All about the actors nominated for BAFTA's Rising Star Award: Marisa Abela, Nabhaan Rizwan, Mikey Madison and more
The BAFTA Rising Star award aims to honour young acting talent who have shown exceptional command of the craft and have made a lasting impact on the public.
Awards season is underway, and one of the big stops is the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Film Awards on Sunday. While their focus on British film is the defining characteristic of the BAFTAs that sets them apart from their American counterpart, the Oscars, there’s one award in particular that is specifically meant to shine a light on the future of the industry - the Rising Star Award. (Also Read: Prince William, Kate Middleton to miss 2025 BAFTA Awards)
What is the Rising Star Award?
The BAFTA Rising Star award aims to honour young acting talent who have shown exceptional command of the craft and have made a lasting impact on the public. Previous winners include Kristen Stewart, Daniel Kaluuya, and Tom Holland. And look where they are now!
This year’s nominees are Marisa Abela, Jharrel Jerome, David Jonsson, Mikey Madison, and Nabhaan Rizwan, all of whom have made waves on stage and in film and television. Let’s get to know them!
Marisa Abela
Marisa first made a splash in HBO’s high stakes financial drama Industry (not the last time this show will be talked about in this article). Abela plays Yasmin Kara-Hanani, a spoilt rich kid trying to prove her worth in the cut-throat world of investment banking. She was a revelation in season one, and continued to hone her performance skills in subsequent seasons, quickly becoming one of the many breakout stars of the show. Her big break in movies came in 2024 when she won the coveted role playing the legendary and tragic Amy Winehouse in the biopic Back to Black.
Jharrel Jerome
The first of two American nominees on this list, Jharrel made his debut in 2016 in Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight as the teen version of Kevin. Since then he has been consistently working on both film and television, with a breakthrough role in Netflix’s When They See Us as one of the exonerated Central Park Five. An understated and naturalistic performer, Jerome can now be seen in Amazon’s Unstoppable as Anthony Robles, the real-life wrestler who became a NCAA Division 1 champion despite being born with one leg.
Mikey Madison
If there’s a front-runner in this race, it’s probably Mikey Madison. Her star-making performance as the titular stripper in Anora has already landed her a Best Actress Oscar nomination, one of six noms for the movie, including Best Picture. Madison began her career on television as Max, the oldest child in Pamela Adlon’s sublime Better Things. Over five seasons, audiences watched her grow from a petulant teen to a confident adult. And now she has a strong chance at winning the highest accolade so early in her career, an Oscar.
David Jonsson
David Jonsson began his career on the British stage, quickly transitioning to TV with HBO’s Industry (again) alongside Marisa Abela - where he played Gus Sackey, an intern who eschews a career in investment banking after finding the body of a fellow intern who died by suicide. Jonsson also starred as a lovelorn romantic in the utterly charming Rye Lane in 2022 and made his Hollywood debut this year with the latest entry in the Alien franchise - Alien: Romulus. He’s a sensitive actor with expressive eyes, and someone to watch out for.
Nabhaan Rizwan
Last but not least is Nabhaan Rizwan, a Pakistani-origin British actor with a Bollywood connection. His mother starred in Ekta Kapoor’s hit TV show Yeh Hai Mohabbatein. Nabhaan started with bit roles in TV before a short but pivotal role in Industry (there it is again) as Hari Dhar, an intern who buckles under the pressure of investment banking and takes his own life. Rizwan also had a heartbreaking role in the TV adaptation of Station Eleven where he raps to A Tribe Called Quest’s Excursions in a memorable scene. Most recently, he brought Greek myth to life in Netflix’s Kaos as Dionysus, the son of Zeus.
The BAFTA Rising Star Award is basically a crystal ball for cinema’s next big thing. Every year, it puts the spotlight on fresh talent, and before you know it, they’re headlining blockbusters. Who will it be this year? We’ll find out on Sunday — but regardless of who wins, each of these nominees will play a big role in the future of cinema.