Directors Francis Ford Coppola and Jean-Luc Godard, actor Eli Wallach and historian Kevin Brownlow are this year’s recipients of the Governor’s Awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Coppola will receive the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award, the academy said Wednesday, with Godard, Wallach and Brownlow receiving honorary Oscars. The prizes will be given at a dinner Nov. 13.
Coppola, the 71-year-old director of the “Godfather” trilogy, is already a five-time Oscar winner. Through his American Zoetrope studio, which he established in 1969, he has produced more than 30 films, including “The Black Stallion,” ”The Outsiders” and “Lost in Translation,” which earned his daughter Sofia an Academy Award nomination for best director.
Godard, 79, is a key figure in the French New Wave who wrote about films before making shorts of his own. His 1960 feature debut, the crime drama “Breathless,” is a hugely influential example of the movement.
He’s credited with helping shape contemporary directors such as Martin Scorsese, Steven Soderbergh and Quentin Tarantino.
Wallach, 94, is a longtime character actor who has appeared in “The Magnificent Seven,” ”The Misfits” and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.” He’s also in Oliver Stone’s upcoming “Wall Street” sequel, “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.”
Brownlow, 72, an author and documentarian, is considered the pre-eminent historian of the silent film era and a preservationist.
The Thalberg award, which is a bust of the film executive, goes to “a creative producer whose body of work reflects a consistently high quality of motion picture production,” according to the academy.
Honorary Oscars are given for “extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the academy.”
“Mufasa: The Lion King” and “Sonic 3” Rule Box Office For 1st Weekend Of 2025
The Walt Disney Co.'s "Mufasa: The Lion King" claimed the No. 1 spot on the North American box office charts over the first weekend of 2025.
The photorealistic "Lion King" prequel earned $23.8 million in its third weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Paramount's "Sonic the Hedgehog 3," which has dominated the past two weekends, wasn't far behind.
"Sonic 3" stayed close with a 3-day estimate of $21.2 million, bringing its total domestic earnings to $187.5 million and helping the overall franchise cross $1 billion worldwide. "Mufasa's" running total is slightly less, with $169.2 million.
In third place, Focus Features' "Nosferatu" remake defied the fate of so many of its genre predecessors and fell only 39% in its second weekend. Horror films typically fall sharply after the first weekend and anything less than a 50% decline is notable. "Nosferatu," which added 140 screens, claimed $13.2 million in ticket sales, bringing its running total to $69.4 million since its Christmas debut. The film, directed by Robert Eggers, already surpassed its reported production budget of $50 million, though that figure does not account for marketing and promotion expenses).
No new wide releases opened this weekend, leaving the box office top 10 once again to holdovers from previous weeks. Several have been in theaters since Thanksgiving. One of those, "Moana 2," claimed the No. 4 spot for Disney in its sixth weekend in theaters. The animated sequel earned another $12.4 million, bumping its global total to $960.5 million.
The Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown," dipped only slightly in its second weekend, bringing in $8.1 million. With $41.7 million total, it's Searchlight's highest grossing film since Disney acquired the company in... Read More