Oppenheimer wins battle with Barbie for BAFTA nominations as shortlist revealed

Barbie might have won the battle of the box office, but Oppenheimer leads the BAFTAs race – picking up 13 nods for this year’s awards.

British filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s epic, which explores the true story of the first atomic bomb, is shortlisted for gongs including best film and best director, as well as acting awards for stars Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt and Robert Downey Jr.

It is followed by the critically acclaimed Poor Things, which has 11 BAFTA nominations. Star Emma Stone, who plays a young woman resurrected from the dead with the mind of an infant, is nominated for best actress – like Murphy, she is fresh from a Golden Globe win – while the film is also in the running for best film and outstanding British film.

Nominations in full:
The films and stars in the running this year

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Barbie, the biggest film of 2023, has five nominations, including best actress for Margot Robbie and supporting actor for Ryan Gosling, but is notably missing from the best film and director categories for filmmaker Greta Gerwig, who surprised the world with her feminist take on the world’s most famous doll when the film was released in the summer.

She receives a nod instead for best original screenplay, while the film is also shortlisted for best costume design and best production design.

Anatomy Of A Fall (seven nods), The Holdovers (seven nods) and Killers Of The Flower Moon (nine nods) make up the rest of the nominees in the best film category, while acting nominees also include Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan, for Maestro, and Robert De Niro for Killers Of The Flower Moon.

British films, including All Of Us Strangers and Saltburn, have fared well, with six and five nods respectively. Saltburn has acting nods for Irish star Barry Keoghan and British actress Rosamund Pike, while Paul Mescal and Claire Foy are in the running for their performances in All Of Us Strangers.

Films shortlisted alongside Poor Things for outstanding British film include How To Have Sex, Napoleon, Wonka and Rye Lane.

First and second ever nominations for one actress

In the acting categories, German actress Sandra Huller receives both her first and second ever nods – for best actress for Anatomy Of A Fall and best supporting actress for Zone Of Interest. She is one of 11 nominees, from 23 in total, to be shortlisted for the first time – along with Murphy for Oppenheimer.

Fantasia Barrino and Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple), Colman Domingo (Rustin), Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Dominic Sessa (The Holdovers), Jacob Elordi (Saltburn), Vivian Oparah (Rye Lane) and Teo Yoo (Past Lives) are also first-time nominees.

In the directing category, four of the six are first-time director nominees: Jonathan Glazer (The Zone Of Interest), Andrew Haigh (All Of Us Strangers), Alexander Payne (The Holdovers), and Justine Triet (Anatomy Of A Fall). They are up against Nolan and Cooper, who directed and starred in Maestro – meaning five of the six nominees are male.

‘The most talked about films of the year’

The nominations for the Rising Star Award, which recognises up-and-coming talent and is voted for by the public, were announced ahead of the full shortlist – and feature Bridgerton star Phoebe Dynevor, Saltburn’s Elordi, The Bear actress Ayo Edebiri, and Mia McKenna-Bruce and Sophie Wilde – stars of the films How To Have Sex and Talk To Me respectively.

Previous winners – including Tom Hardy, Kristen Stewart and Daniel Kaluuya – have gone on to become household names.

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BAFTA chief executive Jane Millichip said the 38 films nominated span an “extraordinary” range of genres and stories across an “incredibly strong” field.

“More films were entered, making the selection process particularly tough for our voting members,” she said. “The films and talented people nominated represent some of the most talked about films of the year, the most critically acclaimed, and films yet to be released and discovered by audiences.”

Anna Higgs, chair of the BAFTA Film Committee, added: “They showcase ambitious, creative and hugely impressive voices from independent British debuts to global blockbusters. From complex moral issues through to joyful journeys of self-discovery, they all ultimately explore human connection.”

The winners will be announced at the BAFTAs ceremony on 18 February, with David Tennant hosting this year.

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