Britain’s biggest night in film, the BAFTAs, returned for the 2025 award ceremony in London’s Royal Festival Hall.

David Tennant returned as host for a second year in the running. The Doctor Who star opened the ceremony with a version of The Proclaimer’s “500 Miles” before a safe opening speech, which only saw a minor dig at Donald Trump.

The Ralph Fiennes Vatican-set drama Conclave led the way with 12 nominations. On the night, the movie, which co-starred Stanley Tucci and Isabella Rossellini, was awarded Best Editing, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Outstanding British Film. It also took home the highly coveted Best Film award, beating Blitz, Kneecap, Lee, Bird, and Gladiator II. Despite winning the big prize, Conclave took home no acting awards.

Brady Corbet’s historical epic, The Brutalist, also took home four awards, winning Best Director, Best Actor In A Leading Role for Adrien Brody, Best Cinematographer, and Best Original Score. Accepting his director award, Brady Corbet told the room that he was “humbled” and “grateful” for his win before declaring there was “no such thing” as the best director.

Despite nine nominations, Emilia Perez only took home two awards. The film won Best Film Not In The English Language and Zoe Saldana won Best Actress In A Supporting Role. In her tearful speech, she thanked the controversial lead Karla Sofia Gascón, who was not in attendance despite being nominated.

Mikey Madison continued Anora’s last-minute awards comeback by winning Best Performance By An Actress In A Leading Role. Many had already started to engrave Demi Moore’s Academy Award for her role in The Substance, but Madison’s win as the sex worker could cause an upset at the upcoming Oscars. Anora also won Best Casting.

The 2025 ceremony also saw Kieran Culkin continue his Best Supporting Actor streak for his role as Benji in A Real Pain. His co-star and director Jesse Eisenberg won Best Original Screenplay and admitted he was not expecting the award.

A Real Pain

Despite seven nominations, Dune: Part Two only picked up Best Special Visual Effects and Best Sound. Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, which became the second-most-watched UK broadcast since 2022, bagged two awards on the night. Wicked took home the award for Best Production Design and Best Costume Design. Cast member Jeff Goldblum did reappear later to play a piano version of ‘As Time Goes By’ during the memorium.

The EE Rising Star, an award voted for by the public, went to Alien Romulus actor David Jonsson. Other nominees saw his Industry co-stars Nabhaan Rizwan and Marisa Abela, alongside Mikey Madison and Jharrel Jerome. This year’s BAFTA fellowship was awarded to Star Wars and Harry Potter star Warwick Davis for his contribution to cinema through acting and creating a talent agency aimed at actors under five feet (1.52 m) tall or over seven feet (2.13 m) tall. Davis’ emotional speech paid tribute to his late wife, Samantha, who passed away last year.

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