BAFTA awards: Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’ wins best film and direction

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer was the top winner at the 77th BAFTA Awards held in London on Sunday night. Nolan’s acclaimed chronicle of American physicist Robert J Oppenheimer’s role in developing the world’s first atomic bomb and his subsequent guilt won seven awards, including for best film and direction.

Yorgos Lanthimos’s Poor Things was the next big winner with five awards, including for Emma Stone in the leading actress category.

Nolan was named the best director over Andrew Haigh (All of Us Strangers), Justine Triet (Anatomy of a Fall), Alexander Payne (The Holdovers), Bradley Cooper (Maestro) and Jonathan Glazer (The Zone of Interest). American actor Michael J Fox gave the London-born Nolan his award.

The annual awards handed out by the British Academy of Film and Television honour the best British and international achievements in cinema produced in 2023. Oppenheimer, which was nominated in 13 categories, also won for editing (Jennifer Lame), cinematography (Hoyte van Hoytema) and original score (Ludwig Goransson).

Cillian Murphy won the leading actor award, beating Bradley Cooper (Maestro), Colman Domingo (Rustin), Paul Giamatti (The Holdovers), Barry Keoghan (Saltburn) and Teo Yoo (Past Lives). Emma Stone (Poor Things) triumphed over Sandra Huller (Anatomy of a Fall), Margot Robbie (Barbie), Carey Mulligan (Maestro), Vivian Oparah (Rye Lane) and Fantasia Barrino (The Color Purple).

Oppenheimer bagged Robert Downey Jr the best supporting actor award for his portrayal of Lewis Strauss, a member of the US Atomic Energy Commission who wages...

Read more