix on February 24) are the only other major awards event ahead of the Oscars on March 10.
The BAFTA ceremony did not air live. It was broadcast on BBC One in the UK and is available to stream on BBC iPlayer and BritBox.
