AARP has announced the nominations for its annual adult film awards, with “Hamnet,” “The House of Dynamite,” “One Battle After Another,” “The Sinners” and “Train Dreams” leading the way for best picture.
The Best Actress nominees were Laura Dern (“Is This Sing On?”), Jodie Foster (“Private Life”), Lucy Liu (“Rosemead”), Julia Roberts (“After the Hunt”), and June Squibb (“Eleanor the Great”).
The Best Actor nominees were George Clooney (“Jay Kelly”), Leonardo DiCaprio (“One Battle After Another”), Joel Edgerton (“Train Dreams”), Ethan Hawke (“Blue Moon”), and Dwayne Johnson (“Smashing Machines”).
Nominees for Best Director include Paul Thomas Anderson (“One Battle After Another”), Kathryn Bigelow (“House of Dynamite”), Scott Cooper (“Springsteen: Deliver It From Anywhere”), Guillermo del Toro (“Frankenstein”) and Spike Lee (“The Highest 2 Worst”).
“These nominees prove that powerful storytelling is timeless,” AARP CEO Mietia Minter-Jordan said in a statement Wednesday. “At AARP, we believe that representation is important, not just for audiences, but for the industry itself. By honoring these actors and creators, we are highlighting the richness, depth, and diversity of their experiences that should be noticed and celebrated.”
The awards ceremony is scheduled to take place on January 10, 2026 at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, with Alan Cumming once again hosting the Adult Film Awards. The episode will be broadcast on PBS and the PBS app on February 22, 2026 as “Great Performance.”
See the full list of candidates below.
Best Film for Adults/Best Film for Adults: “Hamnet,” “The House of Dynamite,” “One Battle After Another,” “The Sinner,” “Dream Train”
Best Actress: Laura Dern (“Is This Sing On?”), Jodie Foster (“Private Life”), Lucy Liu (“Rosemead”), Julia Roberts (“After the Hunt”), June Squibb (“Eleanor the Great”)
Best Actor: George Clooney (Jay Kelly), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Joel Edgerton (Train Dreams), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), Dwayne Johnson (Smashing Machines)
Best Supporting Actress: Regina Hall (“One Battle After Another”), Amy Madigan (“Weapons”), Helen Mirren (“Goodbye June”), Gwyneth Paltrow (“Marty Supreme”), Sigourney Weaver (“Avatar: Fire and Ashes”)
Best Supporting Actor: Benicio Del Toro (One Battle After Another), Delroy Lindo (Sinners’), Sean Penn (One Battle After Another), Michael Shannon (Nuremberg), Stellan Skarsgard (Sentimental Value)
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson (“One Battle After Another”), Kathryn Bigelow (“House of Dynamite”), Scott Cooper (“Springsteen: Delivered From Anywhere”), Guillermo del Toro (“Frankenstein”), Spike Lee (“The Highest 2 Worst”)
Best Original Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Noah Baumbach, Emily Mortimer (Jay Kelly), Bradley Cooper, Will Arnett, Mark Chappell (Is This Sing On?), Julian Fellowes (Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale), James Vanderbilt (Nuremberg)
Best Ensemble: “House of Dynamite,” “Jay Kelly,” “Nuremberg,” “One Battle After Another,” “Wake Up Deadman: Knives Out Mystery”
Best Intergenerational Film: “Eleanor the Great,” “The Lost Bus,” “The Rental Family,” “Rosemead,” and “Sentimental Value.”
Best Period Film: “Dead Man’s Wire,” “Marty Supreme,” “Nuremberg,” “Sinners,” and “Springsteen: Delivered From Anywhere.”
Best Documentary: “Becoming Led Zeppelin,” “Cover Up,” “My Mom Jayne,” “Riefenstahl,” and “Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost.”
Best Foreign Language Film: “It Was an Accident,” “No Other Choice,” “Nouvelle Vague,” “Secret Agent,” and “Sentimental Value.”
Best TV Series or Limited Series: “Adolescence,” “The Hux,” “The Pit,” “The Studio,” “The White Lotus.”
Best Actor (TV): Walton Goggins (The White Lotus), Stephen Graham (Adolescence), Gary Oldman (Slow Horses), Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us), Noah Wyle (The Pit)
Best Actress (TV): Kathy Bates (“Matlock”), Kathryn Hahn (“The Studio”), Catherine O’Hara (“The Studio”), Parker Posey (“The White Lotus”), Jean Smart (“The Hux”)
