The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) held their annual film awards ceremony 10 February in a ceremony hosted by Joanna Lumley at the Royal Albert Hall in London. In a film awards season with no clear frontrunner, Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite emerged as the evening’s biggest winner, possibly boosting its chances at the upcoming Academy Awards.
The Favourite, a dark comedy about Queen Anne’s palace from Fox Searchlight Pictures starring Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz, won seven out of 12 BAFTA statues in total, including best British film and both actress categories for Colman and Weisz. “As far as I’m concerned, all three of us are the same and should be the leads,” said Colman of her co-stars in her acceptance speech. “This is for all three of us. It’s got my name on it but we can scratch on some other ones.”
Also among the BAFTA acting winners were Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award winners Rami Malek for 20th Century Fox’s Bohemian Rhapsody and Mahershala Ali for Universal Pictures’ Green Book. Earning the EE Rising Star Award, voted upon by the public, was Letitia Wright, who in 2018 notched an Emmy nomination and appeared in two of the year’s biggest box office hits (Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War).
Taking home the evening’s top prize for best film was Alfonso Cuarón’s Roma. The Netflix film, currently tied with The Favourite for the most 2019 Oscar nominations, was also recognised in BAFTA’s directing, cinematography, and non-English language categories. Meanwhile, Spike Lee earned his first-ever BAFTA statue for the adapted screenplay of his Focus Features film BlacKkKlansman. Both Cuarón and Lee are in contention for writing, directing, and best picture at the Academy Awards, to be held 24 February. Who will claim Hollywood’s biggest honours?
For a full list of winners and more on this year’s EE British Academy Film Awards, visit the official site.
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