BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay

The BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay is a film award presented annually at the British Academy Film Awards to a screenwriter for a specific film. It is awarded by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), a British organisation that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, and video games (and formerly also for children's film and television). Since 1983, selected films have been awarded with the BAFTA award for Best Adapted Screenplay at an annual ceremony.

BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Awarded for	Best Adapted Screenplay
Location	United Kingdom
Presented by	British Academy of Film and Television Arts
Currently held by	Peter Straughan for Conclave (2024)
Website	http://www.bafta.org/

In the following lists, the titles and names in bold with a gold background are the winners and recipients respectively; those not in bold are the remaining nominees. The winner is also the first name listed in each category.

History

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) award for Best Adapted Screenplay has been presented to its winners since 1968, when the original category (BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay) was split into two awards, the other being the BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay.^{[citation needed]}

Christopher Hampton and Peter Straughan hold the record for the most wins in this category, with two each. Ronald Harwood, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Eric Roth and Aaron Sorkin tie for the most nominations in this category, with four each.

Winners and nominees

  indicates the winner

1980s

Year	Film	Screenwriter(s)	Adapted from
1983 (37th) [1]	Heat and Dust	Ruth Prawer Jhabvala	Heat and Dust by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
	Betrayal	Harold Pinter	Betrayal by Harold Pinter
	Educating Rita	Willy Russell	Educating Rita by Willy Russell
	Tootsie	Larry Gelbart and Murray Schisgal
1984 (38th) [2]	The Killing Fields	Bruce Robinson	The experiences of Dith Pran and Sydney Schanberg
	Another Country	Julian Mitchell	Another Country by Julian Mitchell
	The Dresser	Ronald Harwood	The Dresser by Ronald Harwood
	Paris, Texas	Sam Shepard	Paris, Texas by L. M. Kit Carson
1985 (39th)	Prizzi's Honor	Richard Condon and Janet Roach	Prizzi's Honor by Richard Condon
	Amadeus	Peter Shaffer	Amadeus by Peter Shaffer
	A Passage to India	David Lean	A Passage to India by E. M. Forster
	The Shooting Party	Julian Bond	The Shooting Party by Isabel Colegate
1986 (40th)	Out of Africa	Kurt Luedtke	Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen
	Children of a Lesser God	Hesper Anderson and Mark Medoff	Children of a Lesser God by Mark Medoff
	The Color Purple	Menno Meyjes	The Color Purple by Alice Walker
	Ran	Masato Ide, Akira Kurosawa, and Hideo Oguni	Legends of the daimyō Mōri Motonari, as well as King Lear by William Shakespeare.
	A Room with a View	Ruth Prawer Jhabvala	A Room with a View by E. M. Forster
1987 (41st)	Jean de Florette	Claude Berri and Gérard Brach	L'Eau des collines by Marcel Pagnol
	84 Charing Cross Road	Hugh Whitemore	84 Charing Cross Road by James Roose-Evans
	Little Dorrit	Christine Edzard	Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens
	Prick Up Your Ears	Alan Bennett	Prick Up Your Ears by John Lahr
1988 (42nd)	The Unbearable Lightness of Being	Jean-Claude Carrière and Philip Kaufman	The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
	Babettes gæstebud	Gabriel Axel	Babette's Feast by Isak Dinesan
	Empire of the Sun	Tom Stoppard	Empire of the Sun by J. G. Ballard
	Who Framed Roger Rabbit	Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman	Who Censored Roger Rabbit? by Gary K. Wolf
1989 (43rd)	Dangerous Liaisons	Christopher Hampton	Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Christopher Hampton
	The Accidental Tourist	Frank Galati and Lawrence Kasdan	The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler
	My Left Foot	Shane Connaughton and Jim Sheridan	My Left Foot by Christy Brown
	Shirley Valentine	Willy Russell	Shirley Valentine by Willy Russell

