Paul Thomas Anderson wins top prize

“One Battle After Another” director Paul Thomas Anderson won the top award at the 78th DGA Awards on Saturday. The event, which celebrates the year’s greatest directorial achievements in film and television, was hosted by Oscar- and Emmy-nominated comedian Kumail Nanjiani and was held in Beverly Hills.

The DGA Awards, which recognize directorial achievement in theatrical feature films, have long been one of the most reliable predictors of the Academy Award for Best Director, making the ceremony one of the leading lights in this season’s most-watched Oscar race.

During Anderson’s acceptance speech, he spent a lot of time paying tribute to assistant director Adam Somner, who passed away in 2024.

In the television category, “The Pit” won the award for best drama series through helmer Amanda Marsalis for the episode “6:00 PM.” She also beat out “The Pit” executive producer John Wells, who was also nominated. In the comedy category, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg won for their “The Studio” episode “The One,” which also won the Emmy for Best Director last September.

Goldberg and Rogen dedicated their win to the late “Studio” star Catherine O’Hara. “We grew up in Canada, and she was and still is our idol when we were kids,” Goldberg said. “She showed me that you can be a complete genius and the most amazing person in the world.”

“SNL50: Anniversary Special” opened the night to a triumphant start with director Liz Patrick taking home the honor in the variety category. Then “Dying for Sex” director Shannon Murphy won for limited series or anthology series, and Mike Sweeney from “Conan O’Brien Must Goes” won for reality/quiz and games. Netflix’s “Nonnas,” directed by Stephen Chbosky, won the TV movie award.

Throughout the night, five DGA nominees in the drama top race – Paul Thomas Anderson (“One Battle After Another”), Ryan Coogler (“Sinners”), Guillermo del Toro (“Frankenstein”), Josh Safdie (“Marty Supreme”) and Chloe Zhao (“Hamnet”) – received DGA medallions presented by filmmakers. (Leonardo DiCaprio honored Anderson, Michael B. Jordan paid tribute to Coogler, Jacob Elordi praised del Toro, Timothée Chalamet appeared at Safdie, and Steven Spielberg introduced Zhao.)

Nanjiani (who, unlike previous DGA Awards host Judd Apatow, allowed his monologue to be released to reporters in the press room) quipped, “Welcome to the DGA Awards. It’s like the movie credits are just the credits!” And then afterwards, “I’d like you to keep your speech short, but I watched your movie and I know that’s not going to happen!”

This year’s nominated films also represent historic milestones in the film industry. This is the second time in DGA’s history that a majority of candidates in the organization’s top categories are from underrepresented communities. Guillermo del Toro first won in 2017 for The Shape of Water, joining fellow nominees Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird), Jordan Peele (Get Out), Christopher Nolan (Dunkirk), and Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri).

Since its inception, DGA has accurately predicted the Best Director Oscar winner in all but eight cases. The most recent turning point was in 2019, when Sam Mendes won the DGA Award for the war epic 1917, but lost the Oscar to Bong Joon-ho for the Korean drama Parasite, which also won Best Picture. Last year, Sean Baker won the DGA’s top honor for “Anora,” which went on to win four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing.

When it comes to the broader Best Picture race, DGA history shows that nominations matter a lot. Only two films have won the Academy Award for Best Picture without receiving a DGA nomination: Driving Miss Daisy (1989) and CODA (2022). On the other hand, six movies won the highest Oscar award without being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director: Wings (1927), Grand Hotel (1932), Driving Miss Daisy, Argo (2012), Green Book (2018), and CODA.

“Frankenstein” director Guillermo del Toro was the only DGA nominee this year not to receive an Oscar nomination, with “Sentimental Value” director Joachim Trier taking the Oscar slot instead.

By night’s end, Anderson’s action epic had won 35 Critics and Guild Awards for Best Picture, including the rare sweep of all four major critics awards: the National Board of Review, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the New York Film Critics Association, and the National Society of Film Critics. Only four movies in history have achieved that feat: Schindler’s List (1993), LA Confidential (1997), The Social Network (2010), and Anderson’s latest film. Of these titles, only “Schindler’s List” won the Best Picture Oscar. But Anderson has the same lead in the managerial race with 32 wins, followed by Kugler with 19.

On television, “The Pit” and “The Bear” each led the individual series with two nominations. And Saturday Night Live leads all series with three nominations across three different SNL50 entities: the specials “SNL50: Homecoming Concert” and “SNL50: Anniversary Special,” and the documentary series “SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night.”

In addition to the competitive awards, the DGA presented two Lifetime Achievement Awards recognizing exemplary contributions to the guild and industry. Associate Director and Stage Manager David Charles received the Franklin J. Schaffner Achievement Award for his extraordinary service to both the profession and the DGA. Commercial’s first assistant director, Gregory G. McCollum, will receive the Frank Capra Lifetime Achievement Award for outstanding career accomplishments and outstanding contributions to the guild.

