The Canadian Screen Award for Best Lead Performance in a Film was an award presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television as part of the Canadian Screen Awards program, to honour the best leading performance in a theatrical film.
It was a merger of the former awards for Best Actor and Best Actress, following the academy's announcement in August 2022 that it would start presenting gender-neutral acting awards instead of gendered ones.[1] The category was presented only at the 11th Canadian Screen Awards in 2023; beginning with the 12th Canadian Screen Awards in 2024, it was split into separate awards for Best Lead Performance in a Comedy Film and Best Lead Performance in a Drama Film.