Critics Awards (Film)

‘Sinners’ Tops African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) Awards

Erik Anderson December 9, 2025

The African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) today announced the winners of its 17th annual AAFCA Awards, recognizing outstanding contributions to cinema, along with its selections for the top ten films of the year. Sinners topped all with eight wins, including Best Film, Best Director and Writing for Ryan Coogler, and Best Actor for Michael B. Jordan.

Hedda, One Battle After Another, F1, The Perfect Neighbor and KPop Demon Hunters each grabbed one win.

Winners will be celebrated at the 17th Annual AAFCA Awards on February 8 at The Maybourne Beverly Hills in Beverly Hills. The announcement was made by AAFCA president and co-founder Gil Robertson. “The cinematic voices recognized this year remind us of the power of film to challenge, inspire, and unite,” said AAFCA president and co-founder Gil Robertson. “From bold new visions to unforgettable performances, these winners represent storytellers who are pushing the art form forward while speaking to the moment we are living in. We look forward to celebrating their achievements and the impact their work continues to have on audiences worldwide.

AAFCA’s Top 10 Films list and the winners of the 17th Annual AAFCA Awards are:

AAFCA’S TOP 10 FILMS OF THE YEAR

1. Sinners (Warner Bros.)

2. One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)

3. Hedda (Amazon MGM)

4. Frankenstein (Netflix)

5. Hamnet (Focus Features)

6. Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)

7. F1 (Apple/Warner Bros.)

8. One of Them Days (Sony Pictures Releasing)

9. The Knife (Relativity Media)

10. The Smashing Machine (A24)

BEST ACTOR – Michael B. Jordan, Sinners (Warner Bros.)

BEST ACTRESS – Tessa Thompson, Hedda (Amazon MGM)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS – Wunmi Mosaku, Sinners (Warner Bros.)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR – Dansom Idris, F1 (Apple/Warner Bros.)

BEST DOCUMENTARY – The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix)

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE – KPop Demon Hunters (Netflix)

BEST DIRECTOR – Ryan Coogler, Sinners (Warner Bros.)

BEST WRITING – Ryan Coogler, Sinners (Warner Bros.)

EMERGING FACE (ACTOR) – Miles Caton, Sinners (Warner Bros.)

EMERGING FACE (ACTRESS) – Chase Infiniti, One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)

BEST INDEPENDENT FEATURE – Hedda (Amazon MGM)

BEST ENSEMBLE – Sinners (Warner Bros.)

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT – The Rebel Girls

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT – Hoops, Hopes & Dreams

BEST ANIMATED SHORT – Black Man, Black Man

BEST MUSIC – Ludwig Göransson, Sinners (Warner Bros.)

Winners were selected by AAFCA’s more than 100+ members and will be celebrated at this year’s ceremony. Special achievement honorees will be announced at a later date.

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Erik Anderson

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.