The 75th British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA) was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, accolades were handed out for the best feature-length film and documentaries of any nationality that were screened at British cinemas in 2021.
So, who took home the major honours at this year’s ceremony? And what does it mean for the Academy Awards scheduled in two weeks’ time? Earlier, in this article here, we had discussed how winners at various award shows, including BAFTA, indicate the eventual winners at the Oscars. Now that the winners at BAFTA are announced, let’s have a look at who won at the BAFTA and its implication on Oscars 2022.
The ceremony hosted by Rebel Wilson was dominated by Dunes which finished with five wins for Production Design, Special Visual Effects, Cinematography, Sound and Original Score. No other movie won more than two awards. But it was The Power of the Dog which took home the big prize of the night.
The Power of the Dog won the race for Best Film. It follows up its win at the Golden Globes and continues to be the favourite to take home the Academy Award for the Best Picture. However, this category at the Oscars has sprung up surprises over the past few years.
The Best Director honour went to Jane Campion – for The Power of Dog. This is her second major award of the season after the Golden Globes. She was already in pole position to win at the Oscars but this win has more or less made it a done deal.
The award for the Leading Actress at the BAFTA was given to Joanna Scanlan for her role in the movie ‘After Love’. The winners for this category of award have been common at the BAFTA and Oscars for the past 6 years. However, we are set to have different winners in 2022 given that Joanna Scanlan is not nominated at the Oscars 2022. Nicole Kidman (for ‘Being the Ricardos’) and Jessica Chastain (for ‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye’) won at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild respectively. Given its unpredictability, this race will be closely watched at the Oscars.
Will Smith was awarded the Leading Actor of 2022 at the BAFTA for his role in ‘King Richard’. With wins at Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild and now at the BAFTA, it will be a major shock if Will Smith does not win an Oscar in 2022.
To conclude, Will Smith and Jane Campion (for Best Actor and Director) cement their position as frontrunners to win at the Academy Awards ceremony. The Power of Dog improves its chances with a win at the BAFTA. However, no clarity emerges on who will take home the prize as the leading actress of 2022.