Dame Donna Langley Awarded BAFTA Fellowship as Baftas 2026 Highlights Put British Cinema in the Spotlight

dame donna langley was honored with the British Academy’s highest award at the BAFTA Film Awards 2026 in London, a moment that tied together a night of British-cinema triumphs and a tightly packed video highlights reel. The fellowship recognition and surrounding ceremony underscored themes Langley raised about cinema’s power to help people see each other more clearly and the role of decency in storytelling.

Dame Donna Langley: Fellowship, background and the moment in London

The BAFTA Fellowship was presented at the BAFTA Film Awards 2026 ceremony in London on Sunday. Langley, identified in the ceremony as the chair of NBCUniversal Entertainment and the first British woman to run a major Hollywood studio, received a standing ovation when she took the stage. The award was described as the British Academy’s highest honor. The event included an introduction by Prince William, who praised Langley’s determination and commitment and highlighted her strong commitment to inclusion and mentorship.

dame donna langley on decency and the responsibility of storytellers

On stage Langley emphasized cinema’s capacity to bring people together and framed decency as a guiding principle, saying that decency is a superpower. She spoke about facing moments of change and disruption and urged storytellers to make popular art that helps audiences understand the world and see one another more clearly. Langley credited her parents with helping her see differences as strengths rather than weaknesses, and she stressed that the most meaningful part of the work is supporting people: encouraging voices, protecting talent long enough for them to find their feet, and remembering to open doors.

Call to action: shaping the future of the business

Langley closed with a call to action, urging those in the industry to treat the future of the business as something they shape. Her message emphasized taking risks and backing people, continuing to adapt, maintaining resilience and making room for new voices. That call framed the fellowship acceptance as both recognition and a prompt for continued leadership and inclusion within filmmaking.

Reactions from collaborators and industry figures

A video reel shown during the ceremony assembled praise from a number of collaborators. One contributor called Langley a peacemaker and dealmaker, a creative-rights advocate and someone operating on the forward fringe of new business, technology and ideas; that contributor also said she believes movies and audiences belong in movie theaters and described Langley’s patience as a bonding agent that makes colleagues feel secure. Another contributor characterized Langley as a uniquely deserving fellowship recipient, noting her filmmaker-friendly insights, leadership that commands respect, a broad grasp of filmmaking processes and an unwavering focus on the audience. A producer associated with a major musical franchise lauded Langley as a titan and an outlier who has created an incredible legacy. Chairs and producers from a prominent film company also feted Langley the reel; their spoken contribution in the record is incomplete or unclear in the provided context.

Baftas 2026: winners and the night’s highlights

The ceremony doubled as a strong night for British cinema. Robert Aramayo took both the best newcomer and best actor awards. One Battle After Another won best film. Hamnet enjoyed success among the evening’s accolades, with Jessie Buckley taking the best actress award.

Video roundup and related clips

The event page featured a short highlights video and a series of related clips and segments. The lineup included:

• "Highlights from the Baftas 2026" — Video, 00: 01: 54
• "Inside press briefing as Trump criticises Supreme Court tariffs ruling" — Video, 00: 00: 56
• "Giant tortoises return to Galápagos island after nearly 200 years" — Video, 00: 00: 31
• "Viral monkey Punch rejected by mother given stuffed orangutan" — Video, 00: 01: 22
• "What happens next for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor?" — Video, 00: 01: 00
• "The day Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested" — Video, 00: 01: 14
• "Why haven't more Americans faced charges in the Epstein case?" — Video, 00: 01: 03
• "Skier tells of 'panic' as avalanche hit Italian slopes" — Video, 00: 01: 23
• "Lunar New Year 2026: Celebrations around the world" — Video, 00: 01: 29
• "Flying oranges: Italian town celebrates carnival with historic street battle" — Video, 00: 00: 30
• "Giant robot tribute to Brazil's President Lula comes last in carnival competition" — Video, 00: 01: 12
• "'I am a survivor' Gisèle Pelicot tells a news programme" — Video, 00: 01: 57

The event page also displayed a brief redirect notice reading "Just a moment... " with an instruction to click if not redirected automatically. A 2026 copyright notice on the page disclaimed responsibility for external sites and referenced an approach to external linking.

What this means next

The fellowship for Langley capped an evening that celebrated British on-screen talent and underscored an executive’s appeal to nurture voices and protect talent. The messages delivered from the stage and in the assembled tributes framed the award as both recognition of past work and a mandate for future stewardship of film culture and industry practices.