BIFA Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a British Independent Film

The British Independent Film Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a British Independent Film is an annual award given to the Best Actor who starred in a British independent film. The award was introduced in 1998.

1990s

• 1998 – Ray Winstone as Raymond in Nil by Mouth
  • John Hurt as Giles De'Ath in Love and Death on Long Island
  • Peter Mullan as Joe Kavanagh in My Name Is Joe
  • Jonathan Pryce as William Rivers in Regeneration
  • David Thewlis as Dan Starkey in Divorcing Jack

• 1999 – Ian McKellen as James Whale in Gods and Monsters
  • Daniel Auteuil as Xavier Lombard in The Lost Son
  • Michael Caine as Ray Say in Little Voice
  • Daniel Craig as Sgt. Telford Winter in The Trench
  • Ray Winstone as Dad in The War Zone

2000s

• 2000 – Daniel Craig as Ray in Some Voices
  • Paul Bettany as Young Gangster in Gangster No. 1
  • Jim Broadbent as W. S. Gilbert in Topsy-Turvy
  • Adrian Lester as Dumaine in Love's Labour's Lost
  • Peter Mullan as Jean in Miss Julie

• 2001 – Ben Kingsley as Don Logan in Sexy Beast
  • Ian Hart as Dad in Liam
  • Timothy Spall as Cliff Gumbell in Lucky Break
  • Ray Winstone as Gary "Gal" Dove in Sexy Beast

• 2002 – James Nesbitt as Ivan Cooper in Bloody Sunday
  • Timothy Spall as Phil in All or Nothing
  • Richard Harris as Sandeman in My Kingdom
  • Bill Nighy as Dan in Lawless Heart

• 2003 – Chiwetel Ejiofor as Okwe in Dirty Pretty Things
  • Paddy Considine as Johnny Sullivan in In America
  • Ewan McGregor as Joe Taylor in Young Adam
  • Kevin McKidd as Frankie in 16 Years of Alcohol
  • Joaquin Phoenix as Spc. Ray Elwood in Buffalo Soldiers

• 2004 – Phil Davis as Stanley Drake in Vera Drake
  • Paddy Considine as Richard in Dead Man's Shoes
  • Daniel Craig as Joe Rose in Enduring Love
  • Ian Hart as Brian Keenan in Blind Flight
  • Geoffrey Rush as Peter Sellers in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers

• 2005 – Ralph Fiennes as Justin Quayle in The Constant Gardener
  • Johnny Depp as John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester in The Libertine
  • Chiwetel Ejiofor as Lola in Kinky Boots
  • Bob Hoskins as Vivian Van Damm in Mrs Henderson Presents
  • Matthew Macfadyen as Paul Prior in In My Father's Den

• 2006 – Tony Curran as Clyde Henderson in Red Road
  • James McAvoy as Nicholas Garrigan in The Last King of Scotland
  • Cillian Murphy as Damien O'Donovan in The Wind That Shakes the Barley
  • Peter O'Toole as Maurice Russell in Venus
  • Forest Whitaker as Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland

• 2007 – Viggo Mortensen as Nikolai Luzhin in Eastern Promises
  • Jamie Bell as Hallam Foe in Hallam Foe
  • Jim Broadbent as Arthur Morrison in And When Did You Last See Your Father?
  • Cillian Murphy as Robert Capa in Sunshine
  • Sam Riley as Ian Curtis in Control

• 2008 – Michael Fassbender as Bobby Sands in Hunger
  • Riz Ahmed as Shifty in Shifty
  • Colin Farrell as Ray in In Bruges
  • Brendan Gleeson as Ken in In Bruges
  • Thomas Turgoose as Tomo in Somers Town

• 2009 – Tom Hardy as Charles Bronson in Bronson
  • Peter Capaldi as Malcolm Tucker in In the Loop
  • Aaron Taylor-Johnson as John Lennon in Nowhere Boy
  • Sam Rockwell as Sam Bell in Moon
  • Andy Serkis as Ian Dury in Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll

2010s

• 2010 – Colin Firth as King George VI in The King's Speech
  • Riz Ahmed as Omar in Four Lions
  • Jim Broadbent as Tom Hepple in Another Year
  • Aidan Gillen as Aidan in Treacle Jr.
  • Scoot McNairy as Andrew Kaulder in Monsters

• 2011 – Michael Fassbender as Brandon Sullivan in Shame
  • Brendan Gleeson as Sergeant Gerry Boyle in The Guard
  • Neil Maskell as Jay in Kill List
  • Gary Oldman as George Smiley in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
  • Peter Mullan as Joseph in Tyrannosaur

• 2012 – Toby Jones as Gilderoy in Berberian Sound Studio
  • Tim Roth as Archie Cunningham in Broken
  • Terence Stamp as Arthur in Song for Marion
  • Steve Oram as Chris in Sightseers
  • Riz Ahmed as Aaron in Ill Manors

• 2013 – James McAvoy as Bruce Robertson in Filth
  • Tom Hardy as Ivan Locke in Locke
  • Steve Coogan as Martin Sixsmith in Philomena
  • Jim Broadbent as Nick Burrows in Le Week-End
  • Jack O'Connell as Eric Love in Starred Up

• 2014 – Brendan Gleeson as Father James Lavelle in Calvary
  • Asa Butterfield as Nathan Ellis in X+Y
  • Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing in The Imitation Game
  • Jack O'Connell as Gary Hook in '71
  • Timothy Spall as J. M. W. Turner in Mr. Turner

• 2015 - Tom Hardy as Ronnie Kray and Reggie Kray in Legend
  • Tom Courtenay as Geoff Mercer in 45 Years
  • Colin Farrell as David in The Lobster
  • Michael Fassbender as Macbeth in Macbeth
  • Tom Hiddleston as Dr. Robert Laing in High-Rise