On Sunday, the Film Independent Spirit Awards 2026 kick off from the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles honoring some of the more under-the-radar films of the year. The ceremony will be hosted by SNL alumna Ego Nwodim and Honorary Chair filmmaker Lulu Wang.
The Spirit Awards come a few weeks ahead of the Actor Awards (formerly known as the SAG Awards) amid the awards season run-up to the Oscars, which are now exactly one month away.
In the film categories, Peter Hujar’s Day starring Ben Whishaw and Rebecca Hall received five nominations, the most for any film this year. Blue Sun Palace; Lurker; One of Them Days; Sorry, Baby and Train Dreams are all up for four awards.
The awards can help build momentum—or the perception of it— for films in the awards race. Train Dreams, starring Joel Edgerton, may be a strong contender, as it is nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Eva Victor, who starred in, wrote and directed Sorry, Baby, earned a Golden Globe nomination for her acting, but the film was snubbed by the Oscars.
The Spirit Awards ceremony also honors accomplishments in television. Netflix’s Adolescence and Forever, and the British drama Mr Loverman are tied for the most nominations for TV with four apiece. Adolescence has had a strong showing during awards season so far, as the mini-series swept all four categories it was nominated for at the Golden Globes in January, including best limited or anthology series.
Winners of the Spirit Awards are chosen by members of Film Independent, a non-profit arts organization focused on visual storytelling. Nominees were selected from 18 countries and had budgets ranging from $35,000 to $20 million. The show will be live-streamed on Film Independent and IMDb’s YouTube channels and on other social platforms beginning at 5:00 p.m. ET.
The Spirit Awards blue carpet (not red carpet, blue carpet!) brings a more funky energy to awards season fashions. See all of the stars as they arrive here.