BAFTAs 2026 winners: Sinners star Wunmi Mosaku is awarded Best Supporting Actress while Paul Mescal misses out as star-studded ceremony kicks off

Sinners star Wunmi Mosaku was among the first winners of the British Academy Film Awards, which kicked off at London’s Royal Festival Hall on Sunday.

Following the star-studded red carpet, Hollywood’s finest settled into the iconic venue to reveal who scooped the coveted awards.

Mosaku, who is pregnant with her second child, thanked her husband, family and daughter from the stage and said that her mother had ‘beamed’ her love to her ‘to give me the freedom to make my choices’.

She said that while playing nun Annie in Sinners, she connected with a part of herself that she had “obscured as an immigrant trying to fit in.”

Ryan Coogler wrote the role of Hoodoo priestess Annie in Sinners specifically for Mosaku, who grew up in Manchester and sang with the Manchester Girls Choir for 11 years.

The actress, who is a graduate of Rada, attracted attention in the movie I Am a Slave in 2010, in which she played a Sudanese girl sold into slavery.

Damilola won the TV BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Damilola Taylor’s mother Gloria in Our Loved Boy and went on to star in the blockbuster films Deadpool & Wolverine and Batman vs Superman.

The actress was born in Zaria, Nigeria, to parents who are both professors, but she currently lives in Los Angeles and is expecting her second child.

‘It was the best feeling ever because we really loved this movie,’ said Mosaku, who previously won a Bafta TV Award for her role as Gloria Taylor in the TV movie Damilola, The Son We Loved.

He said of Sinners: ‘We really poured everything we had into this and that’s why the audiences who came to the film last year and showed so much love for it were so intense and validating. Now that these nominations have arrived, it has been the best part.’

Mosaku, who is pregnant with her second child, thanked her husband, family and daughter from the stage and said that her mother had ‘beamed’ her love to her.

Sean Penn was honored with the Best Supporting Actor award for One Battle After another, beating out favorites including Stellan Skarsgård.

The Milk star wasn’t there to accept the honour, prompting host Gillian Anderson to joke: ‘I’ll take that.’

Alicia Vikander and Patrck Dempsey took the stage to present the Supporting Actress gong

Patrick’s appearance comes just days after the death of his Grey’s Anatomy co-star Erin Dane.

Sean Penn was honored with the Best Supporting Actor award for One Battle After another, beating out favorites including Stellan Skarsgård.

This also meant that Paul Mescal missed out on the honor, despite receiving critical praise for his performance in Hamnet.

The Milk star wasn’t there to accept the honour, prompting host Gillian Anderson to joke: ‘I’ll accept it.’

The award for Best Children’s and Family Film, presented by Paddington Bear, went to India’s Manipuri-language coming-of-age drama Boong.

Best Production Design was presented to Jacob Elordi’s Frankenstein’s portrayal of the iconic monster, and the film also won Best Makeup and Hair.

Monica Bellucci presented the Best Documentary award to Mr. Nobody vs. Putin.

This Is Endometriosis was awarded the Best British Short Film award by Miles Caton and Milly Alcock, while the Best British Animated Short award was given to Two Black Boys in Paradise.

The first award of the night was given to Avatar: Fire and Ash in the Special Visual Effects category.

This year’s Special Prize winners include Dame Donna Langley, who will be honored with the arts charity’s highest accolade, a BAFTA Fellowship.

The British Chairman of NBCUniversal Entertainment will be celebrated for his prolific career and status as one of the most influential and respected figures in the entertainment industry.

Clare Binns, Creative Director of Picture House Cinemas, will also be presented with the BAFTA award for Britain’s Outstanding Contribution to Cinema.

The first award of the night, the Special Visual Effects award, was given to Avatar: Fire and Ash.

This honor was presented by Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo.

While Timothee Chalamet is definitely the favorite for the Leading Actor award, he looked busier on his phone as he sat next to Kylie Jenner.

Hollywood star was more focused on his device than his glamorous girlfriend

In a moment that will no doubt delight young audiences, Paddington Bear was on hand to present the award for Children’s and Family Film.

The famous bear made his much-anticipated appearance at the awards ceremony honoring the greatest of family movies.

The award was given to India’s Manipuri-language coming-of-age drama Boong.

Sadie Sink and Noah Jupe presented the Production Design award to Frankenstein, for Jacob Elordi’s portrayal of the iconic monster.

Monica Bellucci presented the Best Documentary award to Mr. Nobody vs. Putin

This award recognizes his role in supporting diverse and fiercely independent work on big screens across the UK.

With Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film receiving fourteen nominations at this year’s ceremony, One Battle After Another will no doubt be hoping to win one award after another.

But it faces stiff competition, particularly supernatural horror The Sinners, with thirteen nominations, and director Chloé Zhao’s poignant drama Hamnet, about the death of Shakespeare’s only son, with eleven nominations.

Hamnet, adapted for the big screen from Maggie O’Farrell’s award-winning novel about the Bard’s family life, broke the record for the film with the most female director nominations in BAFTA history.

Irish star Jessie Buckley was nominated for the lead role in the film, after winning the Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Award and being nominated for the Academy Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Lead actor Paul Mescal, who was snubbed during the Oscar nominations, will also be hoping for an award after earning a Supporting Actor BAFTA nomination.

In other news, Marty Supreme and Timothée Chalamet are hoping to get lucky three times after recent wins at the Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Awards earned eleven BAFTA nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actor.

Frankenstein and Sentimental Value have eight nominations each, while I Swear and Bugonia have five nominations, and The Ballad of Wallis Island, Pillion and F1 have three nominations.

Also competing for BAFTA’s Best Actress are Rose Byrne for If I Had Legs I’d Kick You; Kate Hudson for Song Sung Blue; Follow Infiniti for one battle after another; Renate Reinsve for Emotional Value and Emma Stone for Bugonia.

Leonardo DiCaprio could win his second BAFTA after picking up his seventh nomination for his performance in a Leading Role in One Battle After Another, which has already garnered a lot of awards this year.

First-time BAFTA Film nominees include Robert Aramayo, Odessa A’zion, Rose Byrne, Chase Infiniti, Michael B. Jordan, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Stellan Skarsgård and Teyana Taylor.

Emma Baehr, Executive Director of Awards and Content, said: ‘We are delighted to welcome many of this year’s notable nominees to London for the EE BAFTA Film Awards, a vibrant celebration of creativity, craft and collaboration in British and global cinema.

‘It’s particularly exciting to be joined on the night by such an impressive group of presenters, representing the best of cinema and the wider creative industries.

‘This year’s ceremony will be an unforgettable event for audiences at home and in the auditorium.’

BAFTA’s mission as a charitable organization is to promote the creative and cultural importance of the cinematic arts in film, games and television.

BAFTA identifies and celebrates excellence through its Awards ceremonies and a year-round program of talent initiatives and learning events including masterclasses, conferences, scholarships, scholarships and mentoring programs in the UK and North America, discovering, inspiring and nurturing new screen talent, and enabling learning and creative collaboration.

The ceremony will be broadcast at 19:00 on BBC One and iPlayer in the UK, on ​​E! at 8:00 PM Eastern Time in North America. The awards will also be presented by many international broadcasters.