Paul Thomas Anderson won the BAFTA Best Director award for his politically-tinged satire One Battle After Another, which became an awards season favorite. While accepting the award, Anderson jokingly said, “I feel like I’m the prettiest girl in the room right now,” drawing laughter from the audience.
But Anderson’s tone quickly turned serious, dedicating the award to producer, assistant director and late British actor Adam Somner. “You would think your biggest export would be Alfred Hitchcock or Charlie Chaplin, but that wasn’t the case,” Anderson said. “For me, that was Adam Somner, who was my assistant director and producer for about 20 years. He came to America and people were lining up to work with him because he made all of us better.”
Anderson continued, “About three weeks into making the movie, he realized he was sick and somehow made it through. If you’ve ever worked with someone who’s seriously ill, there’s something miraculous about making us pay attention and reminding us of the privilege of our work. So thank you for sending him to me.”
This is the first BAFTA win for Anderson, one of modern film’s most acclaimed directors, whose previous films include We Will Be Blood and Licorice Pizza, which were nominated in the same category.
Loosely inspired by Thomas Pynchon’s novel “Vineland,” “One Battle After Another” is PTA’s most epic and ambitious film to date, telling the story of former revolutionaries who reunite to save a fellow daughter after their nemesis resurfaces. The ensemble cast includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, Teyana Taylor, and breakout Chase Infinity.
Anderson, who has also worked on films such as “Boogie Nights,” “Magnolia” and “The Master,” can add the new Best Director award to his already long list of accolades, including Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival, the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and the Silver and Golden Bears at the Berlin Film Festival.
“One Battle After Another” led the BAFTA nominations with 14 nominations, just two short of the record set by “Gandhi.” The film has been nominated in 13 categories at the upcoming Academy Awards, and there are hopes that director Anderson will finally add the coveted Oscar to his collection.