1990s

Year	Film	Screenwriter(s)	Adapted from
1990 (44th)	Goodfellas	Nicholas Pileggi and Martin Scorsese	Wiseguy by Nicholas Pileggi
	Born on the Fourth of July	Ron Kovic and Oliver Stone	Born on the Fourth of July by Ron Kovic
	Driving Miss Daisy	Alfred Uhry	Driving Miss Daisy by Alfred Uhry
	Postcards from the Edge	Carrie Fisher	Postcards from the Edge by Carrie Fisher
	The War of the Roses	Michael J. Leeson	The War of the Roses by Warren Adler
1991 (45th)	The Commitments	Dick Clement, Roddy Doyle, and Ian La Frenais	The Commitments by Roddy Doyle
	Cyrano de Bergerac	Jean-Claude Carrière and Jean-Paul Rappeneau	Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand
	Dances with Wolves	Michael Blake	Dances with Wolves by Michael Blake
	The Silence of the Lambs	Ted Tally	The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
1992 (46th)	The Player	Michael Tolkin	The Player by Michael Tolkin
	Howards End	Ruth Prawer Jhabvala	Howards End by E. M. Forster
	JFK	Zachary Sklar and Oliver Stone	On the Trail of the Assassins by Jim Garrison Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy by Jim Marrs
	Strictly Ballroom	Baz Luhrmann and Craig Pearce	Strictly Ballroom by Baz Luhrmann
1993 (47th)	Schindler's List	Steven Zaillian	Schindler's Ark by Thomas Keneally
	In the Name of the Father	Terry George and Jim Sheridan	Proved Innocent: The Story of Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four by Gerry Conlon
	The Remains of the Day	Ruth Prawer Jhabvala	The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
	Shadowlands	William Nicholson	Shadowlands by William Nicholson
	Scent of a Woman	Bo Goldman	Il buio e il miele by Giovanni Arpino
1994 (48th)	Quiz Show	Paul Attanasio	Remembering America by Richard N. Goodwin
	The Browning Version	Ronald Harwood	The Browning Version by Terence Rattigan
	Forrest Gump	Eric Roth	Forrest Gump by Winston Groom
	The Joy Luck Club	Ronald Bass and Amy Tan	The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
	Three Colours: Red	Krzysztof Kieślowski and Krzysztof Piesiewicz
1995 (49th)	Trainspotting	John Hodge	Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh
	Babe	George Miller, Chris Noonan	The Sheep-Pig by Dick King-Smith
	Leaving Las Vegas	Mike Figgis	Leaving Las Vegas by John O'Brien
	The Madness of King George	Alan Bennett	The Madness of George III by Alan Bennett
	Il Postino: The Postman	Anna Pavignano, Michael Radford, Furio Scarpelli, Giacomo Scarpelli, and Massimo Troisi	Ardiente paciencia by Antonio Skármeta
	Sense and Sensibility	Emma Thompson	Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
1996 (50th)	The English Patient	Anthony Minghella	The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
	The Crucible	Arthur Miller	The Crucible by Arthur Miller
	Evita	Alan Parker and Oliver Stone	Evita by Eva Perón
	Richard III	Richard Loncraine and Ian McKellen	Richard III by William Shakespeare
1997 (51st)	Romeo + Juliet	Baz Luhrmann and Craig Pearce	Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
	The Ice Storm	James Schamus	The Ice Storm by Rick Moody
	L.A. Confidential	Curtis Hanson and Brian Helgeland	L.A. Confidential by James Ellroy
	The Wings of the Dove	Hossein Amini	The Wings of the Dove by Henry James
1998 (52nd)	Primary Colors	Elaine May	Primary Colors: A Novel of Politics by Joe Klein
	Hilary and Jackie	Frank Cottrell Boyce	A Genius in the Family by Piers and Hilary du Pré
	Little Voice	Mark Herman	The Rise and Fall of Little Voice by Jim Cartwright
	Wag the Dog	Hilary Henkin and David Mamet	American Hero by Larry Beinhart
1999 (53rd) [3]	The End of the Affair	Neil Jordan	The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
	East Is East	Ayub Khan-Din	East Is East by Ayub Khan-Din
	An Ideal Husband	Oliver Parker	An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde
	The Talented Mr. Ripley	Anthony Minghella	The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith

