The 2026 Indie Spirit Awards Nominations

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While the Gotham Awards removed their budget cap for nominations in 2023 and subsequently gave this year’s Best Film trophy to One Battle After Another, there is one awards show that remains exclusively for films made under $30 million. The Independent Spirit Awards nominations came out on December 3 and brought with them tidings of goodwill toward a group of intimate festival breakouts and genre features that might otherwise be overlooked this awards season. The most nominated film of the year is Ira Sach’s real-time conversation Peter Hujar’s Day, which scored five nods. Eva Victor’s campus sexual-assault dramedy Sorry, Baby and Clint Bentley’s 20th-century exploration of manhood Train Dreams follow closely with four. Joining them in the Best Feature category are James Sweeney’s funny thriller Twinless and Charlie Polinger’s horror-comedy The Plague. One of these movies will be crowned at the ceremony on February 15, 2026. Below, the full list of nominees for the 2026 Film Independent Spirit Awards.

Outside the Best Feature category, the films may be small but the names are big. Rose Byrne, Joel Edgerton, Tessa Thompson, Keke Palmer, and Kirsten Dunst are all nominated in the non-gendered acting categories. In the TV section, awarding shows in their first season, Emmy winner Seth Rogen scored a nomination for The Studio. The acting noms include movie stars Michelle Williams of Dying For Sex and Ethan Hawke for The Lowdown. Winners will be crowned at the ceremony on February 15, 2026, exactly one month before the Oscars. Below, the full list of nominees for the 2026 Film Independent Spirit Awards.

Best Feature
Peter Hujar’s Day
The Plague
Sorry, Baby
Train Dreams
Twinless

Best First Feature
Blue Sun Palace
Dust Bunny
East of Wall
Lurker
One of Them Days

John Cassavetes Award — Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000 
The Baltimorons
Boys Go to Jupiter
Eephus
Esta Isla (This Island)
Familiar Touch

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, 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 — Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast
The Long Walk

Best Documentary
Come See Me in the Good Light
Endless Cookie
My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow
The Perfect Neighbor
The Tale of Silyan

Best International Film
All That’s Left of You
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
A Poet
The Secret Agent
Sirāt

Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series
Citizen Nation
Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time
Pee-wee As Himself
Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television
Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae

Best New Scripted Series
Adolescence
Common Side Effects
Forever
Mr Loverman
North of North

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