How Sinners’ Bafta haul is already shifting recognition for Black British actors and genre cinema

Wunmi Mosaku’s supporting actress Bafta for her role in the film sinners lands as more than a single trophy: it’s a visibility moment for Black British performers, a rare awards win for musical horror, and a signal that surprise results reshaped the night’s narrative. Mosaku, who is pregnant and was born in Nigeria before growing up in Manchester, framed the win around ancestral power and the sense of kinship it created — a direct, immediate effect on audiences and peers.

Immediate impact: who is affected first and how

Here’s the part that matters: Mosaku’s win will be felt most immediately by Black women and performers who have not seen their spiritual or immigrant experiences reflected with integrity at major film awards. As the first Black British winner in the supporting actress film category, her recognition changes the shortlist math for casting directors, awards strategists and storytellers who track representation. It also places musical horror — a less-codified awards genre — into a spotlight that can alter funding and festival interest.

Event overview: the winners that reordered the night

The ceremony produced several headline surprises and confirmations. One Battle After Another was named best film, defeating Hamnet and Sinners. Robert Aramayo won best actor for I Swear in a shock result that left the room stunned; Jessie Buckley won best actress for Hamnet. Sean Penn picked up Best Supporting Actor for his role as Steven J. Lockjaw in One Battle After Another, though he was not in London to collect the award. One Battle After Another entered the night with a large slate of nominations — a total of 14 — and emerged as one of the evening’s big winners.

Sinners: Mosaku’s ancestral power and the immediate uplift

Wunmi Mosaku, 39, who was born in Nigeria and moved from Zaria to Manchester when she was a one-year-old, said she was "really shocked" by the win and described finding parts of herself she thought she had dimmed as an immigrant trying to fit in. In the film she plays Annie, a Hoodoo priestess, and her performance, alongside Jack O'Connell’s, has drawn widespread praise; sinners also won a Bafta for best original screenplay. Mosaku noted the response from Black women who felt seen and described a new sense of kinship with people she had never met. She is also pregnant and acknowledged how emotional the moment felt.

Standout moments, surprising turns and the ceremony’s tone

The night’s tone shifted between awkward stretches and electric surprises. A reviewer’s take arrived as the event wrapped, calling it a weird evening with long monologues and montage-heavy pacing. At one point a man said to have Tourette syndrome shouted a swearword at Paddington Bear in the auditorium. Cillian Murphy presented best actress while the crowd, still buzzing from the Aramayo upset, whooped at the announcement of a Peaky Blinders film. When Aramayo was called, he appeared speechless, fought back tears during his speech, and the room — including a visibly thrilled Leonardo DiCaprio — reacted with sincere delight. Glenn Close was onstage to present the final award, and Sara Murphy accepted best film with a tribute to Adam Somner, who was described as beloved by his team. Paul Thomas Anderson, present as a key creative behind One Battle After Another, told critics who say films aren’t good to "piss off, " then begged to go to a bar — a blunt moment that punctuated the evening’s uneven rhythm.

Broadcast, nominations context and what could confirm a trend

The awards were hosted by Alan Cumming and were scheduled to air at 7 p. m. local time in the UK and at 8 p. m. ET in the U. S. Sean Penn’s supporting-actor prize was framed as third-time-lucky after nominations in 2003 for Mystic River and 21 Grams and in 2008 for Milk. The combination of a surprise best-actor winner, a celebrated best-film victory for One Battle After Another, and Mosaku’s landmark supporting actress win creates a cluster of signals that could shift awards-season narratives if followed by similar recognition in other ceremonies.

• Winners who defied expectations recalibrate awards season attention toward performance-driven, character-led stories.
• Mosaku’s profile rise is likely to alter conversations about casting, representation and the commercial prospects of genre films.
• One Battle After Another’s heavy nomination count and key wins suggest momentum for its creative team and principal cast.
• A surprise best-actor result can make other voters rethink earlier front-runners — confirmation will come if this pattern repeats at forthcoming ceremonies.

It’s easy to overlook, but Mosaku’s backstory — from a one-year migration from Zaria to growing up in Manchester to previous televised recognition nine years earlier for a TV Bafta for Damilola, Our Loved Boy — frames this moment as part of a longer arc of visibility. The real question now is whether this reshuffling of wins produces sustained industry change or remains a singular, brilliant night of surprises.