- The BAFTA Awards will take place on Sunday, February 16.
- And among the gong given on the night will be the coveted Rising Star Award
- But who are the previous winners of the award? Pubity.com takes a look at five past recipients…
The BAFTA Awards are almost upon us, with the ceremony due to take place in London on Sunday, February 16.
And while many more established actors will be holding out for a gong, newer stars are hoping to be named the Rising Star of 2025.
Nominated for the award this year are Marisa Abela, Jharrel Jerome, David Jonsson, Mikey Madison and Nabhaan Rizwan.
But who are some of the accolade’s past winners, and what are they up to now?
Pubity.com takes a look at five previous recipients of the BAFTA Rising Star Award…
James McAvoy
Coming to prominence in the Channel 4 series Shameless, McAvoy’s role in The Last King of Scotland in 2006 saw him win the BAFTA Rising Star Award that same year.
McAvoy’s other notable roles include Mr. Tumnus in the fantasy film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Robbie Turner in Atonement and Bruce ‘Robbo’ Robertson in Filth.
His portrayal of a superpowered man with 23 dissociative identities in M. Night Shyamalan’s Split (2016) and its successor Glass (2019) earned him a legion of horror-thriller fans – which is a good job, as more recently, McAvoy played the terrifying Paddy in the 2024 remake of the Danish-Dutch movie, Speak No Evil.
Daniel Kaluuya
The E4 show Skins made a star out of many actors – including Nicholas Hoult, Jack O’Connell and Kaya Scodelario. And Daniel Kaluuya was no different – playing Posh Kenneth in the gritty drama series.
Since then, Kaluuya, 35, has made a name for himself in movies such as Black Panther, Widows, and as Fred Hampton in Judas and the Black Messiah – a role which won him a Golden Globe.
And his work with Jordan Peele has been applauded by critics, with Kaluuya starring in both Get Out and Nope by the horror director – the former of which earned him an Oscar nomination, as well as the 2018 BAFTA Rising Star Award.
Emma Mackey
Who didn’t love straight talking Maeve Wiley in Sex Education?
That’s where most of us first fell in love with Emma Mackey, as she burst onto our screens in 2019 alongside Ncuti Gatwa and Asa Butterfield.
While the role may have earned her a BAFTA nomination, it wasn’t until 2023 that Mackey, 29, scooped the BAFTA Rising Star Award.
The gong followed her roles in the mystery movie Death on the Nile, and her portrayal of Emily Brontë in the drama film Emily – both of which were released in 2022.
Tom Holland
Beginning his career in the West End production of Billy Elliot, Tom Holland went on to star in the movies The Impossible and In The Heart of the Sea.
The actor, 28, then achieved international recognition playing Spider-Man in six Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) superhero films, beginning in 2016 with Captain America: Civil War. It was the following year that Holland received the BAFTA Rising Star Award and became the youngest actor to play a title role in an MCU film in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
Away from his acting achievements, it would be remiss not to mention Holland’s recent happy news – that he is reportedly engaged to his Spider-Man co-star, Zendaya.
Lashana Lynch
Lashana Lynch first gained recognition for her role as Rosaline Capulet in the ABC period drama series Still Star-Crossed in 2017, going on to win the BAFTA Rising Star award in 2022.
Since then, the impressive actor, 37, has shown her range – from roles such as Miss Honey in Matilda the Musical, to Rita Marley in the biopic Bob Marley: One Love.
And we can’t wait to watch Lynch’s exploits as Nomi in the next James Bond movie – although who she will be starring opposite is still a mystery.