DGA Chairman Christopher Nolan opened the ceremony, but it continued to be the subject of jokes among presenters and honorees, who pointed out how “President Nolan” sounded better than other presidents. (“It’s great when you say ‘president’ and something good happens after that,” del Toro joked at one point.)

A complete list of nominees and winners appears below.

This year’s film nominees and winners include:

Achievement of director in theatrical films

Winner: Paul Thomas Anderson, “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Supervising team:

Ryan Coogler “Sinners” (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Guillermo del Toro “Frankenstein” (Netflix)

Josh Safdie “Marty Supreme” (A24)

Chloe Zhao “Hamnet” (Featured Feature)

first theatrical feature film

Winner: Charlie Pollinger, “The Plague” (Independent Film Company)

Hasan Hadi “The President’s Cake” (Sony Pictures Classics)

Harry Righton “Pillion” (A24)

Alex Russell “Lurker” (movie)

Eva Victor “Sorry, Baby” (A24)

documentary film

Winner: Mstislav Chernov, “2000 Meters to Andriivka” (PBS)

Gita Gundbir “Perfect Neighbor” (Netflix)

Sarah Karki and Mohammadreza Eini “Cutting Through Rocks” (Assembly Release)

Elizabeth Law “Mistress Dispera” (Oscilloscope Laboratories)

Laura Poitras & Mark Obenhaus “Cover Up” (Netflix)

This year’s television nominees and winners are:

dramatic series

Winner: Amanda Marsalis, The Pit, “6:00 PM” (HBO Max)

Supervising team:

Liza Johnson “The Diplomat” “Amagansett” (Netflix)

Janus Metz, Andor, “Who Are You?” (Disney Plus)

Ben Stiller, Severance, “Cold Harbor” (Apple TV+)

John Wells, The Pit, “7:00 AM” (HBO Max)

comedy series

Winner: Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, The Studio, “The One” (Apple TV+)

Supervising team:

Lucia Aniello, Hux, “A Slippery Slope” (HBO Max)

Janicza Bravo, The Bear, “Worms” (FX on Hulu)

Christopher Storer, The Bears, “Bears” (FX on Hulu)

Mike White, White Lotus, “Denials” (HBO Max)

Limited & Anthology Series

Winner: Shannon Murphy, Die for Sex, “It’s Not That Serious” (FX on Hulu)

Supervising team:

Jason Bateman, “The Black Rabbits” (Netflix)

Antonio Campos “The Beast Inside Me” “Sick Puppy” (Netflix)

Leslie Linka Glatter, Zero Day, “Episode 6” (Netflix)

Ally Pankyu, Black Mirror, “Common People” (Netflix)

movies for tv

Winner: Stephen Chbosky, “Nonnas” (Netflix)

Supervising team:

Jesse Armstrong “Mountainhead” (HBO Max)

Scott Derrickson “The Gorge” (Apple TV+)

Michael Morris “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” (Peacock)

Kyle Newacheck “Happy Gilmore 2” (Netflix)

variety

Winner: Liz Patrick, “SNL50: Anniversary Special” (NBC)

Supervising team:

Yvonne de Mare, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, “Julia Roberts; Sam Smith” (CBS)

Andy Fisher, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, “Stephen Colbert, Kumail Nanjiani, Renee Rapp” (ABC)

Beth McCarthy Miller “SNL 50: Homecoming Concert” (Peacock)

Last Week Tonight with Paul Penolino and John Oliver, “Public Media” (HBO Max)

sports

Winner: Matthew Gangl, 2025 World Series – Game 7 – Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox Sports)

Supervising team:

Steve Milton, 2025 Masters Tournament – ​​Augusta National Golf Club (CBS Sports)

Rich Russo, Super Bowl XI – Philadelphia Eagles vs. Kansas City Chiefs (Fox Sports)

Reality / Quizzes and Games

Winner: Mike Sweeney, Conan O’Brien Must Go, “Austria” (HBO Max)

Supervising team:

Lucinda M. Margolis, Jeopardy!, “Ep. 9341” (Syndicated)

Adam Sandler, “The Price is Right,” “10,000th Episode” (CBS)

Documentary series / News

Winner: Rebecca Miller, Scorsese, “This Shoot Isn’t Healthy” (Apple TV+)

Marshall Curry, SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, “A Week in the SNL Writers Room” (Peacock)

Susan Lacey and Jessica Levine, Billy Joel: And Then It Goes “Part 2” (HBO Max)

Alexandra Stapleton, Sean Combs: The Reckoning, Official Girl (Netflix)

Matt Wolf as Pee-wee himself, “Part 1” (HBO Max)

commercial

Winner: Kim Gehrig (Samsuch)

I can’t win. So you win. – Nike | Wieden+Kennedy

Supervising team:

I’m inconspicuous – Apple | Client Direct

Miles Jay (smuggler)

Spike Jonze (MJZ)

Andreas Nilsson (Biscuit Filmworks)

Steve Rogers (Biscuit Filmworks)