Director Paul Thomas Anderson is one step closer to the Best Director Oscar with One Battle After Another after winning the top prize at the 2026 DGA awards.
The One Battle After Another helmer took home the prize for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film.
Film News Blitz’s Dan Lawrence explains why this is a key factor in picking up an Oscar for directing.
‘One Battle After Another’ has put Paul Thomas Anderson on a path to an Oscar
Ever since the Directors Guild of America hosted annual awards, its top prize has correctly predicted the Best Director Oscar winner on all but eight occasions.
That means Anderson’s win on Sunday night for One Battle After Another put him in pole position to round off the 2026 cinematic awards season in style.
It marks the modern movie magician’s first DGA win for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film and his 32nd directing victory this awards season.
This puts him well on course to win his first Oscar for directing, having been nominated three times previously, first for There Will Be Blood (2008), then Phantom Thread (2018) and Liquorice Pizza (2022).
Anderson’s fellow DGA nominees included Ryan Coogler (Sinners), Guillermo del Toro (Frankenstein), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme) and Chloe Zhao (Hamnet).
Del Toro is the outlier here, with him missing out on an Oscar nomination for directing this year, with Sentimental Value helmsman Joachim Trier getting the nod in his place.
Who else picked up 2026 DGA awards?
The other film winners were Charlie Polinger in the first-time feature category for The Plague and Mstyslav Chernov in the documentary category for 2000 Meters to Andriivka.
Elsewhere, prizes were handed out for achievements in television, broken down by genre.
These included the top dramatic prize that went to Amanda Marsalis for stewarding an episode of the HBO medical drama, The Pitt, dubbed ‘6:00 P.M.’.
In comedy, there was a bittersweet moment as Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg won for directing the masterful ‘The Oner’ entry in The Studio, paying tribute to their late cast member, Catherine O’Hara.
“We grew up in Canada, and she is and was our idol since we were children,” Goldberg said (via Variety).
“She showed you could be an utter genius and the nicest person in the world.”
READ NEXT – A Friendly Film Take: 2026 Oscar nominations special
The winners from the 2026 DGA Awards:
Film
Theatrical Feature Film
Paul Thomas Anderson – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Ryan Coogler – Sinners (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Guillermo Del Toro – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme (A24)
Chloé Zhao – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Michael Apted First-Time Theatrical Feature Film
Hasan Hadi – The President’s Cake (Sony Pictures Classics)
Harry Lighton – Pillion (A24)
Charlie Polinger – The Plague (Independent Film Company)
Alex Russell – Lurker (MUBI)
Eva Victor – Sorry, Baby (A24)
Dramatic Series
Liza Johnson – The Diplomat, “Amagansett” (Netflix)
Amanda Marsalis – The Pitt, “6:00 p.m.” (HBO Max)
Janus Metz – Andor, “Who Are You?” (Disney+)
Ben Stiller – Severance, “Cold Harbour” (Apple TV+)
John Wells – The Pitt, “7:00 a.m.” (HBO Max)
Comedy Series
Lucia Aniello – Hacks, “A Slippery Slope” (HBO Max)
Janicza Bravo, The Bear, “Worms” (FX on Hulu)
Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg – The Studio, “The Oner” (Apple TV+)
Christopher Storer – The Bear, “Bears” (FX on Hulu)
Mike White – The White Lotus, “Denials” (HBO Max)
Limited and Anthology Series
Jason Bateman – Black Rabbit, “The Black Rabbits” (Netflix)
Antonio Campos – The Beast in Me, “Sick Puppy” (Netflix)
Lesli Linka Glatter – Zero Day, “Episode 6” (Netflix)
Shannon Murphy – Dying for Sex, “It’s Not That Serious” (FX on Hulu)
Ally Pankiw – Black Mirror, “Common People” (Netflix)
Movies for Television
Jesse Armstrong – Mountainhead (HBO Max)
Stephen Chbosky – Nonnas (Netflix)
Scott Derrickson – The Gorge (Apple TV+)
Kyle Newacheck – Happy Gilmore 2 (Netflix)
Variety
Yvonne Demare – The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, “Julia Roberts; Sam Smith” (CBS)
Andy Fisher – Jimmy Kimmel Live!, “Stephen Colbert; Kumail Nanjiani; Reneé Rapp” (ABC)
Beth McCarthy Miller – SNL50: The Homecoming Concert (Peacock)
Liz Patrick – SNL50: The Anniversary Special (NBC)
Paul Pennolino – Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, “Public Media” (HBO Max)
Sports
Matthew Gangl – 2025 World Series – Game 7 – Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (FOX Sports)
Steve Milton – 2025 Masters Tournament – Augusta National Golf Club (CBS Sports)
Rich Russo – Super Bowl LIX – Philadelphia Eagles vs. Kansas City Chiefs (FOX Sports)
Reality/Quiz and Game
Lucinda M. Margolis – Jeopardy!, “Ep. 9341” (Syndicated)
Adam Sandler – The Price is Right, “10,000th Episode” (CBS)
Mike Sweeney – Conan O’Brien Must Go, “Austria” (HBO Max)
Commercials
Kim Gehrig (Somesuch)
You Can’t Win. So Win. – Nike | Wieden+Kennedy
I’m Not Remarkable – Apple | Client Direct
Miles Jay (Smuggler)
Dish – ChatGPT | Isle of Any
Pull Up – ChatGPT | Isle of Any
Trip – ChatGPT | Isle of Any
Home for the Holidays – Meta | Droga5
Secret Santa – Meta | Droga5
Spike Jonze (MJZ)
Someday – Apple Airpods 4 | TBWA\Media Arts Lab
Andreas Nilsson (Biscuit Filmworks)
Conquer the First School Poo – Andrex | FCB London
Garrett – Apple iPhone 16 Pro | Client Direct
Big Flex – Apple iPhone 16 Pro | Client Direct
Trunk Trucker – Virgin Media | VCCP London
Steve Rogers (Biscuit Filmworks)
Bring a Book to Life – Amazon | Droga5 London
A Tale as Old as Websites – Squarespace| Client Direct
Everything is Fine – Coinbase | Mother London
Documentary Film
Mstyslav Chernov – 2000 Meters to Andriivka (PBS)
Geeta Gandbhir – The Perfect Neighbour (Netflix)
Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni – Cutting Through Rocks (Assembly Releasing)
Elizabeth Lo – Mistress Dispeller (Oscilloscope Laboratories)
Laura Poitras and Mark Obenhaus – Cover-Up (Netflix)
Documentary Series / News
Marshall Curry – SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, “Written By: A Week Inside the SNL Writers Room” (Peacock)
Susan Lacy and Jessica Levin – Billy Joel: And So It Goes, “Part Two” (HBO Max)
Rebecca Miller – Mr. Scorsese, “All This Filming Isn’t Healthy” (Apple TV+)
Alexandra Stapleton – Sean Combs: The Reckoning, “Official Girl” (Netflix)
Matt Wolf – Pee-Wee as Himself, “Part 1” (HBO Max)
