Oscars to honor Fox, Euzhan Palcy, Diane Warren, Peter Weir

This combination of photos shows, from left, Michael J. Fox, Euzhan Palcy, Diane Warren and Peter Weir, who will be honored at at the Academys 13th Governors Awards on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo) (Uncredited)

Diane Warren will finally be able to thank the Academy this November.

The oft-nominated songwriter has been selected to receive an honorary Oscar at the annual Governors Awards alongside directors Peter Weir and Euzhan Palcy. Actor Michael J. Fox will also be bestowed with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Tuesday. None have won an Oscar before.

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ā€œThe Academyā€™s Board of Governors is honored to recognize four individuals who have made indelible contributions to cinema and the world at large,ā€ David Rubin, the president of the film academy, said in a statement.

The honorary Oscar statuette is given for ā€œextraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the academy.ā€

Warren, 65, is the most recent Oscar nominee in the class, having just been up for the original song award earlier this year. The prolific songwriter who has contributed original songs to more than 100 films has been nominated in the category 13 times since 1987 for songs including ā€œBecause You Loved Me,ā€ ā€œHow Do I Liveā€ and ā€œI Donā€™t Want To Miss A Thing.ā€ Sheā€™s worked with artists like Lady Gaga, BeyoncĆ©, Cher, Celine Dion and Whitney Houston.

Rubin said, ā€œWarrenā€™s music and lyrics have magnified the emotional impact of countless motion pictures and inspired generations of musical artists.".

At age 77, the Australian auteur Weir, has also received many nominations over the year for both directing ā€œWitness,ā€ ā€œDead Poets Society,ā€ ā€œThe Truman Showā€ and ā€œMaster and Commander: The Far Side of the World,ā€ which also got a best picture nomination, and writing ā€œGreen Card.ā€ A leading voice in the Australian New Wave, Weir first made his name with ā€œPicnic at Hanging Rock,ā€ ā€œThe Last Waveā€ and ā€œGallipoli.ā€

ā€œWeir is a director of consummate skill and artistry whose work reminds us of the power of film to reveal the full range of human experience,ā€ Rubin said.

And though perhaps less widely known than the others in this Governors Awards class, Palcy, 64, has been a trailblazer for decades as a Black woman director. Born in Martinique in the French West Indies, Palcy made broke new ground with her debut feature ā€œSugar Cane Alley,ā€ which won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1983 and a CĆ©sar Award. She also became the first Black woman to direct a film for a major Hollywood studio with MGMā€™s ā€œA Dry White Seasonā€ in 1989, for which Marlon Brando got an Oscar nomination.

Rubin said her, ā€œgroundbreaking significance in international cinema is cemented in film history.ā€

Fox, meanwhile, will be feted with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his advocacy work in Parkinsonā€™s research. The 61-year-old ā€œBack to the Futureā€ and ā€œFamily Tiesā€ star was diagnosed with Parkinsonā€™s Disease at age 29. His organization, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinsonā€™s Research, which was founded in 2000, is a leader in the field. Though heā€™s never been Oscar-nominated before, Fox has won five Emmys, a Grammy and two Screen Actors Guild award.

ā€œMichael J. Foxā€™s tireless advocacy of research on Parkinsonā€™s disease alongside his boundless optimism exemplifies the impact of one person in changing the future for millions,ā€ Rubin said.

The 13th Governors Awards will be held in Los Angeles on Nov. 19 in an untelevised ceremony.


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