Viola Davis to receive 48th Chaplin Award from Film at Lincoln Center

Film at Lincoln Center announced today that Viola Davis is the recipient of the 48th Chaplin Award. The award will be presented at a gala evening in Davis’s honor on April 24 at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall in New York City. The evening encompasses a joyful celebration of the actor and producer’s incredible body of work featuring notable speakers and film clips, culminating in the presentation of the Chaplin Award.

All proceeds from the Chaplin Award Gala directly support Film at Lincoln Center’s year-round cinematheque programs, contemporary film series, student programs, and film festivals such as the New York Film Festival and New Directors/New Films.

“Viola Davis brings her tremendous skill and fierce emotional intelligence to everything she does,” said Lesli Klainberg, president of Film at Lincoln Center. “The range of her accomplishments is remarkable—as an actor in film, television, and theater; as a producer opening doors for new voices; and as an inspirational memoirist. She is truly a force. We are honored to dedicate an evening to celebrating her achievements and talents at the 48th Chaplin Award Gala.” 

“We could not be more thrilled and honored to féte Viola Davis,” said Dan Stern, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Film at Lincoln Center. “Viola is one of the truly great actors of our time, she draws on her power and versatility to bring an incredible depth of character to every role she inhabits. We look forward to presenting her with the 48th Chaplin Award at Lincoln Center.” 

Viola Davis is a critically revered, award-winning actress, producer, New York Times best-selling author and one of 18 entertainers to achieve exclusive EGOT status. She most recently won a Grammy for her audiobook, Finding Me, an Academy Award® (Fences), and an Emmy (How to Get Away with Murder), and she is the first Black actress to win two Tony Awards (Fences and King Hedley II). In 2021, Davis received an Oscar nomination for her transformative performance as Ma Rainey in Netflix’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. She also won a SAG award for the role and received a Golden Globe Award nomination and Critic’s Choice Award nomination. This year, Davis received the Chairman’s Award at the Palm Springs Film Awards recognizing her work as an actor and producer for The Woman King. In 2020, the New York Times ranked her ninth on its list of the greatest actors of the 21st century.

Davis’s next film appearance will be AIR, an upcoming American biographical comedy-drama film directed by Ben Affleck and written by Alex Convery, to be released by Amazon Studios on April 5. Additional credits include How to Get Away with Murder, Widows, Suicide Squad, Ender’s Game, Prisoners, Beautiful Creatures, The Help, Doubt, Get On Up, Blackhat, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Knight and Day, Nights in Rodanthe, Madea Goes to Jail, Law Abiding Citizen, Disturbia, It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Never Back Down, Far From Heaven, and many more. Davis and her husband Julius Tennon founded JuVee Productions, with its focus being to give a voice to the voiceless through strong, impactful, and culturally relevant narratives. The Los Angeles-based and artist-driven company produces film, television, and digital content across all forms of entertainment.

Film at Lincoln Center gives special thanks to the 48th Chaplin Award Gala Co-Chairs: Imelda and Peter Sobiloff and Nanna and Daniel Stern.

Gala tickets are on sale now. Tribute-only tickets range in price from $250 – $750 and may be purchased here, with $200 tickets available for FLC Members. You can secure premium seating at the Chaplin Award Gala Tribute by purchasing Gala Dinner and Tribute tickets, available here or by contacting us at galarsvp@filmlinc.org. All proceeds from the Chaplin Award Gala benefit Film at Lincoln Center’s programs and activities as a nonprofit organization.

Past Chaplin Award Gala Honorees:
2022 Cate Blanchett
2021 Spike Lee
2018 Helen Mirren
2017 Robert De Niro
2016 Morgan Freeman
2015 Robert Redford
2014 Rob Reiner
2013 Barbra Streisand
2012 Catherine Deneuve
2011 Sidney Poitier
2010 Michael Douglas
2009 Tom Hanks
2008 Meryl Streep
2007 Diane Keaton
2006 Jessica Lange
2005 Dustin Hoffman
2004 Michael Caine
2003 Susan Sarandon
2002 Francis Ford Coppola
2001 Jane Fonda
2000 Al Pacino
1999 Mike Nichols
1998 Martin Scorsese
1997 Sean Connery
1996 Clint Eastwood
1995 Shirley MacLaine
1994 Robert Altman
1993 Jack Lemmon
1992 Gregory Peck
1991 Audrey Hepburn
1990 James Stewart
1989 Bette Davis
1988 Yves Montand
1987 Alec Guinness
1986 Elizabeth Taylor
1985 Federico Fellini
1984 Claudette Colbert
1983 Laurence Olivier
1982 Billy Wilder
1981 Barbara Stanwyck
1980 John Huston
1979 Bob Hope
1978 George Cukor
1975 Joanne Woodward & Paul Newman
1974 Alfred Hitchcock
1973 Fred Astaire
1972 Charles Chaplin

Photo Credit: AB+DM