‘The Favourite’ Leads London Critics’ Circle Nominations

Yorgos Lanthimos' comedy dominates the U.K. group's shortlist, while Pedro Almodóvar will receive their career achievement award.

Yorgos Lanthimos’ dark historical comedy “The Favourite” lived up to its title with the London Film Critics’ Circle on Tuesday, nabbing 10 awards nominations from the group – twice as many as its nearest rivals.

Alfonso Cuarón’s “Roma,” Lynne Ramsay’s “You Were Never Really Here,” Rupert Everett’s “The Happy Prince” and Pawel Pawlikowski’s European Film Awards sweeper “Cold War” followed with five apiece. All will compete for the group’s Film of the Year award, alongside Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman,” Damien Chazelle’s “First Man,” Paul Schrader’s “First Reformed,” Debra Granik’s “Leave No Trace” and Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Palme d’Or-winning “Shoplifters.” Two women, Ramsay and Granik, were named in the Director of the Year lineup, joining Cuarón, Pawlikowski and Lanthimos.

At the lunchtime nomination event held at London’s May Fair Hotel, the group also announced the recipient of its annual Dilys Powell Award for outstanding career achievement: Spanish auteur Pedro Almodóvar, who will accept the honor at the Circle’s Jan. 20 awards ceremony. The director, currently in post-production on his new film, “Pain & Glory,” has previously been honored by the group for his films “All About My Mother” and “Volver.”

“I have had a wonderful history with the London critics, and am thrilled to receive this special honor,” Almodóvar said in a statement. “I look forward to visiting London in January for the ceremony.”

In the acting categories, many of the names most frequently recognized by U.S. critics’ groups this season – including Olivia Colman, Toni Collette, Ethan Hawke, Regina King and Richard E. Grant – were also nominated by the London critics, alongside some less predictable ones. “Roma’s” Yalitza Aparicio and “Cold War’s” Joanna Kulig lend the Actress of the Year category some international flavor, while “Widows” secured supporting nods for both Elizabeth Debicki and Daniel Kaluuya.

In the Circle’s separate British/Irish categories, lower-profile U.K. indies such as “Apostasy” and “Beast” were recognized with nominations, but “The Favourite” (fresh from its 10-trophy haul at the British Independent Film Awards) reigned supreme in those categories, too.

Last year, the Circle handed its top prize to Martin McDonagh’s “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” with Kate Winslet accepting the Dilys Powell Award.

This year’s complete list of nominations:

Film of the Year
“BlacKkKlansman”
“Cold War”
“The Favourite”
“First Man”
“First Reformed”
“The Happy Prince”
“Leave No Trace”
“Roma”
“Shoplifters”
“You Were Never Really Here”

Foreign Language Film of the Year
“Cold War”
“A Fantastic Woman”
“120 Beats Per Minute”
“Roma”
“Shoplifters”

Documentary of the Year
“Faces Places”
“McQueen”
“They Shall Not Grow Old”
“Three Identical Strangers”
“Whitney”

British/Irish Film of the Year: The Attenborough Award
“Apostasy”
“Beast”
“The Favourite”
“The Happy Prince”
“You Were Never Really Here”

Director of the Year
Pawel Pawlikowski, “Cold War”
Yorgos Lanthimos, “The Favourite”
Debra Granik, “Leave No Trace”
Alfonso Cuarón, “Roma”
Lynne Ramsay, “You Were Never Really Here”

Screenwriter of the Year
Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara, “The Favourite”
Paul Schrader, “First Reformed”
Barry Jenkins, “If Beale Street Could Talk”
Alfonso Cuarón, “Roma”
Steve McQueen and Gillian Flynn, “Widows”

Actress of the Year
Yalitza Aparicio, “Roma”
Glenn Close, “The Wife”
Toni Collette, “Hereditary”
Olivia Colman, “The Favourite”
Joanna Kulig, “Cold War”

Actor of the Year
Christian Bale, “Vice”
Rupert Everett, “The Happy Prince”
Ben Foster, “Leave No Trace”
Ethan Hawke, “First Reformed”
Joaquin Phoenix, “You Were Never Really Here”

Supporting Actress of the Year
Elizabeth Debicki, “Widows”
Cynthia Erivo, “Bad Times at the El Royale”
Claire Foy, “First Man”
Regina King, “If Beale Street Could Talk”
Rachel Weisz, “The Favourite”

Supporting Actor of the Year
Adam Driver, “BlacKkKlansman”
Richard E. Grant, “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Michael B. Jordan, “Black Panther”
Daniel Kaluuya, “Widows”
Alessandro Nivola, “Disobedience”

British/Irish Actress of the Year
Emily Blunt, “Mary Poppins Returns,” “A Quiet Place,” “Sherlock Gnomes”
Jessie Buckley, “Beast”
Olivia Colman, “The Favourite”
Claire Foy, “First Man,” “The Girl in the Spider’s Web,” “Unsane”
Rachel Weisz, “Disobedience,” “The Favourite”

British/Irish Actor of the Year
Christian Bale, “Mowgli,” “Vice”
Steve Coogan, “Holmes & Watson,” “Ideal Home,” “Stan & Ollie”
Rupert Everett, “The Happy Prince”
Richard E. Grant, “Can You Ever Forgive Me?,” “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms”
Daniel Kaluuya, “Black Panther,” “Widows”

Young British/Irish Performer of the Year
Liv Hill, “Jellyfish,” “The Little Stranger”
Noah Jupe, “Holmes & Watson,” “A Quiet Place,” “That Good Night,” “The Titan”
Anya Taylor-Joy, “Glass,” “The Secret of Marrowbone,” “Thoroughbreds”
Fionn Whitehead, “The Children Act”
Molly Wright, “Apostasy”

Breakthrough British/Irish Filmmaker of the Year: The Philip French Award
Deborah Davis, “The Favourite”
Rupert Everett, “The Happy Prince”
Deborah Haywood, “Pin Cushion”
Daniel Kokotajlo, “Apostasy”
Michael Pearce, “Beast”

British/Irish Short Film of the Year
“Little Shit,” Richard Gorodecky
“Night Out,” Amelia Hashemi
“Salt & Sauce,” Alia Ghafar
“Three Centimetres,” Lara Zeidan
“Under Growth,” Evin O’Neill

Technical Achievement of the Year
“American Animals” – editing, Nick Fenton, Chris Gill & Julian Hart
“BlacKkKlansman” – costume design, Marci Rodgers
“Cold War” – cinematography, Lukasz Zal
“The Favourite” – production design, Fiona Crombie
“First Man” – visual effects, Paul Lambert
“If Beale Street Could Talk” – music, Nicholas Britell
“Mission: Impossible – Fallout” – stunts, Wade Eastwood
“A Quiet Place” – sound design, Ethan Van der Ryn & Erik Aadahl
“Suspiria” – music, Thom Yorke
“You Were Never Really Here” – editing, Joe Bini