2026 FILM INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS

Nominations Announced: December 3, 2025
Awards Ceremony: February 16, 2026

Look, I get why Film Independent ditched gender-specific acting categories back in 2023. The argument that dividing performers by gender felt outdated makes sense on paper. But here's what I don't understand: why cut the number of winners in half? They combined lead and supporting into two pools of ten nominees each, then picked one winner per pool. We went from four acting winners to two. Sure, go ahead and make the categories gender-neutral, but would it kill them to still recognize two performers from each group? The energy at this ceremony has felt deflated ever since. The Spirit Awards used to have a scrappy, seat-of-their-pants vibe, held in a tent on the beach with winners who seemed genuinely surprised. Now it moves indoors to the Palladium in Hollywood, and I'm hoping new host Ego Nwodim (taking over from two years of Aidy Bryant) can inject some life back into it. Films must cost $30 million or less to compete, with the John Cassavetes Award reserved for features under $1 million. Notable contenders include Barry Jenkins-produced Sorry, Baby, Joel Edgerton's turn in Train Dreams, and the TV categories now honoring new scripted series alongside documentaries. I've got a feeling Ego Nwodim has big-time host energy. Let's hope she gets to use it.

FILM

Best Feature

Peter Hujar's Day — Producers: Jonah Disend, Jordan Drake

The Plague — Producers: Derek Dauchy, Joel Edgerton, Roy Lee, Lucy McKendrick, Steven Schneider, Lizzie Shapiro

Sorry, Baby — Producers: Mark Ceryak, Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski

Train Dreams — Producers: Michael Heimler, Will Janowitz, Marissa McMahon, Ashley Schlaifer, Teddy Schwarzman

Twinless — Producers: David Permut, James Sweeney

Best First Feature

Blue Sun Palace — Director: Constance Tsang; Producers: Sally Sujin Oh, Eli Raskin, Tony Yang

Dust Bunny — Director/Producer: Bryan Fuller; Producers: Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee

East of Wall — Director/Producer: Kate Beecroft; Producers: Shannon Moss, Melanie Ramsayer, Lila Yacoub

Lurker — Director: Alex Russell; Producers: Galen Core, Archie Madekwe, Marc Marrie, Charlie McDowell, Francesco Melzi d'Eril, Duncan Montgomery, Alex Orlovsky, Olmo Schnabel, Jack Selby

One of Them Days — Director: Lawrence Lamont; Producers: Deniese Davis, Poppy Hanks, James Lopez, Issa Rae, Sara Rastogi

John Cassavetes Award (Best Feature Made for Under $1,000,000)

The Baltimorons — Director/Writer/Producer: Jay Duplass; Writer/Producer: Michael Strassner; Producers: David Bonnett Jr., Drew Langer

Boys Go to Jupiter — Director/Writer: Julian Glander

Eephus — Director/Writer/Producer: Carson Lund; Writer/Producer: Michael Basta; Writer: Nate Fisher; Producers: David Entin, Tyler Taormina

Esta Isla (This Island) — Directors/Writers/Producers: Cristian Carretero, Lorraine Jones Molina; Writer: Kisha Tikina Burgos

Familiar Touch — Director/Writer/Producer: Sarah Friedland; Producers: Alexandra Byer, Matthew Thurm

Best Director

Clint Bentley, Train Dreams

Mary Bronstein, If I Had Legs I'd Kick You

Lloyd Lee Choi, Lucky Lu

Ira Sachs, Peter Hujar's Day

Eva Victor, Sorry, Baby

Best Screenplay

Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin, Splitsville

Angus MacLachlan, A Little Prayer

James Sweeney, Twinless

Christian Swegal, Sovereign

Eva Victor, Sorry, Baby

Best First Screenplay

Andrew DeYoung, Friendship

Elena Oxman, Outerlands

Alex Russell, Lurker

Syreeta Singleton, One of Them Days

Constance Tsang, Blue Sun Palace

Best Lead Performance

Everett Blunck, The Plague

Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs I'd Kick You

Kathleen Chalfant, Familiar Touch

Chang Chen, Lucky Lu

Joel Edgerton, Train Dreams

Dylan O'Brien, Twinless

Keke Palmer, One of Them Days

Théodore Pellerin, Lurker

Tessa Thompson, Hedda

Ben Whishaw, Peter Hujar's Day

Best Supporting Performance

Naomi Ackie, Sorry, Baby

Zoey Deutch, Nouvelle Vague

Kirsten Dunst, Roofman

Rebecca Hall, Peter Hujar's Day

Nina Hoss, Hedda

Jane Levy, A Little Prayer

Archie Madekwe, Lurker

Kali Reis, Rebuilding

Jacob Tremblay, Sovereign

Haipeng Xu, Blue Sun Palace

Best Breakthrough Performance

Liz Larsen, The Baltimorons

Misha Osherovich, She's the He

Kayo Martin, The Plague

SZA, One of Them Days

Tabatha Zimiga, East of Wall

Best Cinematography

Alex Ashe, Peter Hujar's Day

Norm Li, Blue Sun Palace

David J. Thompson, Warfare

Adolpho Veloso, Train Dreams

Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, Dust Bunny

Best Editing

Ben Leonberg, Good Boy

Carson Lund, Eephus

Fin Oates, Warfare

Sara Shaw, Splitsville

Sofía Subercaseaux, The Testament of Ann Lee

Robert Altman Award (Ensemble Cast)

The Long Walk — Director: Francis Lawrence; Casting Director: Rich Delia; Ensemble Cast: Judy Greer, Mark Hamill, Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Tut Nyuot, Joshua Odjick, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Garrett Wareing

Best Documentary

Come See Me in the Good Light — Director/Producer: Ryan White; Producers: Jessica Hargrave, Tig Notaro, Stef Willen

Endless Cookie — Director: Peter Scriver; Director/Producer: Seth Scriver; Producers: Dan Bekerman, Alex Ordanis, Jason Ryle, Chris Yurkovich

My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow — Director/Producer: Julia Loktev

The Perfect Neighbor — Director/Producer: Geeta Gandbhir; Producers: Sam Bisbee, Nikon Kwantu, Alisa Payne

The Tale of Silyan — Director/Producer: Tamara Kotevska; Producers: Jean Dakar, Anna Hashmi, Jordanco Petkovski

Best International Film

All That's Left of You (Palestine, Jordan, Germany, Cyprus) — Director: Cherien Dabis

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl (Zambia, UK, Ireland) — Director: Rungano Nyoni

A Poet (Colombia) — Director: Simón Mesa Soto

The Secret Agent (Brazil) — Director: Kleber Mendonça Filho

Sirāt (Spain) — Director: Oliver Laxe

Producers Award

Emma Hannaway

Luca Intili

Tony Yang

Someone to Watch Award

Tatti Ribeiro, Director of Valentina

Neo Sora, Director of Happyend

Annapurna Sriram, Director of Fucktoys

Truer Than Fiction Award

Tony Benna, Director of André Is an Idiot

Rajee Samarasinghe, Director of Your Touch Makes Others Invisible

Brittany Shyne, Director of Seeds

TELEVISION

Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series

Citizen Nation — Creator: Bret Sigler; Executive Producers: Christopher Buck, Kyra Darnton

Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time — Executive Producers: Jonathan Chinn, Simon Chinn, Ryan Coogler, Myles Estey, Ted Skillman, Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian, Peter Nicks, Kalia King, Carolyn Payne, Sean David Johnson; Co-Executive Producer: Kelli Buchanan

Pee-wee as Himself — Executive Producers: Matt Wolf, Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Ronald Bronstein, Eli Bush, Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie, Paul Reubens, Candace Tomarken, Kyle Martin, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, Sara Rodriguez

Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television — Executive Producers: Issa Rae, Montrel McKay, John Maggio, Rachel Dretzin, John Ealer, Jonathan Berry, Dave Becky, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, Sara Rodriguez; Co-Executive Producers: Esther Dere, Zachary Herrmann

Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae — Executive Producers: Ezra Edelman, Caroline Waterlow, Amy Kaufman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riva Marker; Producer: Yvonne Russo; Co-Executive Producer: Mark Becker

Best New Scripted Series

Adolescence — Creators/Executive Producers: Jack Thorne, Stephen Graham; Executive Producers: Philip Barantini, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Nina Wolarsky, Hannah Walters, Mark Herbert, Emily Feller; Co-Executive Producers: Carina Sposato, Niall Shamma, Peter Balm

Common Side Effects — Creators/Executive Producers: Joe Bennett, Steve Hely; Executive Producers: Mike Judge, Greg Daniels, Dustin Davis, James Merrill, Sean Buckelew, Benjy Brooke, Kelly Crews, Suzanna Makkos; Co-Executive Producer: Dave King

Forever — Creator/Executive Producer: Mara Brock Akil; Executive Producers: Regina King, Susie Fitzgerald, Shana C. Waterman, Reina King, Anthony Hemingway, Judy Blume, Erika Harrison, Sara E. White; Co-Executive Producer: Jerron Horton

Mr Loverman — Executive Producers: Lennie James, Hong Khaou, Jo McClellan, Faye Ward, Hannah Farrell, Hannah Price

North of North — Creators/Executive Producers: Stacey Aglok MacDonald, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril; Executive Producers: Garry Campbell, Anya Adams, Susan Coyne, Miranda de Pencier; Co-Executive Producers: Teresa M. Ho, Michael Goldbach, Kathryn Borel Jr., JP Larocque

Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series

Sydney Chandler, Alien: Earth

Stephen Graham, Adolescence

Ethan Hawke, The Lowdown

Lennie James, Mr Loverman

Anna Lambe, North of North

Lola Petticrew, Say Nothing

Seth Rogen, The Studio

Lovie Simone, Forever

Michelle Williams, Dying for Sex

Noah Wyle, The Pitt

Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series

Ariyon Bakare, Mr Loverman

Babou Ceesay, Alien: Earth

Sharon D Clarke, Mr Loverman

Taylor Dearden, The Pitt

Erin Doherty, Adolescence

Stephen McKinley Henderson, A Man on the Inside

Poorna Jagannathan, Deli Boys

Xosha Roquemore, Forever

Jenny Slate, Dying for Sex

Ben Whishaw, Black Doves

Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series

Asif Ali, Deli Boys

Wally Baram, Overcompensating

Owen Cooper, Adolescence

Michael Cooper Jr., Forever

Ernest Kingsley Junior, Washington Black

Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series

Chief of War — Ensemble Cast: Charlie Brumbly, Luciane Buchanan, Cliff Curtis, Brandon Finn, Moses Goods, Te Ao o Hinepehinga, Benjamin Hoetjes, Siua Ikale'o, Keala Kahuanui-Paleka, Mainei Kinimaka, Kaina Makua, Jason Momoa, Temuera Morrison, Te Kohe Tuhaka, James Udom