Nigerians Mosaku & Davies Jr. win for Africa at EE BAFTA Awards
The 2026 EE BAFTA Film Awards, officially known as the 79th British Academy Film Awards, which took place on February 22, 2026, at the Royal Festival Hall in London’s Southbank Centre, marked a triumphant night for African and Nigerian diaspora creatives, showcasing the growing global influence of stories rooted in African heritage.
The ceremony was hosted by Alan Cumming in his debut as presenter, which celebrated the best films released theatrically in the UK during 2025 and once again affirmed the BAFTAs’ status as one of the world’s most influential film honours.
British-Nigerian actress Wunmi Mosaku won Best Supporting Actress for her powerful performance as Annie in Sinners, directed by Ryan Coogler. The musical horror film secured three awards on the night, including Best Original Screenplay, making Coogler the first Black winner in that category, and Best Original Score.
Mosaku, born in Zaria, Nigeria, and raised in Manchester, delivered an emotional acceptance speech in which she spoke of rediscovering a part of her hopes, ancestral power and connection through her role, which she admitted that she almost dimmed while navigating life as an immigrant.
With this win, she became the first Black British actress to claim the Best Supporting Actress prize at the Film BAFTAs, adding to her earlier BAFTA television success in 2017 for Damilola, Our Loved Boy.
In another proud moment for Nigerian storytelling, Akinola Davies Jr. became the first Nigerian-led production to win the award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer for My Father’s Shadow, written by his brother Wale Davies. Set in 1993 Lagos during Nigeria’s election crisis, the film follows two brothers navigating a turbulent political climate alongside their troubled father.
The story’s intimate portrayal of family and national tension resonated with audiences and critics alike, marking a significant milestone for African-centered cinema on the international stage. In his acceptance speech, Davies Jr. dedicated the award to immigrant parents who sacrificed everything for their children’s futures.
He encouraged audiences to archive their loved ones, archive their stories yesterday, today, and forever, while extending solidarity to Nigeria, London, the Congo, Sudan, and offering a call for global justice.
The ceremony was broadcast on BBC One and streamed on iPlayer. One Battle After Another was the big winner of the night, securing six awards, including Best Film, Best Director for Paul Thomas Anderson, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing and Best Supporting Actor for Sean Penn, marking it as the most celebrated film of the evening and a strong indicator for the upcoming Oscars.
Robert Aramayo took home the Leading Actor prize for his role in I Swear and also won the public-voted EE Rising Star Award, while Jessie Buckley won Best Leading Actress for her performance in Hamnet, which also received the Outstanding British Film award.
Other winners included Frankenstein for Costume Design, Make Up & Hair and Production Design; Zootropolis 2 for Best Animated Film; Sentimental Value in the Film Not in the English Language category; Mr Nobody Against Putin as Best Documentary and My Father’s Shadow as Outstanding Debut.
The esteemed BAFTA Fellowship was presented to Dame Donna Langley by Prince William in recognition of her exceptional contribution to film. The star-studded evening also featured notable red-carpet fashion and memorable appearances, reflecting both British and international cinema achievements of 2025.
Full list of winners at the 2026 BAFTA:
Best Film
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
WINNER: One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Best Director
Yorgos Lanthimos, Bugonia
Chloé Zhao, Hamnet
Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme
WINNER: Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
Joachim Trier, Sentimental Value
Ryan Coogler, Sinners
Best Actor
WINNER: Robert Aramayo, I Swear
Timothée Chalamet, Marty Supreme
Leonardo DiCaprio, One Battle After Another
Ethan Hawke, Blue Moon
Michael B. Jordan, Sinners
Jesse Plemons, Bugonia
Best Actress
WINNER: Jessie Buckley, Hamnet
Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Kate Hudson, Song Sung Blue
Chase Infiniti, One Battle After Another
Renate Reinsve, Sentimental Value
Emma Stone, Bugonia
Best Supporting Actor
Paul Mescal, Hamnet
Peter Mullan, I Swear
WINNER: Sean Penn, One Battle After Another
Stellan Skarsgård, Sentimental Value
Benicio Del Toro, One Battle After Another
Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein
Best Supporting Actress
Odessa A’zion, Marty Supreme
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Sentimental Value
WINNER: Wunmi Mosaku, Sinners
Carey Mulligan, The Ballad of Wallis Island
Teyana Taylor, One Battle After Another
Emily Watson, Hamnet
Best Adapted Screenplay
The Ballad of Wallis Island
Bugonia
Hamnet
WINNER: One Battle After Another
Pillion
Best Original Screenplay
I Swear
Marty Supreme
The Secret Agent
Sentimental Value
WINNER: Sinners
Outstanding British Film
28 Years Later
The Ballad of Wallis Island
Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy
Die My Love
H is for Hawk
WINNER: Hamnet
I Swear
Mr. Burton
Pillion
Steve
Best Animated Film
Elio
Little Amélie
WINNER: Zootopia 2
Best Film Not in the English Language
It Was Just an Accident
The Secret Agent
WINNER: Sentimental Value
Sirāt
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Best Documentary Film
2,000 Meters to Andriivka
Apocalypse in the Tropics
Cover-Up
WINNER: Mr. Nobody Against Putin
The Perfect Neighbor
Best Children’s & Family Film
Arco
WINNER: Boong
Lilo & Stitch
Zootopia 2
Best Editing
A House of Dynamite
F1
Marty Supreme
WINNER: One Battle After Another
Sinners
Best Casting
WINNER: I Swear
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Best Cinematography
Frankenstein
Marty Supreme
WINNER: One Battle After Another
Sinners
Train Dreams
Best Production Design
WINNER: Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Best Sound
WINNER: F1
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Warfare
Best Special Visual Effects
WINNER: Avatar: Fire and Ash
F1
Frankenstein
How to Train Your Dragon
The Lost Bus
Best Costume Design
WINNER: Frankenstein
Hamnet
Mary Supreme
Sinners
Wicked: For Good
Best Makeup and Hair
WINNER: Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
Sinners
Wicked: For Good
Best Original Score
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
WINNER: Sinners
Bugonia
Frankenstein
Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema
Clare Binns
Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director, or Producer
Pillion
The Ceremony
Wasteman
A Want In Her
WINNER: My Father’s Shadow
Best British Short Animation
Cardboard
Solstice
WINNER: Two Black Boys in Paradise
Best British Short Film
Welcome Home Freckles
Magid / Zafar
Nostalgie
Terence
WINNER: This Is Endometriosis
EE Rising Star Award
WINNER: Robert Aramayo
Miles Caton
Chase Infiniti
Archie Madekwe
Posy Sterling
Written by Abeeb Lekan Sodiq
Abeeb Lekan Sodiq is the Managing Editor of theafricandream.net, a pan-African news website subsidiary of US-based TheAfricanDream LLC. He is also a Human Resource Practitioner, and a freelance Graphics Designer. He has worked with prominent personalities, including ambassadors, secretariats, international organisations, universities, celebrities, NGO, and media firms.
