Critics Choice Association (CCA) Inaugural Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television Honorees Include Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, George Takai, Chris Perfetti and More

The Critics Choice Association (CCA) announced today the date and honorees for its inaugural Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television.

The Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television event will take place during Pride Month on Friday, June 7, 2024 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles, CA. Following the event, the show will stream on HereTV, the first and largest LGBTQ+ TV and streaming service in the USA.

Honorees for the inaugural event include Nathan Lane, Abe Sylvia, Carl Clemons-Hopkins, Chris Perfetti, Fellow Travelers producers Matt Bomer, Daniel Minahan, Ron Nyswaner, and Robbie Rogers, Fernando Carsa, George Takei, Henry R. Muñoz III, Kristen Kish, Luke Gilford, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Oliver Hermanus, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Shakina, and We’re Here (accepted by Johnnie Ingram, Stephen Warren, Peter LoGreco, Sasha Velour, Priyanka, Jaida Essence Hall, and Latrice Royale).

The gala event will be hosted by actress, stand-up comedian, and writer Sherry Cola, a fierce advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and a barrier breaker as a queer Chinese-American immigrant woman in film, television and comedy. Cola recently starred in Lionsgate’s Joy Ride and Sony Pictures Classics’ Shortcomings, in addition to being a crowd favorite on Freeform’s critically-acclaimed drama Good Trouble in its five-season run.

Presenters include Alan Yang & Ron Funches (Loot), Bamby Salcedo (President & CEO, TransLatin@ Coalition), Charlie Plummer (National Anthem), Charlize Theron (Producer/Actor), George Cheeks (Co-CEO, Paramount Global and President & CEO of CBS), Greg Berlanti (Fly Me to the Moon & Love, Simon), Jeremy Podeswa (3 Body Problem), Jessica Collins (Acapulco), Karamo Brown (Queer Eye), Mark Indelicato (Hacks), Mason Alexander Park (Quantum Leap & National Anthem), Ricky Martin (Palm Royale), Ronan Farrow (Author/Journalist), Sean Hayes (Producer/Actor), Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary) and more.

The celebration will honor the finest achievements from the LGBTQ+ entertainment community, both in front of and behind the camera, as well as showcase emerging and established talent. This event marks the newest addition to the CCA’s series of Celebrations (The Critics Choice Association’s Celebration of Latino Cinema and Television, The Critics Choice Association’s Celebration of Asian Pacific Cinema and Television and The Critics Choice Association’s Celebration of Black Cinema and Television). The Celebrations aim to shine a light on work from historically underrepresented talent. 

“I am extremely proud to be able to announce this inaugural event showcasing the best performances from the LGBTQ+ community in film and television,” said Joey Berlin, CEO of the Critics Choice Association. “A significant number of the CCA’s membership identifies as LGBTQ+, so this Celebration is extremely meaningful to our organization.”

“Now more than ever, LGBTQ+ representation matters. We are so proud to be part of an organization that honors diversity and celebrates the achievements of the LGBTQ+ community,” said CCA Members and Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television Co-Programmers Jerry Nunn & Andrew Freund.

Honorees include:

Actress Nava Mau will be presented with the Breakthrough Performance Award (Limited Series) for her performance as “Teri” in the Netflix series Baby Reindeer.

Multi Emmy Award-winning actor Nathan Lane will be honored with the Career Achievement Award for his work in an impressive range of projects including across the big screen, small screen and stage including The Birdcage, The Producers, The Lion King, Guys and Dolls, Dicks: The Musical, Only Murders in the Building, and Beau Is Afraid.

Showrunner, Executive Producer, Director, and Writer Abe Sylvia will receive the Showrunner Award for his work on the hit Apple TV+ comedy series, Palm Royale.

Actor Carl Clemons-Hopkins will be awarded the Supporting Performance Award for Television (Series) for their role in the Max Original and Universal Television’s Hacks.

Actor Chris Perfetti will be honored with the Breakthrough Performance Award for Television (Series) for his role as Jacob Hill in the ABC, Warner Bros. Television and 20th Television series, Abbott Elementary.

Actor Fernando Carsa will receive the Rising Star Award for his role as Memo in the Apple TV+ series, Acapulco.

Multi-hyphenate author, activist and Star Trek actor George Takei will accept the Social Justice Award for his tireless fight for LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, and marriage equality. With over 250 credits across more than six decades, Takei has left a lasting mark on Hollywood and the entire LGBTQ+ community.

Henry R. Muñoz III will receive the CCA’s first-ever Industry Leadership Award for not only being an advocate for LGBTQ+ equality, but also for his philanthropic involvements and commitment to advance diverse storytelling through his leadership at Funny Or Die.

Chef, Author, and Entrepreneur Kristen Kish will be awarded the TV Host Award for her work as the host on Bravo’s Emmy and James Beard Award-winning series Top Chef.

Director/writer Luke Gilford will be honored with the Breakthrough Director Award for his work on LD Entertainment’s film National Anthem.

Producers Matt Bomer, Daniel Minahan, Ron Nyswaner, and Robbie Rogers will receive the Producer Award for their work on the Showtime series, Fellow Travelers.

Emmy Award-nominated actor Michaela Jaé Rodriguez will be honored with the Vanguard Award for her work in the Apple TV+ series, Loot.

Director Oliver Hermanus will be awarded the Director Award for Television (Series) for his work in the STARZ limited series, Mary & George.

RuPaul’s Drag Race team will accept the Trailblazer Award for the Emmy Award-winning MTV Entertainment series, RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Actor, writer, and director Shakina will receive the Writer Award for Television (Series) for her work in the NBC and Universal Television series, Quantum Leap.

Co-creators Johnnie Ingram and Stephen Warren, along with showrunner/director Peter LoGreco, and drag queens Sasha Velour, Priyanka, Jaida Essence Hall, and Latrice Royale will be honored with the Reality TV Award on behalf of the Emmy Award-winning HBO Original series, We’re Here.

STARZ will bestow Michaela Jaé Rodriguez’s award with a special STARZ #TakeTheLead designation as part of its ongoing commitment to amplifying narratives by, about, and for women and underrepresented audiences.

The event will be streamed on HereTV, home to one of the largest libraries of LGBTQ+ movies, series, and documentaries is available on all major cable and satellite services, as an Amazon Prime Channel, a YouTube TV Primetime Channel, and streaming across all major platforms through the HereTV app and at here.tv.

The Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television show is produced by Madelyn Hammond, Javier Infante & Zack Gill of Madelyn Hammond & Associates. CCA Board Member Shawn Edwards serves as Creative Consultant. 

Sponsors of the event include Delta Air Lines, Fairmont Century Plaza, FIJI Water, Here Media, Milagro Tequila, NEP Sweetwater, and STARZ.