Glenn Close and Ridley Scott are finally going to be Oscar winners. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this morning that Close, Scott, and animator Floyd Norman will receive Honorary Academy Awards. Legendary Killer Films producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler will receive the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. The awards will be handed out at the 2026 Governors Awards on November 15 in Hollywood.
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In a statement, Academy President Lynette Howell Taylor noted, “The Academy’s Board of Governors is thrilled to present this year’s Governors Awards to five remarkable individuals whose groundbreaking work has forever shaped the art of filmmaking. Throughout her extraordinary body of work, Glenn Close’s unparalleled emotional range has brought to life some of the most complex characters in cinema. Floyd Norman is the legendary animator who has broken barriers and inspired generations of artists over his remarkable career. Sir Ridley Scott is a true visionary whose decades-long legacy has left an immeasurable impact on global cinema and culture. Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler play a central role in American independent cinema, championing bold, ambitious, and distinctive storytelling.”
First nominated 43 years ago, Close first hit the screen in 1982 for “The World According to Garp.” That was her first Oscar nomination. She was also recognized for “The Big Chill,” “The Natural,” “Fatal Attraction,” “Dangerous Liaisons,” “Albert Nobbs,” “The Wife” and “Hillbilly Elegy.” Other film credits include “Jagged Edge,” “Reversal of Fortune,” “Hamlet,” “Things You Can Tell Just By Looking At Her,” “101 Dalmatians,” “102 Dalmatians,” “Mars Attacks!,” “Air Force One,” “Nine Lives,” “The Stepford Wives,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” and “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.” Close is a three-time Emmy Award winner, a three-time Tony Award winner, a two-time SAG Actor Award winner, a three-time Golden Globe winner, and a two-time Grammy Award nominee. She’ll be seen next on screen in “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping” and Cannes winner “La Bola Negra (The Black Ball).”
Arguably one of the most influential filmmakers of all-time, Sir Ridley Scott has received three Oscar nominations for directing: “Thelma & Louise,” “Gladiator,” and “Black Hawk Down.” He also earned an Oscar nomination in the Best Picture category for “The Martian.” Over a 60-year career, he has also directed seminal films such as “Alien,” “Blade Runner,” “Legend,” “Black Rain,” “G.I. Jane,” and “Kingdom of Heaven.” His other notable credits include “American Gangster,” “White Squall,” “Prometheus,” “All the Money in the World,” “House of Gucci,” “Hannibal,” “Matchstick Men,” and “Napoleon.” In 2024, Scott was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire for his services to the British film industry. He is also a two-time Emmy Award winner, eight-time BAFTA Award nominee (winning two honorary awards), and a two-time Golden Globe Award winner. Still behind the camera at 88-years young, Scott’s next release, “The Dog Stars” with Jacob Elordi, arrives in August.
An esteemed animator and storyboard artist, Norman began a 65-year career at Walt Disney Animation Studios in 1956, becoming the studio’s first Black animator. His first Disney feature film was “Sleeping Beauty. Other classic feature films on his resume include “The Sword in the Stone,” “Mary Poppins,” “The Jungle Book” and “Robin Hood,” as well as the short films “Donald in Mathmagic Land,” “Goliath II” and “Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree.” Norman’s other notable film credits include “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “Mulan,” “Toy Story 2,” “Monsters, Inc,” “Dinosaur,” “The Tigger Movie” and “Free Birds.” He also worked on classic television animated series such as “The Smurfs,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks,” “Super Friends” and “Robot Chicken.” He received the Winsor McCay Award for lifetime achievement in animation at the 2022 Annie Awards.
Vachon and Koffler founded the New York-based independent production company Killer Films in 1995. Bastions of American independent filmmaking, they have produced such films as “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” “One Hour Photo,” “Camp,” “The Company,” “The Notorious Bettie Page,” “May December” and “Materialists.” The duo earned an Oscar nomination for Best Picture for “Past Lives” in 2024. Other Killer Films also include “Go Fish,” “Safe,” “Party Monster,” “Velvet Goldmine,” “Happiness,” “Boys Don’t Cry,” “Far from Heaven,” “I’m Not There,” “Still Alice,” “Carol,” “Kill Your Darlings,” “First Reformed,” “Vox Lux,” “First Reformed,” “Beatriz at Dinner,“ “The World to Come,” “Zola,” and “A Different Man.”
The Honorary Award is given “to honor extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences in any discipline, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”
The Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award is presented to a creative producer whose body of work reflects a consistently high quality of motion picture production.
The 2026 Governors Awards will be held at Ovation Hollywood on November 15.
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