Denzel Washington snubbed yet again despite another amazing performance reignites questions about BAFTA’s recognition of diverse talent.

As Shakespeare wrote, “Life is but a walking shadow,” and Denzel Washington is the poor player who continues to be heard no more, at least in the eyes of BAFTA. With over 65 film credits, nine Academy Award nominations (including two wins) and more than 270 accolades across a 45-year career,

Even though Denzel Washington’s Gladiator II performance is the highlight of the movie, it’s possible that he ended up going down with the ship. While the movie was nominated for Best British Film, it only received two other nominations, in technical categories, for Best Sound and Special Visual Effects.

Gladiator II star Denzel Washington, Wicked, Kneecap, Sing Sing breakout Clarence Maclin, Queer lead Daniel Craig, and The Substance star Margaret Qualley were among the biggest snubs and surprises after the 78th annual BAFTA Awards nominations were announced on Wednesday.

The nominations for the 2025 BAFTA Film Awards are in, and as always, they have their fair share of snubs and surprises. At the top of the list of snubs this year are “Wicked,” which missed out on the best film category,

The legendary actor has picked up plenty of Oscar buzz for his role in Gladiator 2, but he failed to secure a BAFTA nomination. Shockingly, Washington has never been nominated for a BAFTA at all, despite nine Oscar nominations (and two wins).

BAFTA Film nominations have been announced and for Denzel Washington, it continued an unfortunate trend. The actor's performance in Gladiator II was seen as a highlight of the film in reviews in reviews and he's been tipped for success in the Best Supporting Actor category at the Oscars.