BAFTA nominations: Will Smith earns first-ever nod

Smith was nominated for "King Richard," while Ariana DeBose, Ruth Negga, and Aunjanue Ellis also received nominations this year.

Jared Alexander

Feb 3, 2022

After receiving major criticism for its lack of diversity in 2020, the BAFTA nominations for this year have officially been announced with some refreshing and diverse names in the list of talent, including superstar Will Smith.

In this year’s BAFTA nominations that were announced Thursday, 19 of the 24 recognized performances are first-timers — a testament to the work the British Academy has done over the past two years. In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, BAFTA CEO Amanda Berry shared, “I’m really excited by it – it’s a real mix. And everybody thinks that it’s talent at the start of their career, but then you have Will Smith in there.”

Will Smith thegrio.com — Will Smith arrives for the UK premiere of “King Richard” at Curzon Cinema Mayfair on November 17, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for Warner Bros.)

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Smith is nominated for his acclaimed turn in King Richard, the film that follows Richard Williams at the beginning of Venus and Serena Williams‘ professional careers. Ariana DeBose, who has received rave reviews for her role of Anita in West Side Story, also earned a nomination. Her portrayal in particular is historic as DeBose is an Afro-Latina actress.

Elsewhere, Ruth Negga and Aunjanue Ellis also received supporting actress nominations for their performances in Passing and King Richard, respectively. Check out the official nominations list below:

Best Film
Belfast
Don’t Look Up
Dune
Licorice Pizza
The Power Of The Dog

Outstanding British Film
After Love
Ali & Ava
Belfast
Boiling Point
Cyrano
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
House Of Gucci
Last Night In Soho
No Time To Die
Passing

Outstanding Debut By A British Writer, Director Or Producer
After Love, Aleem Khan (writer/director)
Boiling Point, James Cummings (writer), Hester Ruoff (producer) [also written by Philip Barantini and produced by Bart Ruspoli]
The Harder They Fall, Jeymes Samuel (writer/director) [Also written by Boaz Yakin]
Keyboard Fantasies, Posy Dixon (writer/director), Liv Proctor (producer)
Passing, Rebecca Hall (writer/director)

Film Not In The English Language
Drive My Car
The Hand Of God
Parallel Mothers
Petite Maman
The Worst Person In The World

Documentary
Becoming Cousteau
Cow
Flee
The Rescue
Summer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)

Animated Film
Encanto
Flee
Luca
The Mitchells Vs The Machines

Director
After Love, Aleem Khan
Drive My Car, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
Happening, Audrey Diwan
Licorice Pizza, Paul Thomas Anderson
The Power Of The Dog, Jane Campion
Titane, Julia Ducournau

Original Screenplay
Being The Ricardos, Aaron Sorkin
Belfast, Kenneth Branagh
Don’t Look Up, Adam Mckay
King Richard, Zach Baylin
Licorice Pizza, Paul Thomas Anderson

Adapted Screenplay
Coda, Siân Heder
Drive My Car, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
Dune, Eric Roth, Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve
The Lost Daughter, Maggie Gyllenhaal
The Power Of The Dog, Jane Campion

Leading Actress
Lady Gaga, House Of Gucci
Alana Haim, Licorice Pizza
Emilia Jones, Coda
Renate Reinsve, The Worst Person In The World
Joanna Scanlan, After Love
Tessa Thompson, Passing

Leading Actor
Adeel Akhtar, Ali & Ava
Mahershala Ali, Swan Song
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power Of The Dog
Leonardo DiCaprio, Don’t Look Up
Stephen Graham, Boiling Point
Will Smith, King Richard

Supporting Actress
Caitríona Balfe, Belfast
Jessie Buckley, The Lost Daughter
Ariana Debose, West Side Story
Ann Dowd, Mass
Aunjanue Ellis, King Richard
Ruth Negga, Passing

