LONDON — Papal thriller “ Conclave,” which stars Ralph Fiennes as a cardinal overseeing the election of a brand new pope, leads the race — simply — for the British Academy Movie Awards, with nominations in 12 classes, yet another than the genre-busting musical “ Emilia Perez.”
However with the wildfires in Los Angeles over the previous week contemporary within the minds of everybody within the film business, Wednesday’s announcement of the newest BAFTA nominations was understandably restrained.
“Before we begin, on behalf of everyone at BAFTA, our thoughts are with colleagues, friends and peers and all those affected by the devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area,” actor Will Sharpe mentioned earlier than he and fellow actor Mia McKenna-Bruce introduced the nominations.
BAFTA chair Sara Putt wouldn’t be drawn on whether or not the fires might impression the BAFTA ceremony, which is because of happen on Feb. 16 on the Royal Pageant Corridor in central London and hosted by Scottish actor David Tennant.
“The ceremony is a month away, it would be inappropriate and far too early to say anything about that,” Putt informed The Related Press.
The 5 movies nominated for the distinguished finest movie award had been “ Conclave,” “ Emilia Perez,” the 215-minute postwar epic “ The Brutalist,” the Palme d’Or-winning comedy/drama “ Anora ″ and the Bob Dylan biopic “ A Complete Unknown.”
“The Brutalist” ended up with 9 nominations, together with main actor for Adrien Brody, who faces stiff competitors from Fiennes and Timothee Chalamet, who performs the younger Dylan in “A Complete Unknown.”
The opposite actors nominated are Hugh Grant for his creepy position within the horror movie “ Heretic,” Colman Domingo in real-life jail drama “ Sing Sing “ and Sebastian Stan for his portrayal of a real estate mogul — a certain Donald Trump — in “ The Apprentice.”
“Anora,” the sci-fi epic “Dune: Part Two” and “Wicked” every acquired seven nominations. “A Complete Unknown” acquired six nominations, as did “Kneecap,” the Irish-language hip-hop drama.
The prizes — formally referred to as the EE BAFTA Movie Awards — are Britain’s equal of Hollywood’s Academy Awards and might be watched carefully for hints of who might win on the Oscars on March 3.
Typically a bandwagon develops throughout awards season, and “Conclave,” for one, might be hoping that its nominations bear fruit.
Edward Berger, the German-born director of “Conclave,” which is predicated on a Robert Harris novel, expressed his pleasure on the variety of nominations the movie acquired, together with one for himself.
“At its core, Conclave is about doubt and that is how we set out on every filmmaking journey,” he mentioned. “The only way through is to be surrounded by a team of like-minded people who bond together to strive for the unattainable goal: perfection.”
Putt lauded the variability within the listing of nominations, noting that six totally different genres had been represented on the most effective movie listing.
“There’s some really exciting stories in there and just a real glorious range of film-making this year,” she mentioned.
She additionally highlighted that 14 of the 24 nominations within the appearing classes had been first-timers, and that whoever takes the most effective actress award might be a first-time BAFTA winner.
Demi Moore is in with an opportunity, having been nominated for lead actress for her position within the physique horror movie “ The Substance.”
Different notable feminine nominations for finest supporting actress had been Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande for his or her roles in “Emilia Perez” and the musical “Wicked.”
Like different main film awards, Britain’s movie academy has launched modifications in recent times to extend variety. In 2020, no girls had been nominated as finest director for the seventh 12 months operating and all 20 nominees within the lead and supporting performer classes had been white.
The voting course of was rejigged so as to add a longlist spherical within the choice earlier than the ultimate nominees are voted on by the academy’s 8,000-strong membership of business professionals.
One notable absentee from Wednesday’s shortlist was Denzel Washington, who had featured on the longlist that was launched final month, and who had been nominated for his position as a bisexual scheming proprietor of gladiators in Ridley Scott’s “ Gladiator II.”