2000s

Year	Film	Screenwriter(s)	Adapted from
2000 (54th) [4][5]	Traffic	Stephen Gaghan	Traffik by Alastair Reid
	Chocolat	Robert Nelson Jacobs	Chocolat by Joanne Harris
	Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon	James Schamus, Wang Hui-ling, and Kuo Jung Tsai	Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon by Wang Dulu
	High Fidelity	John Cusack, D. V. DeVincentis, Steve Pink, and Scott Rosenberg	High Fidelity by Nick Hornby
	Wonder Boys	Steve Kloves	Wonder Boys by Michael Chabon
2001 (55th) [6]	Shrek	Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio, Roger S. H. Schulman, and Joe Stillman	Shrek! by William Steig
	A Beautiful Mind	Akiva Goldsman	A Beautiful Mind by Sylvia Nasar
	Bridget Jones's Diary	Richard Curtis, Andrew Davies, and Helen Fielding	Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding
	Iris	Richard Eyre and Charles Wood	Elegy for Iris by John Bayley
	The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring	Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, and Fran Walsh	The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien
2002 (56th) [7]	Adaptation.	Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman	The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean
	About a Boy	Peter Hedges, Chris Weitz, and Paul Weitz	About a Boy by Nick Hornby
	Catch Me If You Can	Jeff Nathanson	Catch Me if You Can by Frank Abagnale and Stan Redding
	The Hours	David Hare	The Hours by Michael Cunningham
	The Pianist	Ronald Harwood	The Pianist by Władysław Szpilman
2003 (57th) [8]	The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King	Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, and Fran Walsh	The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien
	Big Fish	John August	Big Fish: A Novel of Mythic Proportions by Daniel Wallace
	Cold Mountain	Anthony Minghella	Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
	Girl with a Pearl Earring	Olivia Hetreed	Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
	Mystic River	Brian Helgeland	Mystic River by Dennis Lehane
2004 (58th) [9]	Sideways	Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor	Sideways by Rex Pickett
	The Chorus	Christophe Barratier and Philippe Lopes-Curval	A Cage of Nightingales directed by Jean Dréville
	Closer	Patrick Marber	Closer by Patrick Marber
	Finding Neverland	David Magee	The Man Who Was Peter Pan by Allan Knee
	The Motorcycle Diaries	José Rivera	The Motorcycle Diaries by Che Guevara
2005 (59th) [10]	Brokeback Mountain	Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana	Brokeback Mountain by E. Annie Proulx
	Capote	Dan Futterman	Capote by Gerald Clarke
	The Constant Gardener	Jeffrey Caine	The Constant Gardener by John le Carré
	A History of Violence	Josh Olson	A History of Violence by John Wagner and Vince Locke
	Pride & Prejudice	Deborah Moggach	Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
2006 (60th) [11]	The Last King of Scotland	Jeremy Brock and Peter Morgan	The Last King of Scotland by Giles Foden
	Casino Royale	Paul Haggis, Neal Purvis, and Robert Wade	Casino Royale by Ian Fleming
	The Departed	William Monahan	Infernal Affairs by Alan Mak and Felix Chong
	The Devil Wears Prada	Aline Brosh McKenna	The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger
	Notes on a Scandal	Patrick Marber	Notes on a Scandal by Zoë Heller
2007 (61st) [12]	The Diving Bell and the Butterfly	Ronald Harwood	The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby
	Atonement	Christopher Hampton	Atonement by Ian McEwan
	The Kite Runner	David Benioff	The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
	No Country for Old Men	Joel Coen and Ethan Coen	No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
	There Will Be Blood	Paul Thomas Anderson	Oil! by Upton Sinclair
2008 (62nd) [13]	Slumdog Millionaire	Simon Beaufoy	Q & A by Vikas Swarup
	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button	Eric Roth	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald
	Frost/Nixon	Peter Morgan	Frost/Nixon by Peter Morgan
	The Reader	David Hare	The Reader by Bernhard Schlink
	Revolutionary Road	Justin Haythe	Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates
2009 (63rd) [14]	Up in the Air	Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner	Up in the Air by Walter Kirn
	District 9	Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell	Alive in Joburg by Neill Blomkamp
	An Education	Nick Hornby	An Education by Lynn Barber
	In the Loop	Simon Blackwell, Jesse Armstrong, Armando Iannucci, and Tony Roche	The Thick of It by Armando Iannucci
	Precious	Geoffrey Fletcher	Push by Sapphire

