Final Draft, a Cast & Crew company known for its screenwriting software, has revealed the honorees for the 17th Annual Final Draft Awards. The awards, which recognize outstanding and elevated achievements in storytelling, will be held in a virtual ceremony on March 16, 2022. This year’s Final Draft Awards will break tradition and feature 15-minute conversations with each honoree and another esteemed writer about the process and challenges involved with the art of writing.
Academy Award® winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro (“Nightmare Alley”) will be presented with the Final Draft Hall of Fame Award, honoring a writer whose body of work has had a profound influence on the industry. The inaugural Final Draft Trailblazer Award will go to Academy Award® winning filmmaker Jane Campion (“The Power of the Dog”), and recognizes a writer whose career exudes excellence and who consistently tells compelling and bold stories. Two Storyteller Awards will be presented recognizing writers who consistently maintain a level of excellence and surpass expectations. Academy Award® nominee Nicole Holofcener will receive the Storyteller Award (Film) for “The Last Duel” and two-time Emmy® winner Danny Strong will receive the Storyteller Award (TV) for the critically acclaimed limited series “Dopesick,” currently streaming on Hulu. Additionally, Final Draft will present two New Voice Awards recognizing rising and vital talents in the industry. The New Voice Award (TV) will go to Ashley Lyle & Bart Nickerson, the husband-and-wife writer/producer team whose acclaimed new series “Yellowjackets” just recently wrapped its first season on Showtime. The New Voice Award (Film) will be presented to Jeymes Samuel, whose celebrated feature debut, “The Harder They Fall,” is currently streaming on Netflix.
“Storytellers have been revered throughout history for their ability to connect us,” stated Final Draft president Shelly Mellott. “This year’s honorees are using their considerable talents to tell brave, audacious stories in imaginative ways that entertain, provoke and enlighten audiences. We could not be more proud to honor them and their outstanding work and the impact their stories have on our culture.”
The winners of the 2020 Big Break Screenwriting Contest, an annual screenwriting competition that launches careers and awards over $100,000 in cash and prizes will also be celebrated at the event.
Previous Final Draft Award winners include Quentin Tarantino, Nancy Meyers, Aaron Sorkin, Lawrence Kasdan, Paul Schrader, Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski, Callie Khouri, Steven Zaillian, Robert Towne, Oliver Stone, and Sydney Pollack. The Storyteller Award was introduced in 2021 and was presented to Steve McQueen and Sofia Coppola. The New Voice Award was introduced in 2017 and past recipients include Ramy Yousef, Steven Canals, Lulu Wang, Liz Hannah, Issa Rae, Boots Riley, Radha Blank and Tanya Saracho.
“Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo named Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year
Cynthia Erivo, who is starring in the hit musical "Wicked," was named Tuesday as the 2025 Woman of the Year by Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals.
The theater group, which dates to 1844 and claims to be the world's third-oldest still operating, said Erivo will receive her Pudding Pot award at a celebratory roast Feb. 5. Afterward, she will attend a performance of Hasty Pudding Theatricals' 176th production, "101 Damnations." Actor Jon Hamm, who came to fame starring as ad executive Don Draper on the AMC series "Mad Men," is the 2025 Man of the Year. He will receive his Pudding Pot Jan. 31.
"We are holding space for Cynthia Erivo's arrival," Man and Woman of the Year Events Coordinator Hannah Frazer said in a statement. "We're sweeping out our broomstick closets and prepping some wicked smart humor as we eagerly await her in February. Before she flies off with her Pudding Pot, she'll have to work a little magic to earn it."
Along with starirng in the smash hit musical, the British entertainer is a two-time Oscar nominee and an Emmy Award, Tony Award and Grammy Award winner.
Erivo burst onto the scene with her brilliant performance in the Broadway revival of "The Color Purple." winning her the 2016 Tony for best actress in a musical. She performed songs from the play on the "Today" show, earning the Daytime Emmy for outstanding music performance in a daytime program. And the show's soundtrack won best musical theater album at the 2017 Grammys.
Last year, Erivo starred in and produced "Drift," which follows a young Liberian refugee who has escaped her war-torn country to a Greek island. In 2021, Erivo was nominated for an Emmy for her portrayal of Aretha Franklin in the National Geographic series "Genius:... Read More