Baftas 2026: Sinners, Hamnet, but no KPop

Timothée Chalamet, Emma Stone, Jessie Buckley and Jacob Elordi are among the actors who could secure Bafta Film Award nominations, which are announced later.

Bafta is the final major organisation to reveal its shortlists in this year’s film awards season, following the announcement of the Oscar nominations last week.

Hamnet, Sinners and One Battle After Another are expected to lead the field, but KPop Demon Hunters will miss out due to eligibility rules.

Many of the films in contention are the same as the Oscars, but there will be more UK representation at the Baftas, which has categories dedicated to recognising British talent.

Bafta are also able to recognise slightly more films and actors than the Oscars, as they have six slots available in many categories instead of five.

Alan Cumming will host the Bafta Film Awards in London on Sunday 22 February.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the nominations:

We know there are a lot of award ceremonies to keep track of at this time of year and you might be tired of reading about the same films over and over again.

But in case you’re only just joining the awards race, here’s a quick cheat sheet of which films have the most longlist mentions at the Bafta Film Awards, and what they’re about:

• One Battle After Another follows a former revolutionary who reunites with his old crew to get back his daughter after her kidnap by a white supremacist group

• Hamnet, based on Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, explores the idea that a family tragedy led William Shakespeare to write one of his most famous plays

• Sinners, a blend of vampire horror and blues music, sees twin brothers set out to open a new live entertainment venue in 1930s Mississippi, before their plans are derailed by an evil force

• Marty Supreme tells the story of a young table-tennis player in 1950s New York, trying to make his name as an athlete while staying financially afloat

• Bugonia follows two cousins who kidnap and hold captive the CEO of a pharmaceutical company, who they hold responsible for the death of a relative

• Frankenstein is a new take on Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel about a mad professor who builds a new creature from human body parts, only to later abandon it

• Sentimental Value sees two sisters reconnect with their estranged father, a film director planning his comeback, after the death of their mother

• Wicked: For Good concludes the story of how Elphaba, the wicked witch of the west, became school friends with Glinda the good witch, before the events of 1939’s The Wizard of Oz

Although the major contenders are likely to overlap with the Oscars, there will be much more British representation at the Baftas.

British and Irish actors often perform better on their own soil, plus there are categories dedicated to outstanding British debut and outstanding British film, in addition to best overall film.

Likely nominees include I Swear, the uplifting story of a young man with Tourette’s growing up in 1980s Scotland, and the humorous and heartwarming The Ballad of Wallis Island, about an eccentric lottery winner trying to bring his favourite musical duo back together.

Other British films in contention include Pillion, a superb film about two men in a BDSM relationship, and the terrific screen adaptation of H is for Hawk, about a woman who buys and trains a goshawk while grieving her father’s death.

The other films longlisted for outstanding British film are The Choral, 28 Years Later, Ballad of a Small Player, Die My Love, Hamnet, Steve, Goodbye June, Warfare, Mr Burton, The Roses and Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy.

Many of the British and Irish stars who appear in those films could also score individual acting nominations, despite not showing up elsewhere in awards season.

They include Cillian Murphy (Steve), Carey Mulligan (The Ballad of Wallis Island), Harry Melling (Pillion), Emily Watson (Hamnet), Robert Aramayo and Pete Mullan (I Swear), and Andrea Riseborough and Brenda Blethyn (Dragonfly).

Other British actors in the running include Sinners stars Wunmi Mosaku and Delroy Lindo – both of whom were recognised in the supporting categories at the Oscar nominations last week.

Bafta announcing their longlists in advance also means we already know about several films and actors that definitely will not be nominated on Tuesday.

Some Hollywood A-listers such as Julia Roberts, Dwayne Johnson, George Clooney and Sydney Sweeney had films out this year, but all missed out on the Bafta longlist, as they did at the Oscars.

The Secret Agent star Wagner Moura is also not longlisted at Bafta, despite being nominated at most other major awards ceremonies including the Oscars.

Perhaps the most notable omission, however, is KPop Demon Hunters – the Netflix smash that was the biggest viral film hit of last year.

It is the frontrunner in the animated and original song categories at the Oscars, but it’s ineligible at the Baftas as it opened straight to Netflix in the UK without a preceding theatrical run (although a singalong version was released in cinemas later).

The Bafta Film Awards can be a good indicator of which actors will go on to win at the Academy Awards, which this year take place on 15 March.

All of Bafta’s acting winners last year – Zoe Saldaña, Kieran Culkin, Mikey Madison and Adrien Brody – went on to triumph in their categories at the Oscars.

In fact, 13 of the last 15 best actor winners at the Baftas have gone on to repeat their success at the Oscars, as well as 10 of the last 12 Bafta best actress winners.

While other ceremonies such as the Golden Globe, Critics Choice and Actor Awards (formerly SAG) often go their own way, Bafta can sometimes be the most reliable indicator of what Oscar voters are thinking.

However, the best picture race split last year – with Bafta awarding Pope selection drama Conclave, before the Oscars went on to choose Anora.