Supporting Actor
Mike Faist, West Side Story
Ciarán Hinds, Belfast
Troy Kotsur, Coda
Woody Norman, C’mon C’mon
Jesse Plemons, The Power Of The Dog
Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power Of The Dog

Disney Studios' Los Angeles Premiere Of "West Side Story" - Arrivals — LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 07: Ariana DeBose attends Disney Studios’ premiere of “West Side Story” at El Capitan Theatre on December 07, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)

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Original Score
Being The Ricardos, Daniel Pemberton
Don’t Look Up, Nicholas Britell
Dune, Hans Zimmer
The French Dispatch, Alexandre Desplat
The Power Of The Dog, Jonny Greenwood

Casting
Boiling Point, Carolyn Mcleod
Dune, Francine, Maisler
The Hand Of God, Massimo Appolloni, Annamaria Sambucco
King Richard, Rich Delia, Avy Kaufman
West Side Story, Cindy Tolan

Cinematography
Dune Greig, Fraser
Nightmare Alley, Dan Laustsen
No Time To Die, Linus Sandgren
The Power Of The Dog, Ari Wegner
The Tragedy Of Macbeth, Bruno Delbonnel

Editing
Belfast, Úna Ní Dhonghaíle
Dune, Joe Walker
Licorice Pizza, Andy Jurgensen
No Time To Die, Tom Cross, Elliot Graham
Summer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Joshua L. Pearson

Production Design
Cyrano, Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
Dune, Patrice Vermette, Zsuzsanna Sipos
The French Dispatch, Adam Stockhausen, Rena Deangelo
Nightmare Alley, Tamara Deverell, Shane Vieau
West Side Story, Adam Stockhausen, Rena Deangelo

Costume Design
Cruella, Jenny Beavan
Cyrano, Massimo Cantini Parrini
Dune, Robert Morgan, Jacqueline West
The French Dispatch, Milena Canonero
Nightmare Alley, Luis Sequeira

Make Up & Hair
Cruella, Nadia Stacey, Naomi Donne
Cyrano, Alessandro Bertolazzi, Siân Miller
Dune, Love Larson, Donald Mowat
The Eyes Of Tammy Faye, Linda Dowds, Stephanie Ingram, Justin Raleigh
House Of Gucci, Frederic Aspiras, Jane Carboni, Giuliano Mariana, Sarah Nicole Tanno

Sound
Dune, Mac Ruth, Mark Mangini, Doug Hemphill, Theo Green, Ron Bartlett
Last Night In Soho, Colin Nicolson, Julian Slater, Tim Cavagin, Dan Morgan
No Time To Die, James Harrison, Simon Hayes, Paul Massey, Oliver Tarney, Mark Taylor
A Quiet Place Part II, Erik Aadahl, Michael Barosky, Brandon Proctor, Ethan Van Der Ryn
West Side Story, Brian Chumney, Tod Maitland, Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom

Special Visual Effects
Dune, Brian Connor, Paul Lambert, Tristan Myles, Gerd Nefzer
Free Guy, Swen Gillberg, Brian Grill, Nikos Kalaitzidis, Daniel Sudick
Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Aharon Bourland, Sheena Duggal, Pier Lefebvre, Alessandro Ongaro
The Matrix Resurrections, Tom Debenham, Huw J Evans, Dan Glass, J. D. Schwaim
No Time To Die, Mark Bokowski, Chris Corbould, Joel Green, Charlie Noble

British Short Animation
Affairs Of The Art, Joanna Quinn, Les Mills
Do Not Feed The Pigeons, Jordi Morera
Night Of The Living Dread, Ida Melum, Danielle Goff, Laura Jayne Tunbridge, Hannah Kelso

British Short Film
The Black Cop, Cherish Oteka
Femme, Sam H. Freeman, Ng Choon Ping, Sam Ritzenberg, Hayley Williams
The Palace, Jo Prichard
Stuffed, Theo Rhys, Joss Holden-Rea
Three Meetings Of The Extraordinary Committee, Michael Woodward, Max Barron, Daniel Wheldon