2010s

Year	Film	Screenwriter(s)	Adapted from
2010 (64th) [15]	The Social Network	Aaron Sorkin	The Accidental Billionaires by Ben Mezrich
	127 Hours	Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy	Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Aron Ralston
	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	Rasmus Heisterberg and Nikolaj Arcel	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
	Toy Story 3	Michael Arndt	Characters from the film Toy Story created by John Lasseter, Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton, Joe Ranft, Joss Whedon, Joel Cohen, and Alec Sokolow Characters from the film Toy Story 2 created by John Lasseter, Pete Docter, Ash Brannon, Andrew Stanton, Rita Hsiao, Doug Chamberlin, and Chris Webb
	True Grit	Joel Coen and Ethan Coen	True Grit by Charles Portis
2011 (65th) [16]	Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy	Bridget O'Connor and Peter Straughan	Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy by John le Carré
	The Descendants	Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, and Jim Rash	The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmings
	The Help	Tate Taylor	The Help by Kathryn Stockett
	The Ides of March	George Clooney, Beau Willimon, and Grant Heslov	Farragut North by Beau Willimon
	Moneyball	Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin	Moneyball by Michael Lewis
2012 (66th) [17]	Silver Linings Playbook	David O. Russell	The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick
	Argo	Chris Terrio	The Master of Disguise by Tony Mendez The Great Escape by Joshuah Bearman
	Beasts of the Southern Wild	Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin	Juicy and Delicious by Lucy Alibar
	Life of Pi	David Magee	Life of Pi by Yann Martel
	Lincoln	Tony Kushner	Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin
2013 (67th) [18]	Philomena	Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope	The Lost Child of Philomena Lee by Martin Sixsmith
	12 Years a Slave	John Ridley	Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup
	Behind the Candelabra	Richard LaGravenese	Behind the Candelabra: My Life with Liberace by Scott Thorson
	Captain Phillips	Billy Ray	A Captain's Duty by Richard Phillips with Stephan Talty
	The Wolf of Wall Street	Terence Winter	The Wolf of Wall Street by Jordan Belfort
2014 (68th) [19]	The Theory of Everything	Anthony McCarten	Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen by Jane Wilde Hawking
	American Sniper	Jason Hall	American Sniper by Chris Kyle, Scott McEwen, and Jim DeFelice
	Gone Girl	Gillian Flynn	Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
	The Imitation Game	Graham Moore	Alan Turing: The Enigma by Andrew Hodges
	Paddington	Paul King	Paddington Bear by Michael Bond
2015 (69th) [20]	The Big Short	Adam McKay and Charles Randolph	The Big Short by Michael Lewis
	Brooklyn	Nick Hornby	Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín
	Carol	Phyllis Nagy	The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith
	Room	Emma Donoghue	Room by Emma Donoghue
	Steve Jobs	Aaron Sorkin	Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
2016 (70th) [21]	Lion	Luke Davies	A Long Way Home by Saroo Brierley and Larry Buttrose
	Arrival	Eric Heisserer	Story of Your Life by Ted Chiang
	Hacksaw Ridge	Andrew Knight and Robert Schenkkan	The Conscientious Objector by Terry Benedict
	Hidden Figures	Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi	Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
	Nocturnal Animals	Tom Ford	Tony and Susan by Austin Wright
2017 (71st) [22][23]	Call Me by Your Name	James Ivory	Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman
	The Death of Stalin	Armando Iannucci, Ian Martin, and David Schneider	The Death of Stalin by Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin
	Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool	Matt Greenhalgh	Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool by Peter Turner
	Molly's Game	Aaron Sorkin	Molly's Game by Molly Bloom
	Paddington 2	Simon Farnaby and Paul King	Paddington Bear by Michael Bond
2018 (72nd) [24][25]	BlacKkKlansman	Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott, and Spike Lee	Black Klansman by Ron Stallworth
	Can You Ever Forgive Me?	Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty	Can You Ever Forgive Me? by Lee Israel
	First Man	Josh Singer	First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James R. Hansen
	If Beale Street Could Talk	Barry Jenkins	If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
	A Star Is Born	Eric Roth, Bradley Cooper, and Will Fetters	A Star Is Born by William A. Wellman, Robert Carson, Dorothy Parker, and Alan Campbell
2019 (73rd) [26][27]	Jojo Rabbit	Taika Waititi	Caging Skies by Christine Leunens
	The Irishman	Steven Zaillian	I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt
	Joker	Todd Phillips and Scott Silver	Characters by DC
	Little Women	Greta Gerwig	Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
	The Two Popes	Anthony McCarten	The Pope by Anthony McCarten

