Sir Anthony Hopkins won the Best Actor in a Leading Role award at the 74th British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) held on Sunday for his role in “The Father”.

He faced tough competition from Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal), Adarsh Gourav (The White Tiger), Mads Mikkelsen (Another Round) and Tahar Rahim (The Mauritanian). 

Also Read: Frances McDormand wins BAFTA 2021 award for leading actor, female, for ‘Nomadland’

BAFTAs received heavy criticism last year for lack of diversity in nominations and focusing only on all white directing and acting nominees. This year, the nominations were inclusive and diverse. ‘Nomadland’ and ‘Rocks’ led the nominations this year with seven each. 

Also Read: I believe in swimming against the tide: ‘The White Tiger’ actor Adarsh Gourav

Meanwhile, one of the nominees in the Leading Actor category, Adarsh Gourav, spoke exclusively to Opoyi about being nominated in the category. He said it felt ‘surreal’ to be on the same list as the likes of Tom Hanks and Anthony Hopkins and that sharing space with these legends was his victory moment