AwardsWatch’s 50 Favorite Performances of 2016
20. Nicole Kidman, Lion
19. Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
18. Hailee Steinfeld, The Edge of Seventeen
17. Peter Simonischek, Toni Erdmann
16. Lily Gladstone, Certain Women
15. Kim Min Hee, The Handmaiden
232 points / 26 mentions
14. Viola Davis, Fences
233 points / 24 mentions
13. André Holland, Moonlight
233 points / 33 mentions
12. Emma Stone, La La Land
238 points / 28 mentions
11. Kate Beckinsale, Love & Friendship
240 points / 31 mentions
Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
Latest posts by Erik Anderson (see all)
- London Critics’ Circle (LCC) Awards: ‘One Battle After Another’ Takes Film, Director, Screenwriting, Supporting Actor Wins - February 1, 2026
- Frontrunner Friday Oscar Predictions: We Need to Talk About ‘Marty’ - January 30, 2026
- 2026 Sundance Film Festival: ‘Josephine’ Wins Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award - January 30, 2026
London Critics’ Circle (LCC) Awards: ‘One Battle After Another’ Takes Film, Director, Screenwriting, Supporting Actor Wins 
Frontrunner Friday Oscar Predictions: We Need to Talk About ‘Marty’ 
2026 Sundance Film Festival: ‘Josephine’ Wins Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award 
Director Watch Podcast Ep. 137 – ‘Je Tu Il Elle’ (Chantal Akerman, 1974)