2020s

Year	Film	Screenwriter(s)	Adapted from
2020 (74th) [28]	The Father	Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller	Le Père (The Father) by Florian Zeller
	The Dig	Moira Buffini	The Dig by John Preston
	The Mauritanian	Rory Haines, Sohrab Noshirvani, and M.B. Traven	Guantánamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Slahi
	Nomadland	Chloé Zhao	Nomadland by Jessica Bruder
	The White Tiger	Ramin Bahrani	The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
2021 (75th) [29]	CODA	Sian Heder	La Famille Bélier by Victoria Bedos
	Drive My Car	Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe	Drive My Car by Haruki Murakami
	Dune	Eric Roth, Jon Spaihts, and Denis Villeneuve	Dune by Frank Herbert
	The Lost Daughter	Maggie Gyllenhaal	The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante
	The Power of the Dog	Jane Campion	The Power of the Dog by Thomas Savage
2022 (76th) [30]	All Quiet on the Western Front	Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, and Ian Stokell	All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
	Living	Kazuo Ishiguro	Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa, Shinobu Hashimoto and Hideo Oguni
	The Quiet Girl	Colm Bairéad	Foster by Claire Keegan
	She Said	Rebecca Lenkiewicz	She Said by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey
	The Whale	Samuel D. Hunter	The Whale by Samuel D. Hunter
2023 (77th) [31]	American Fiction	Cord Jefferson	Erasure by Percival Everett
	All of Us Strangers	Andrew Haigh	Strangers by Taichi Yamada
	Oppenheimer	Christopher Nolan	American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin
	Poor Things	Tony McNamara	Poor Things by Alasdair Gray
	The Zone of Interest	Jonathan Glazer	The Zone of Interest by Martin Amis
2024 (78th) [32]	Conclave	Peter Straughan	Conclave by Robert Harris
	A Complete Unknown	James Mangold and Jay Cocks	Dylan Goes Electric! by Elijah Wald
	Emilia Pérez	Jacques Audiard	Écoute by Boris Razon
	Nickel Boys	RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes	The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
	Sing Sing	Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence 'Divine Eye' Maclin, and John 'Divine G' Whitfield	"The Sing Sing Follies" by John H. Richardson

Multiple wins and nominations

Multiple wins Wins Screenwriter 2 Christopher Hampton Peter Straughan

Multiple nominations Nominations Screenwriter 4 Ronald Harwood Ruth Prawer Jhabvala Eric Roth Aaron Sorkin 3 Christopher Hampton Anthony Minghella Oliver Stone Steven Zaillian 2 Simon Beaufoy Alan Bennett Philippa Boyens Jean-Claude Carrière Joel Coen and Ethan Coen David Hare Brian Helgeland Nick Hornby Armando Iannucci Peter Jackson Paul King Baz Luhrmann David Magee Anthony McCarten Patrick Marber Peter Morgan Alexander Payne Craig Pearce Willy Russell James Schamus Jim Sheridan Peter Straughan Fran Walsh

See also

• Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay
• Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
• AACTA International Award for Best Screenplay
• Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
• Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay