Culture

Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another leads Gotham Awards with historic six nominations

Wednesday, 29 October 2025 5:04AM UTC

The critically acclaimed film One Battle After Another, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, makes history at the 2025 Gotham Film Awards with a record-breaking six nominations, signalling a possible strong Oscar contender amid expanding festival categories and diverse storytelling.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s gritty film One Battle After Another, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, is leading the 2025 Gotham Film Awards nominations with an unprecedented six nods. The announcement, made on Tuesday morning ahead of the awards ceremony scheduled for December 1 in New York City, marks the highest number of nominations in Gotham’s history for a single film. The movie garnered recognition in major categories including Best Feature, Best Director, and notable acting nominations for Benicio Del Toro, Teyana Taylor, and Chase Infiniti.

Released in late September, the film centres on Bob, played by DiCaprio, a washed-up revolutionary living off the grid with his self-reliant daughter Willa, portrayed by Infiniti. Their tense relationship unfolds amid harrowing circumstances when Willa goes missing and Bob confronts his past while battling a re-emerging nemesis. The plot, reportedly inspired by Thomas Pynchon’s novel Vineland, intertwines themes of paranoia and survival, marking a distinctive narrative within the current cinematic landscape.

The Gotham Awards, often seen as an early indicator of Oscar success, have expanded their Best Feature category from the usual limited listings to ten nominees this year. This change notably reflects the removal of budget caps, allowing high-budget productions like One Battle After Another, which reportedly cost over $130 million, to compete alongside more traditional independent films. Other nominated features include Bugonia, Hamnet, and Train Dreams, showcasing a diverse selection of storytelling styles and themes.

Critically, One Battle After Another has been exceptionally well received. It has achieved the status of the highest-rated movie of 2025 on Metacritic, scoring a near-perfect 96 out of 100, alongside a 97% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 69 reviews. This acclaim underscores the film’s strong artistic reception despite some concerns about its market viability. Analysts have pointed to the film’s lengthy 170-minute runtime and politically charged content as potential risks in commercial terms, although its $22.4 million opening weekend in North America and $26.1 million in international box office take indicate hopeful prospects for broader success.

The film boasts a strong ensemble cast beyond DiCaprio, with notable nominations also going to actors Jessie Buckley, Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke, Jennifer Lawrence, Amanda Seyfried, and Tessa Thompson among others. Interestingly, the acting category also sees a unique father-son competition between Alexander Skarsgård and Stellan Skarsgård, further highlighting the diverse talent pool recognised by the Gotham jury this year.

While some anticipated titles like Marty Supreme, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Timothée Chalamet, missed out due to unfinished production and delayed committee voting, the film landscape this year is marked by a blend of high-profile star power and emerging breakthrough performers such as A$AP Rocky and Abou Sangaré.

The Gotham Awards’ position as a prominent celebration of independent film, despite the relaxation of budget restrictions, continues to spotlight innovative cinematic achievements and serve as an influential precursor to the wider awards season. Since its establishment, the Gotham Awards have acknowledged films like Spotlight, Moonlight, and Everything Everywhere All at Once, all of which translated Gotham recognition into subsequent Academy Award success, setting high expectations for One Battle After Another and its peers.

📌 Reference Map:

Paragraph 1 – ^[1] (Daily Mail), ^[2] (TheWrap)
Paragraph 2 – ^[1] (Daily Mail), ^[4] (NME), ^[6] (UPI)
Paragraph 3 – ^[1] (Daily Mail), ^[2] (TheWrap)
Paragraph 4 – ^[3] (GamesRadar), ^[7] (AP News)
Paragraph 5 – ^[1] (Daily Mail)
Paragraph 6 – ^[1] (Daily Mail)
Paragraph 7 – ^[1] (Daily Mail)

Source: Noah Wire Services

More on this

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-15235979/Leonardo-DiCaprio-film-leads-Gotham-Award-nods.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490 - Please view link - unable to able to access data
https://www.thewrap.com/gotham-awards-nominations-one-battle-after-another-6/ - Paul Thomas Anderson's 'One Battle After Another' leads the 2025 Gotham Film Awards with a record six nominations, including Best Feature, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. Actors Benicio Del Toro, Teyana Taylor, and Chase Infiniti also received acting nods. The Best Feature category has been expanded to ten nominees, accommodating films like 'One Battle After Another' and 'Hamnet'.
https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/action-movies/one-battle-after-another-starring-leonardo-dicaprio-becomes-2025s-highest-rated-movie-on-metacritic-after-debuting-to-rave-reviews/ - Paul Thomas Anderson's 'One Battle After Another', starring Leonardo DiCaprio, has become the highest-rated movie of 2025 on Metacritic with a near-perfect score of 96. The action thriller follows DiCaprio as Bob, a former revolutionary searching for his missing daughter Willa, played by Chase Infiniti. The film has received widespread critical acclaim, earning a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 69 reviews.
https://www.nme.com/news/film/leonardo-dicaprios-one-battle-after-another-gets-its-first-trailer-the-greatest-movie-i-have-yet-to-see-3849925 - Leonardo DiCaprio's new movie 'One Battle After Another' has received its first official trailer. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, the film marks DiCaprio's first starring role since 2023's 'Killers of the Flower Moon'. The exact plot details are currently unknown, but the story is expected to be inspired by Thomas Pynchon's classic novel 'Vineland'.
https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/1941057-one-battle-after-another-release-date-delay-leonardo-dicaprio - The release date of Paul Thomas Anderson's adventure crime thriller 'One Battle After Another', featuring Leonardo DiCaprio, has been pushed back. The movie was initially set to release on August 8, 2025, but will now release over a month later on September 16, 2025. The delay could potentially be beneficial for the film as it will now have a global IMAX release.
https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Movies/2025/03/20/One-Battle-After-Another-teaser-Leonardo-DiCaprio-Paul-Thomas-Anderson/1021742490101/ - Warner Bros. released a teaser for 'One Battle After Another', a new Paul Thomas Anderson film starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The teaser opens with DiCaprio's character being interrupted by gunfire and features brief appearances by co-stars Teyana Taylor, Chase Infiniti, and Sean Penn. The plot details remain shrouded in mystery, although Anderson's script is reportedly inspired by Thomas Pynchon's novel 'Vineland'.
https://www.apnews.com/article/700a3c66abe20b02e7de0ffe01c8a854 - Paul Thomas Anderson's ambitious new film, 'One Battle After Another', debuted with $22.4 million in North American box office sales over its opening weekend. Despite critical acclaim and a strong cast including Leonardo DiCaprio, Teyana Taylor, and Sean Penn, the film—which cost over $130 million to produce—is considered a financial risk due to its lengthy 170-minute runtime and contemporary political themes. The film also earned $26.1 million internationally, suggesting potential for broader success.

Noah Fact Check Pro

The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may warrant further investigation.

Freshness check

Score: 10

Notes: ✅ The narrative is fresh, with no evidence of prior publication or recycled content. The announcement of the Gotham Awards nominations on October 28, 2025, is recent and original. ([thegotham.org](https://thegotham.org/press/nominations-announced-for-35th-annual-gotham-film-awards/?utm_source=openai))

Quotes check

Score: 10

Notes: ✅ No direct quotes are present in the narrative, indicating original content without reused or fabricated statements.

Source reliability

Score: 8

Notes: ⚠️ The narrative originates from the Daily Mail, a reputable UK newspaper. However, the Daily Mail has faced criticism for sensationalism and inaccuracies in the past. Therefore, while the source is generally reliable, caution is advised. ([thegotham.org](https://thegotham.org/press/nominations-announced-for-35th-annual-gotham-film-awards/?utm_source=openai))

Plausability check

Score: 9

Notes: ✅ The claims about 'One Battle After Another' leading the Gotham Awards nominations are plausible and corroborated by multiple reputable sources. ([thegotham.org](https://thegotham.org/press/nominations-announced-for-35th-annual-gotham-film-awards/?utm_source=openai))

Overall assessment

Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): PASS

Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): HIGH

Summary: ✅ The narrative is fresh and original, with no evidence of recycled content or disinformation. ([thegotham.org](https://thegotham.org/press/nominations-announced-for-35th-annual-gotham-film-awards/?utm_source=openai)) While the source is generally reliable, some caution is advised due to past criticisms of sensationalism. ([thegotham.org](https://thegotham.org/press/nominations-announced-for-35th-annual-gotham-film-awards/?utm_source=openai)) The claims made are plausible and supported by multiple reputable sources, indicating a high level of confidence in the accuracy of the information presented.

Gotham Film Awards
Paul Thomas Anderson
Leonardo DiCaprio