The 31st Annual Critics Choice Awards, held on January 4, 2026, delivered one of the clearest awards-season statements yet. Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another emerged as the night’s biggest winner, taking home Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
The ceremony honoured the best films and television series of 2025, with strong showings from Sinners, Marty Supreme, Hamnet, The Pitt, and Adolescence.
Below is a full breakdown of the major categories, winners, and nominees.
FILM CATEGORIES
Best Picture
Winner: One Battle After Another
Nominees:
- Bugonia
- Frankenstein
- Hamnet
- Jay Kelly
- Marty Supreme
- Sentimental Value
- Sinners
- Train Dreams
- Wicked: For Good
Best Director
Winner: Paul Thomas Anderson — One Battle After Another
Nominees:
- Ryan Coogler — Sinners
- Guillermo del Toro — Frankenstein
- Josh Safdie — Marty Supreme
- Joachim Trier — Sentimental Value
- Chloé Zhao — Hamnet
Best Actor
Winner: Timothée Chalamet — Marty Supreme
Nominees:
- Leonardo DiCaprio — One Battle After Another
- Joel Edgerton — Train Dreams
- Ethan Hawke — Blue Moon
- Michael B. Jordan — Sinners
- Wagner Moura — The Secret Agent
Best Actress
Winner: Jessie Buckley — Hamnet
Nominees:
- Rose Byrne — If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
- Chase Infiniti — One Battle After Another
- Renate Reinsve — Sentimental Value
- Amanda Seyfried — The Testament of Ann Lee
- Emma Stone — Bugonia
Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Jacob Elordi — Frankenstein
Nominees:
- Benicio del Toro — One Battle After Another
- Paul Mescal — Hamnet
- Sean Penn — One Battle After Another
- Adam Sandler — Jay Kelly
- Stellan Skarsgård — Sentimental Value
Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Amy Madigan — Weapons
Nominees:
- Elle Fanning — Sentimental Value
- Ariana Grande — Wicked: For Good
- Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas — Sentimental Value
- Wunmi Mosaku — Sinners
- Teyana Taylor — One Battle After Another
Best Original Screenplay
Winner: Ryan Coogler — Sinners
Nominees:
- Jay Kelly — Noah Baumbach & Emily Mortimer
- Marty Supreme — Josh Safdie & Ronald Bronstein
- Weapons — Zach Cregger
- Sorry, Baby — Eva Victor
- Sentimental Value — Eskil Vogt & Joachim Trier
Best Adapted Screenplay
Winner: Paul Thomas Anderson — One Battle After Another
Nominees:
- Train Dreams — Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar
- No Other Choice — Park Chan-wook et al.
- Frankenstein — Guillermo del Toro
- Bugonia — Will Tracy
- Hamnet — Chloé Zhao & Maggie O’Farrell
Best Young Actor / Actress
Winner: Miles Caton — Sinners
Nominees:
- Everett Blunck — The Plague
- Cary Christopher — Weapons
- Shannon Mahina Gorman — Rental Family
- Jacobi Jupe — Hamnet
- Nina Ye — Left-Handed Girl
Best Animated Feature
Winner: KPop Demon Hunters
Nominees:
- Flowervale Street
- Inside Out 2
- The Magnificent Life of Marcel Pagnol
- Orion and the Dark
TELEVISION CATEGORIES
Best Drama Series
Winner: The Pitt
Nominees:
- The Diplomat
- Severance
- All Her Fault
- Ghosts
- Slow Horses
Best Comedy Series
Winner: The Studio
Nominees:
- Nobody Wants This
- A Man on the Inside
- The Righteous Gemstones
- Murderbot
- St. Denis Medical
Best Limited Series
Winner: Adolescence
Nominees:
- Death by Lightning
- Hacks
- The Sympathizer
- Ripley
Acting Categories (Television)
Best Actor in a Drama Series; Noah Wyle — The Pitt
Nominees:
- Kieran Culkin — All Her Fault
- Pedro Pascal — The Diplomat
- Adam Scott — Severance
Best Actress in a Comedy Series; Jean Smart — Hacks
Nominees:
- Quinta Brunson — Abbott Elementary
- Maya Rudolph — Loot
- Natasha Lyonne — Poker Face
Other TV Winners
- Best Animated Series: South Park
- Best Foreign Language Series: Squid Game
- Best Variety Series: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
- Best Comedy Special: SNL50: The Anniversary Special
One Battle After Another leaves the Critics Choice Awards as the clear film frontrunner of the season. On television, The Pitt and Adolescence solidified their status as prestige favourites heading into the remaining awards circuit.
