World’s Sexiest Man Alive, Idris Elba, was honored with the Best Director prize for his work on the crime drama – based on Victor Headley’s novel of the same name – at the fifth annual ceremony in London’s Porchester Hall on Wednesday evening (27.03.19).
The movie itself – which marks the ‘Yardie’ filmmaker Elba’s debut behind the camera for a feature film – was also recognized with the Best Drama gong, while ‘Black Panther’ was named Best International Film and ‘Sherlock Gnomes’ won in the Best Animation category.
Meanwhile, the ceremony also paid tribute to British film icon Sir Michael Caine as the veteran actor was this year’s recipient of the Global Contribution to motion picture award. With a career spanning 70 years, the star has appeared on the big screen in the likes of ‘The Italian Job’, ‘The Dark Knight’ trilogy, ‘The Prestige’ and ‘King of Thieves’.
Elsewhere on the winner’s list, ‘The Happy Prince’ actor Rupert Everett and ‘Obey’ actress Sophie Kennedy were each honored for their leading roles, with ‘The Intent 2’ star Justin Clake named Best Newcomer.
Established in 2014, the National Film Awards celebrates the work of established and independent filmmakers, with 2.5 million public votes received for this year’s ceremony. The awards show is also held annually in the states, and the US awards show – the National Film & TV Awards – takes place at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles on December 3rd.