Paul Thomas Anderson Dedicates BAFTA Best Director Win to Adam Somner
Paul Thomas Anderson used his BAFTA best director acceptance to honor adam somner, the British assistant director and producer who died in November 2024. The dedication came as One Battle After Another collected multiple prizes on a night when the film led the field with 14 nominations.
Adam Somner: diagnosis, production and decades of collaboration
Anderson said adam somner had been his assistant director and producer for about 20 years. Somner was diagnosed with thyroid cancer just a few weeks into production on One Battle After Another and died in November 2024. Anderson told the audience that Somner "made us all better, " noting that Somner came to America and that "the line was out the door of people who wanted to work with him. " He added that, after Somner found out he was ill about three weeks into the shoot, Somner "made it through production, " and his illness convinced colleagues to pay closer attention to the privilege of their work.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s BAFTA wins and on-stage remarks
Collecting the BAFTA for best director, Anderson quipped, "I feel like the prettiest girl in the room, " before turning to his dedication. The prize represented Anderson’s first BAFTA best director win, after earlier nominations in the same category for We Will Be Blood and Licorice Pizza. He also took home the award for best adapted screenplay. Anderson’s broader résumé, he noted on the awards trail, includes prior honors such as best director at Cannes, the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival and the Silver and Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.
One Battle After Another’s nominations and awards haul
One Battle After Another went into the BAFTAs leading the pack with 14 nominations, two short of the record set by Gandhi, and held 13 nominations for the upcoming Academy Awards. At the ceremony the film was recognised for editing and cinematography in addition to Anderson’s wins for direction and adaptation. The ensemble cast credited in context includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Chase Infiniti, Teyana Taylor, Benicio Del Toro, Sean Penn and Regina Hall.
Performances and acting prizes: Sean Penn and Wunmi Mosaku
Sean Penn won the BAFTA for best supporting actor for his role in One Battle After Another but was not present at the ceremony to accept the award. Wunmi Mosaku won best supporting actress, beating nominees that included Teyana Taylor for One Battle After Another and Emily Watson for Hamnet. Accepting her prize, Mosaku spoke of her daughter and of rediscovering "ancestral power and connection" through a role; she referenced her part in a highly acclaimed vampire film, saying she had found "a part of myself in Annie. " Addressing director Ryan Coogler, she added that she felt "the presence of the ancestors’ pride and joy daily on your set. "
Other winners and ceremony moments
Ryan Coogler won the BAFTA for best original screenplay, and the film he was associated with also won the prize for score. Avatar: Fire And Ash claimed the first award of the night, taking best visual effects. Robert Aramayo won the EE Rising Star award, calling the honour astonishing and speaking about John Davidson, the Tourette syndrome campaigner on whom I Swear is based; Aramayo said Davidson is "the most remarkable person I’ve ever met" and urged greater support and understanding for people with Tourette’s. Host Alan Cumming opened the 2026 BAFTA film awards by saying that "watching films this year was like taking part in a collective nervous breakdown. "
What makes this notable is how the personal and professional threads converged: a film that led with 14 nominations also became the vehicle for a public farewell to a long-time collaborator, and Somner’s illness and commitment were cast as an immediate, shaping force on a production that then carried its momentum into awards season.
