The 35th Annual Gotham Film Awards celebrated the best in independent and creative cinema, crowning major winners and delivering powerful speeches. The ceremony took place on Monday, December 1, 2025, at the Cipriani Wall Street venue in New York City. The night’s top honor for Best Feature went to Paul Thomas Anderson’s star-packed film One Battle After Another. However, Iranian director Jafar Panahi became the evening’s biggest winner, with his film It Was Just an Accident securing three major awards.
The Complete List of Winners
The Gotham Awards recognized films and performances across ten competitive categories. This year, the organizers made a significant change by expanding the Best Feature category from five nominees to ten.
Best Feature: One Battle After Another (Paul Thomas Anderson, Sara Murphy, Adam Somner).
Best Director: Jafar Panahi (It Was Just an Accident).
Best International Feature: It Was Just an Accident.
Outstanding Lead Performance: Sopé Dìrísù (My Father’s Shadow).
Outstanding Supporting Performance: Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners).
Breakthrough Performer: Abou Sangaré (Souleymane’s Story).
Best Documentary Feature: My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow (Julia Loktev).
Breakthrough Director: Akinola Davies Jr. (My Father’s Shadow).
Best Original Screenplay: Jafar Panahi (It Was Just an Accident).
Best Adapted Screenplay: Pillion (Harry Lighton).
A Historic Night for Jafar Panahi
The emotional core of the evening centered on filmmaker Jafar Panahi. His Cannes-winning film It Was Just an Accident earned him the awards for Best Director, Best International Feature, and Best Original Screenplay. This triumphant moment in New York occurred just hours after news broke that an Iranian court had sentenced Panahi, in absentia, to one year in prison and two years of probation.
In his acceptance speech, Panahi dedicated his award to fellow filmmakers working under difficult conditions around the world.
“I would like to dedicate the honor of this award to independent filmmakers in Iran and around the world — filmmakers who keep the camera rolling in silence, without support, and at times by risking everything they have,” he said through a translator.
He later returned to the stage to accept the Best Director prize, reflecting on his journey and the importance of continuing to create.
Spotlight on the Special Award Honorees
Beyond the competitive awards, the Gothams presented several special tribute awards to major stars and filmmakers. These honors highlighted both creative vision and the evolving definition of independent filmmaking.
The Ensemble Tribute was given to the cast of the hit horror film Sinners, accepted by director Ryan Coogler. The Vanguard Tribute went to the team behind Frankenstein: director Guillermo del Toro and stars Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi. Del Toro used his speech to make a strong statement in support of human creativity.
Other honorees included Luca Guadagnino and Julia Roberts (Visionary Tribute for After the Hunt), Tessa Thompson (Spotlight Tribute for Hedda), and Noah Baumbach (Director Tribute for Jay Kelly). Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson received the first-ever Musical Tribute for their work in Song Sung Blue.
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Major Studios and Indie Films Share the Stage
The Gotham Awards, traditionally a bastion for independent film, have recently removed budget caps for eligibility. This shift was reflected in the nominees, where big studio productions stood alongside smaller films. Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, a Warner Bros. film featuring stars like Leonardo DiCaprio and Sean Penn, led the nominations with six but only won the single top prize.
This opened the door for other films to shine. My Father’s Shadow won both Breakthrough Director for Akinola Davies Jr. and Outstanding Lead Performance for Sopé Dìrísù. The Best Documentary Feature award went to the self-distributed film My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow. Presenters Chris Rock and Naomi Watts noted the changing landscape, with Rock stating, “Today an independent film isn’t just about the budget or the box office, it’s about telling an independent story”.
One Battle After Another is a major studio release, but it won the top prize at a ceremony known for celebrating independent vision. Past winners of the Gotham Award for Best Feature, like Spotlight, Moonlight, and Everything Everywhere All at Once, have all gone on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
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