Atom-bomb epic Oppenheimer could smash a 53-year-old record at the British Academy Film Awards if it makes good on its field-leading 13 nominations.

Christopher Nolan’s biopic of physicist J Robert Oppenheimer is up for trophies including best film, best director and best actor for star Cillian Murphy.

A good night could see it surpass the record nine awards won by Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in 1971.

It faces stiff competition from Gothic fantasia Poor Things, which has 11 nominations including best film, director for Yorgos Lanthimos and actress for Emma Stone.

Historical epic Killers of the Flower Moon and Holocaust drama The Zone of Interest have nine nominations each for the prizes, officially called the EE BAFTA Film Awards.

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Barbie, one half of 2023’s Barbenheimer box office juggernaut and the year’s top-grossing film, has five nominations but missed out on nods for best picture and best director.

Many see the omission of Barbie director Greta Gerwig – for the BAFTAs and the Oscars – as a major snub.

Sunday night’s ceremony in London, hosted by Doctor Who star David Tennant, will be a glitzy, British-accented appetiser for Hollywood’s Academy Awards, closely watched for hints about who might win at the Oscars on March 10.

Nominees, which include Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr, Rosamund Pike, Ryan Gosling and Ayo Edebiri, are expected on the red carpet at London’s Royal Festival Hall, along with presenters that include Andrew Scott, Cate Blanchett, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Idris Elba.

Guest of honour will be Prince William, in his role as president of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.

He will be without his wife, Kate, who is recovering after abdominal surgery last month.

-AP