Cate Blanchett admitted her role in Tár could have been ‘career-ending’ as she collected the BAFTA for Best Actress at Sunday’s ceremony in London.
The actress, 53, plays renowned conductor Lydia Tár in the movie who is accused of sexual abuse, describing the role as ‘very dangerous’.
She also thanked her husband of 30-years playwright Andrew Upton and their children Dashiell, 21, Roman, 18, Ignatius, 15, and seven-year-old Edith for their support after she spent so much time away from home shooting the project in Germany.
Cate beat fellow nominees Viola Davis, Ana de Armas , Danielle Deadwyler, Dame Emma Thompson and Michelle Yeoh to the prize.
During her emotional acceptance speech she said: ‘Thank you so much to BAFTA. This is extraordinary. I didn’t prepare anything because it’s been such an extraordinary year for women’.
Winner: Cate Blanchett, 53, admitted her role in Tár could have been ‘career-ending’ as she collected the BAFTA for Best Actress at Sunday’s ceremony in London
‘All of my fellow nominees, the conversation with you off the screen and on the screen it’s been nothing short of remarkable and we know that we’re just the tip of the iceberg,’
She continued: ‘Every year, these idiosyncratic and remarkable performances just break down the myth that women’s experience is monolithic. This was a very dangerous, and career-ending potentially,’
‘Um yeah, well, undertaking. It does take an army. It’s the ensemble, it’s all of the people who spend hours and hours [working] every single day’.
Before adding: ‘So thank you to the cast and crew, but this really does belong to my family. Thank you so much for letting me go because this was really – it took a lot’.
‘And it took me away from you an enormous a lot. An enormous a lot? I don’t know what that means but that was the state I was in! Thank you Andrew darling, thank you to my mum, and thank you my four extraordinary children.’
The biggest night in British film returned on Sunday evening with actor Richard E. Grant taking the helm to present the 76th EE British Academy Film Awards.
Held at the Royal Festival Hall, Richard, 65, was joined by Alison Hammond to host the star-studded ceremony, while film critic Ali Plum was on the red carpet with Vick Hope.
Austin Butler was awarded Best Actor at the awards, beating out favourite Colin Farrell in a shock upset.
Top gong: The actress plays renowned conductor Lydia Tár in the movie who is accused of sexual abuse, describing the role as ‘very dangerous’.
Thank you: She also thanked her husband of 30-years playwright Andrew Upton and their children Dashiell, 21, Roman, 18, Ignatius, 15, and seven-year-old Edith for their support after she spent so much time away from home shooting the project in Germany
Impressed: Her perfomance in the movie has wowed critics and has been tipped for Oscar glory
The actor fought back tears as he paid tribute to the Presley family while accepting the honour, after portraying the late King Of Rock in the Baz Lurhmann biopic.
Thanking all of the crew and team he worked with on the film, Austin admitted he was ‘just trying to take it all in,’ as he fought back tears while accepting the honour.
‘This means the world to me,’ Butler told the ceremony, still using the Elvis drawl that he learned for Baz Luhrmann’s movie.
Champion: Cate beat fellow nominees Viola Davis, Ana de Armas , Danielle Deadwyler, Dame Emma Thompson and Michelle Yeoh to the prize
Pride: During her emotional acceptance speech she said: ‘Thank you so much to BAFTA. This is extraordinary. I didn’t prepare anything because it’s been such an extraordinary year for women’
Famous friends: Cate (right) posed for snaps with fellow winner Kerry Condon (left)
He also paid tribute to the Presley family who offered insight into Elvis’ life for the biopic, adding he ‘hopes he made them proud.’
Cate Blanchett was also awarded Best Leading Actress for her performance in the biopic Tar, the film’s only big win of the night.
Tearfully, she accepted the gong as she thanked her mother and director Todd Field, adding that Blanchett also said that 2022 had been an ‘extraordinary year for women’.
Pose: She later posed for stylish snaps back stage after accepting her trophy
Gorgeous: She displayed her famously elegant fashion sense in a form-fitting black velvet gown with an array of pearl necklaces
Beaming: The Blue Jasmine star swept her blonde tresses into a sophisticated up-do, and her dress boasted a simple full-length skirt
She added that it had broken down that women’s experience is not ‘monolithic’, and that her role as Lydia Tar ‘was a dangerous and career-ending potential undertaking’.
Netflix’s German war epic All Quiet On The Western Front was the big winner of the night with a total of seven gongs, including Best Film, while The Banshees of Inisherin was close behind with five, including Best British Film and Best Supporting Actor and Actress respectively.
The film, which is based on the 1929 novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque, equals Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2001) as the film which is not spoken in the English language with the most nominations in BAFTA’s history.
Directed by Edward Berger, it stars Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Daniel Brühl, Sebastian Hülk, Aaron Hilmer, Edin Hasanovic and Devid Striesow.
During his opening monologue, Richard referenced Will Smith’s infamous slap at last year’s Oscars, telling audiences that ‘on my watch no one gets slapped tonight’.
Smith stormed onto the stage during the 94th annual Academy Awards in March and slapped presenter Chris Rock after the comedian made a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith.
The actor, who went on to win the coveted best actor Oscar moments later, was later banned from all Academy events for the next 10 years and resigned from the organisation.
Speaking at the Baftas, Grant said that the only slaps being received on Sunday would be ‘on the back’.
‘What a great year to be hosting the Baftas,’ he said.
BAFTAs 2023: The winners posed for a VERY star-studded group shot after the ceremony on Sunday
Seated: Cate took a seat on the stage for the snap that would make headlines around the world
‘In 2022, movie audiences were well and truly back and there has never been a better time to go to the cinema until right now.’
He added: ‘Well, not right now, I’m trying my best and nobody on my watch gets slapped tonight… except on the back.’
As the ceremony got underway, Carey Mulligan was incorrectly announced as the winner of the Supporting Actress award after a translation gaffe while deaf actor Troy Kotsur was presenting.
Oscar-winner Kotsur was delivering the announcement by sign language before a miscommunication resulted in Mulligan’s name being called for her performance in She Said.
The announcer quickly corrected the call and announced The Banshees Of Inisherin star Kerry Condon as the winner.
Barry Keoghan won Supporting Actor for The Banshees Of Inisherin, and the 30-year-old Irish actor said he ‘should have planned this, really’ before thanking his co-stars and Ireland.