The 2025 film awards season launched in style on Monday night as the 35th annual Gotham Awards ceremony handed out its first major honours of the year. The event, held at Cipriani Wall Street in Manhattan, saw Paul Thomas Anderson's anticipated thriller 'One Battle After Another' crowned Best Feature Film, while imprisoned Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi won a remarkable three awards.
A Major Studio Film Takes the Top Independent Prize
In a significant shift for the traditionally indie-focused Gothams, the top prize went to a major studio production. 'One Battle After Another', reported to have a budget of at least $130 million, is a multigenerational story centred on a father and daughter involved in protest. Its victory follows the Gotham Film & Media Institute's decision to remove its previous $35 million budget cap for eligibility.
Upon accepting the award, a surprised Paul Thomas Anderson admitted, "I didn't expect this, actually. I started to think I didn't know what was going on." He concluded by suggesting the audience should "go home or let's go to a bar somewhere or something." The film is now widely considered a front-runner for the Best Picture category at the upcoming Academy Awards in March.
Panahi's Triumph Overshadowed by Prison Sentence
The evening's most poignant moment belonged to acclaimed dissident director Jafar Panahi, who won Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Film for his revenge drama 'It Was Just an Accident'. His triple victory was bittersweet, as news broke earlier on Monday that an Iranian court had sentenced him to one year in prison and a two-year travel ban.
Panahi, who has been barred from filmmaking or leaving Iran since 2010 but continued to work without state approval, was only recently permitted to travel abroad. This new ruling ends that brief freedom. He was previously imprisoned for months before making his award-winning film and was released only after a hunger strike.
Accepting the screenplay award via a statement, Panahi dedicated the honour "to independent filmmakers in Iran and around the world. Filmmakers who keep the camera rolling in silence without support and, at times, risking everything they have, only with their faith in truth and humanity." His film previously won the prestigious Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
Other Notable Winners and Absent Honourees
True to its reputation for idiosyncratic choices made by small juries, the Gothams saw both lead acting winners absent from the ceremony. Sopé Dìrísù won Best Lead Performance for the British-Nigerian drama 'My Father's Shadow', with the award accepted by the film's director, Akinola Davies Jr., who also won the Breakthrough Director award.
Wunmi Mosaku secured Best Supporting Performance for 'Sinners', beating nominees including Teyana Taylor and Stellan Skarsgård. Her award was accepted by the film's director, Ryan Coogler.
Other winners included:
- Harry Lighton for Adapted Screenplay ('Pillion').
- Abou Sangaré for Breakthrough Performer ('Souleymane's Story').
- Julia Loktev's 'My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 – Last Air in Moscow' for Best Documentary.
The ceremony also presented tribute awards to a host of Hollywood figures, including Guillermo del Toro, Julia Roberts, Hugh Jackman, and Kate Hudson. As Jackman noted in his speech, the evening served as a glittering kick-off to the industry's favourite time of year: "This is a time for all of us to remember what unites us and what brings us together. And that is awards season, everybody."
