• The Get Out actor tops the public vote to take home this coveted title
  • The EE Rising Star Award is the only EE British Academy Film Awards honour voted for by the public
  • The other 2018 nominees were Timothée Chalamet, Josh O’Connor, Florence Pugh and Tessa Thompson
  • Fellow BAFTA nominee and former EE Rising Star Award nominee, Margot Robbie, and BAFTA nominee, Octavia Spencer, presented this year’s award
  • Previous winners include Tom Holland, Jack O’Connell, Will Poulter, Tom Hardy, Kristen Stewart, Noel Clarke, Eva Green and James McAvoy

London, Sunday 18 February 2018: EE, the UK’s largest mobile operator and part of the BT Group, is proud to announce Daniel Kaluuya as the winner of the EE Rising Star Award in 2018.

The EE Rising Star Award is the only publicly-voted award presented at the EE British Academy Film Awards, and each year it continues to shine a spotlight on the outstanding up and coming acting talent that has captured the imagination of the public and film industry over the past 12 months.

Daniel was one of five exceptional actors nominated in recognition of their performances and identified as a true star in the making. The other nominees were Timothée Chalamet, Josh O’Connor, Florence Pugh and Tessa Thompson.

Daniel Kaluuya shot to fame last year in the American genre film, Get Out, for which he has been nominated in the Best Actor category for the EE British Academy Film Awards, Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Gotham Awards, and Independent Spirit Awards. Kaluuya took home the Best Actor award at the MTV Movie Awards and the NAACP Image Awards. Already known for his roles in hit TV shows, Skins, Psychoville and Black Mirror, Kaluuya has also starred in a slew of big screen feature films, including crime thriller Sicario, Johnny English Reborn and Kick Ass 2. This month, Daniel also joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Ryan Coogler’s critically acclaimed Black Panther, followed by a co-starring role in Steve McQueen’s upcoming heist thriller Widows later this year.

Former 2015 EE Rising Star Award nominee Margot Robbie, who was also nominated for Best Actress for her role in I, Tonya, and Octavia Spencer, nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Shape of Water, took to the Royal Albert Hall stage to present this year’s EE Rising Star award.

Mat Sears, Director of Communications and Sponsorship at EE, said: “Congratulations to Daniel Kaluuya for winning this year’s EE Rising Star Award. The standard of the nominees is always incredibly high, and it is testament to the calibre of this year’s performances and films that this year’s nominees have also been recognised in other award categories. We take great pride in our work with BAFTA, continuing to shine a spotlight on exceptional new talent and providing a public vote for film fans to show their support and have their say. As ever, the public has spoken and we are incredibly pleased for Daniel. We look forward to seeing his career continue to flourish.”

The EE Rising Star Award was created in honour of Mary Selway, the highly respected BAFTA-winning casting director whose career spanned three decades and over ninety films before she died in 2004. She worked with notable directors such as Steven Spielberg, Roman Polanski, Clint Eastwood and Ridley Scott, contributing to the creation of some of the silver screen’s most memorable characters.

The jury who selected the five nominees from the hundreds suggested by BAFTA members featured a stellar line up of industry experts to choose the 2018 EE Rising Star Award shortlist. Once again chaired by producer, Marc Samuelson, the jury included British actress Georgina Campbell and film broadcaster, Edith Bowman, BAFTA award-winning director Philippa Lowthorpe; Murder on the Orient Express, Cinderella, Pirates of the Caribbean and Testament of Youth casting director, Lucy Bevan; renowned casting director for The Boy In Striped Pyjamas, Philomena, Layer Cake and The Constant Gardener, Leo Davis; esteemed producer of Bhaji on the Beach, Looking for Langston and Young Soul Rebels, Nadine Marsh-Edwards alongside leading film and arts journalists.

The EE Rising Star was voted for by the British public via the EE website. For more information on the EE Rising Star Award please visit: www.ee.co.uk/bafta

The official ceremony hashtag is #EEBAFTAs.

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For further information, please contact:

[email protected]

To view/download Daniel Kaluuya press conference interview and all the content from the night visit –

EE British Academy Film Awards – Digital Media Centre

Link: https://formidable.chillivault.tv/

Username: [email protected]

Password: eebafta

For more information, please contact M&C Saatchi PR on [email protected]

About EE

EE, part of BT Group, is the largest and most advanced mobile communications company in the UK, delivering mobile and fixed communications services to consumers.

EE runs the UK’s biggest and fastest mobile network, having pioneered the UK’s first superfast 4G mobile service in October 2012 and was the first European operator to surpass 14 million 4G customers in December 2015. EE has more than 550 shops across the UK. EE’s 4G coverage extends to more than 90% of the UK’s landmass (equal to more than 99% of the UK population) and EE has an ambition to extend 4G to 95% UK geographic coverage by 2020

EE has received extensive independent recognition, including being ranked the UK’s best overall network by RootMetrics®; Best Network at the 2015, 2016 and 2017 Mobile News Awards; Best Consumer Network at the 2015, 2016 and 2017 Mobile Industry Awards; as well as Fastest Network and Best Network Coverage at the 2017 uSwitch Mobile Awards.

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About BAFTA

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) is a world-leading independent arts charity that brings the very best work in film, games and television to public attention and supports the growth of creative talent in the UK and internationally. Through its Awards ceremonies and year-round programme of learning events and initiatives – which includes workshops, masterclasses, scholarships, lectures and mentoring schemes in the UK, USA and Asia – BAFTA identifies and celebrates excellence, discovers, inspires and nurtures new talent, and enables learning and creative collaboration. For advice and inspiration from the best creative minds in working in film, games and television, visit www.bafta.org/guru. For more, visit www.bafta.org.

Source: EE Newsroom