'One Battle After Another' triumphs at 2026 EE BAFTA film awards

One Battle After Another has been named Best Film at the 2026 EE BAFTA Film Awards 2026, triumphing over nominees including Hamnet, Marty Supreme, Sentimental Value, and Sinners on Sunday night, Feb. 22, at London’s Royal Festival Hall.

Hollywood legend Glenn Close, 78, presented the film’s sixth prize of the evening, capping a night where One Battle After Another also secured Best Director and Adapted Screenplay.

Producer Sara Murphy, joined on stage by director Paul Thomas Anderson, the cast, and crew, called the win “an honour,” paying tribute to the film’s late assistant director Adam Somner, who passed away from anaplastic thyroid cancer in November 2024.

Murphy said: “Thank you to Warner Brothers, Mike and Pam, for believing this film from the very beginning, and also for our team who's carrying us all the way through now."

"I wish more than anything that our producing partner, Adam Somner, could be here to accept this on behalf of us on his home turf. I think most importantly, he would thank his beautiful wife, Carmen, and his children, Olivia and Bosco. And I think I can say for both of us, we would think, Paul Anderson. It's an incredible journey on this film.”

Anderson, acknowledging the competition, encouraged attendees to celebrate the night without fear. 

He said, “You have given us so much to celebrate tonight. Thank you for rewarding our film in the way that you have. This is a tremendous honour. Well aware of the other films that share this gift of an award, and anybody that says movies aren't any good anymore, can just pick right off. I want to say thank you, and I know that there's a bar somewhere. I think we should all go there. It's been a long evening, but we have so much to celebrate. We have a line from Nina Simone that we stole for our film. 

She said, 'I know what freedom is. It's no fear.' So let's keep making things without fear. It's a good idea. See you at the bar.”

The action-packed thriller, starring American actor Sean Penn and Chase Infiniti, dominated the awards night, securing its place as one of the standout films of the year.