All eyes were on the Gotham Awards on Monday night. For the film industry, the first major awards ceremony of the season offers a temperature check — or boost — for the months ahead. The future looks bright for frontrunners like “One Battle After Another” and international contender “It Was All an Accident,” the major winners of the night.
But first, the fashion.
“ This is Schiaparelli,” said “Lurker” director Alex Russell, detailing star Haley Rose Liu’s metallic gown as he held onto her Keyhole clutch. “This dress is made out of an extremely fragile fiber,” he added. “As you see, the hand details here, iconic Schiaparelli. You’ve got the lock. So it’s all very nice. Shout-out to Daniel Roseberry.”
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In the theme of shout-outs, the pair offered up a few of their favorite films of the year — for Liu, it was “Hamnet” and “Sentimental Value,” which she saw during Telluride. “A lot of the movies that were at Sundance with me, I feel like a lot of kinship with them,” said Russell. “‘Sorry Baby,’ ‘Plainclothes,’ ‘Twinless.’ I play tennis with [director] James Sweeney every week. It’s been fun to make friends along the way.”
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“ There’s so many brilliant films that are out this year and I can’t believe I still get to talk about mine,” said “Sorry Baby” director Eva Victor, one of the biggest breakouts from the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Victor, dressed in a full leather Loewe suit, stopped to chat with fellow director Mona Fastvold and Elle Fanning, wearing white Ralph Lauren, at the end of the carpet.
“It’s Canali, with a little bit of Giorgio,” said “Kiss of the Spider Woman” star Tonatiuh, another Sundance breakout. “There was a lot of people who took some big swings this year,” added the actor, nominated for breakthrough performer. “I’m a huge fan of a lot of the people who are here, so it’s gonna be nice to celebrate with all of them.”
“One Battle After Another” star Chase Infiniti, also nominated in the breakthrough category, was wearing custom Louis Vuitton and a handful of De Beers jewels. “ The bling is blinging,” said Infiniti, showing off her diamond rings.
“ I’m just excited to be in the room and get to see people that I’ve been a fan of for so long,” she added, as the crowd gathered on the street outside the tent cheered for the next VIP arrival. “Even just as people are walking by, I’m like — oh my God, I know you. I’ve been watching you on the screen for so long. It’s a lot of pinch-me moments.”
Standing a few feet away on the carpet was Alexander Skarsgård, Kate Hudson and Kristen Stewart, who grabbed a Fiji water bottle from a tray stationed at the end of the carpet.
Many stars, including Stewart, Riley Keough, A$AP Rocky (arriving right before the ceremony with Rihanna, in custom Balenciaga), and Teyana Taylor were dressed in Chanel one day ahead of the brand’s Métiers d’Art show in the Lower East Side. Taylor was wearing a white silk T-shirt and the dramatic red plume shirt from the brand’s spring 2026 collection. “We don’t want to step on the dress,” said one of the people lingering in the middle of the carpet, narrowly avoiding Taylor’s train. Also trailing closely behind the actress was Jeremy Allen White, who received the Gotham “Cultural Icon” award alongside “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere” director Scott Cooper.
Skarsgård, nominated for best supporting performance (as was his father Stellan Skarsgård), offered celebrated director Park Chan-wook a wave as he joined the crowd inside Cipriani Wall Street for the awards ceremony.
Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, who earlier in the day received a one-year in prison in absentia sentence from the Iran government, was the evening’s biggest winner. The “It Was All an Accident” director picked up the awards for best director, best original screenplay, and best international feature.
In the acting categories, “My Father’s Shadow” lead Sopé Dìrísù beat out a stacked best lead performance list that included Jessie Buckley, Ethan Hawke and Wagner Moura, and “Sinners” star Wunmi Mosaku took home best supporting performance. Neither winning actor was in attendance, but for good reason: they were working. “Sinners” director Ryan Coogler, accepting on her behalf, returned to the stage with more of his cast to accept the Gotham Ensemble Tribute.
Awards categories were broken up by several tributes, announced ahead of the ceremony, throughout the evening. “Song Sung Blue” costars Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson accepted the Gotham’s first musical tribute.
“This is so cool and something to make Ryan Reynolds insanely jealous,” said Jackman, shortly after completing a few bicep curls with both of the awards in hand. “It’s a whole new season, so indulge me for a second,” he added. “Because this is the time I think for all of us — no matter what you say, no matter what your religion — this is the time for all of us to remember what unites us, and what brings us together. And that is awards season, everybody.”
Other tributes included Julia Roberts and Luca Guadagnino for the Visionary Tribute award, director Guillermo del Toro’s Vanguard award, Noah Baumbach for directing.
“I remember when the Gotham awards were for low-budget movies,” said Adam Sandler, introducing Baumbach alongside “Jay Kelly” costar Emily Mortimer. “I think for ‘Squid and the Whale’ they paid Jeff Daniels in potato skins,” he added, going on to discuss his disappointment about not getting cast in the 2005 film.
Baumbach offered up some of the best pieces of wisdom he’s received throughout the years from peers like Peter Bogdanovich and Ethan Coen. “Who when I proudly told him I’d convinced some friends of mine to let me use their cat for my film ‘Squid and the Whale,’ he took a pause and said firmly: ‘Hire a professional cat.’ To this day, that is the best piece of filmmaking advice I’ve ever received.”
And finally, “One Battle After Another” was awarded best feature film. Director Paul Thomas Anderson closed out the ceremony as a table of the film’s stars (sans Leonardo di Caprio) cheered him on.
“Well, you know you need a good cast to make a good movie,” said Anderson. “And I’ve got a good one right there.”