Hamnet triumphs in Bafta nominations after Paul Mescal’s Oscars snub

Hamnet has had a good day at the Bafta nominations after being shut out of several major categories at the Oscars in a triumphant moment for British film and Paul Mescal.

Today’s Bafta nominations were announced by The Long Walk actor David Jonsson and The White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood during a livestream on YouTube from London.

One Battle After Another, Sinners, Marty Supreme, and Hamnet came out on top, with One Battle After Another leading the nominations overall with 14 across all categories. Sinners was close behind with 13, and Marty Supreme and Hamnet picked up 11 nominations respectively.

Frankenstein received eight, and I Swear got an impressive five nods.

Additionally, Hamnet and Sinners made Bafta history as the most-nominated films from a female director and a Black director, respectively.

For some fans, the best news of the day is Paul Mescal’s nomination in the best supporting actor category, after he failed to secure an Oscar nomination.

And while Mescal is in contention for the category where he isn’t for the Academy Awards, London-born Delroy Lindo didn’t receive a nomination, a surprise following his Oscars nod. Instead, Peter Mullan secured a nomination for his performance in I Swear.

Other surprises include Amy Madigan not landing a nomination for her performance in Weapons, despite her being a favourite for the supporting actress category elsewhere, and Elle Fanning missing a nomination for her supporting role in Sentimental Value.

Bafta is the last awarding arts body to reveal its film nominations for the 2026 awards season, following the Academy unveiling its choices on Thursday – where vampire flick Sinners made history with 16 Oscars nominations.

Its Film Awards longlists, however, already gave an indication of the way things could go in early January, when released.

They put One Battle After Another in pole position with 16 mentions on the longlists, followed by both Hamnet and Sinners on 14, Marty Supreme on 13 and Yorgos Lanthimos’s Bugonia and Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein on 12.

The most nominated film in Bafta history is Sir Richard Attenborough’s 1982 drama Gandhi, starring Sir Ben Kingsley, which received 16 nods and went on to win five gongs, while 1969 classic Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid has the record for the most wins by a single film at nine.

Fans also got an early warning of surprising snubs for this year too, with major Hollywood A-listers like Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Dwayne Johnson, and Sydney Sweeney all being omitted at that stage.

Further to that, confirmed best actor Oscar nominee (and Golden Globe winner) Wagner Moura was not longlisted by Bafta, showing there will be some deviation in the acting categories guaranteed.

KPop Demon Hunters is also a notable casualty given its dominance so far in the best animated feature and best song categories (for the smash-hit pop anthem Golden).

However, due to its straight-to-streaming release on Netflix, it does not meet eligibility criteria for the Baftas.

The Bafta Film Awards are set to take place in London on Sunday February 22, hosted by actor Alan Cumming, taking over from former Doctor Who star – and fellow Scot – David Tennant, who took on those duties in 2024 and 2025.

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