Conclave and Emilia Pérez race leader

Conclave, the film about a chatty and inventive group of cardinals who gather in Rome to elect a new pope, leads the nominations for this year’s Bafta film awards with 12 nods.

It’s closely followed by Netflix’s Spanish-language musical Emilia Pérez, which tells the story of a Mexican cartel leader who leaves the world of crime to live a new life as a transgender woman.

The front-runners in the Bafta acting categories include Cynthia Erivo and Demi Moore for lead actress and Adrien Brody and Timothee Chalamet for lead actor.

But Denzel Washington and Daniel Craig failed to make the list for Gladiator II and Queer, respectively.

Hugh Grant in the leading actor category for the horror film Heretic and Saoirse Ronan as the lead actress in The Outrun are some of the surprises.

Jamie Lee Curtis is nominated in the supporting actress category for The Last Showgirl, but the film’s lead actress Pamela Anderson, who plays an old Las Vegas performer, didn’t get a nomination.

Top films from the Bafta nominations

12 nominations – Conclave

11 – Emilia Perez

9 – Brutalist

7 – Anora, Dune: The second part and the villains

6 – Total and knee unknown

5 – Nosferatu and Substance

Another film set for success this awards season is Anora, which has seven Bafta nominations, including Best Picture.

It follows the whirlwind romance between a New York sex worker and the son of a wealthy Russian oligarch.

Mikey Madison is nominated as a lead actor and is also up for the public-voted rising star award.

His co-star Yura Borisov is nominated for best supporting actor, while director Sean Baker has his first Bafta nomination for best director.

Half of the nominees in the Best Director category are first-time nominees, as well as The Brutalist’s Brady Corbet, who won the same award at the Golden Globes.

The film, about a Hungarian architect hired by a wealthy American after World War II, has a total of nine nods and will be a major Oscar contender.

Substance director Coralie Fargeat is another first-time nominee and the only female nominee in the category.

Demi Moore is nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture, just weeks after winning at the Golden Globes, putting her in a strong position for the Oscars.

British actress Marianne Jean-Baptiste’s nomination in the same category for her portrayal of an irritable woman struggling with depression in Hard Truths has increased her push for an Oscar nomination.

The Bafta shortlist is usually a strong indicator for the Oscars, and last year the winners of the first six categories were perfectly matched at both events.

Another film up for Oscar is A Complete Unknown, which shot Bob Dylan to fame in the 1960s.

It has six Bafta nominations for best film, nominated in the categories of actors Timothee Chalamet and Edward Norton.

Kneepcap, which tells the story of an Irish-speaking hip-hop trio, also picked up six nominations, including Outstanding British Film and Film Not in English.

Blockbuster films have fared relatively well in the nominations, with Dune: Part Two and Wicked receiving seven nods each.

Gladiator II has three nominations, but none in the acting categories, with Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal and Washington all missing out. Even director Sir Ridley Scott was forgotten.

Ariana Grande-starrer Erivo and Wicked both have their first Bafta nominations, but Wicked missed out on Best Picture.

Selena Gomez, Zoe Saldaña and Karla Sofía Gascón also received their first Bafta nominations, for Emilia Perez.

For the first time, children’s and family films have their own category in the awards.

Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl and The Wild Robot are nominated alongside Michael Morpurgo’s adaptation of Kensuke’s Kingdom, and Flow, about animals who must work together after a flood.

The film without dialogue was a surprise winner in the animated feature category at the Golden Globes.

The Bafta Film Awards, hosted by David Tennant, will take place on February 16 at London’s Royal Festival Hall.

Read more about this year’s nominated films: