The British Academy of Film and Television Arts Los Angeles (BAFTA Los Angeles) is pleased to announce it will honor actor-director Ewan McGregor, OBE, with the Britannia Humanitarian Award at this year’s British Academy Britannia Awards.
The annual gala celebration will take place on Friday, October 28, 2016 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. As previously announced, the evening will be hosted for a second time by British actor and comedian Jack Whitehall. Ang Lee will be honored with the John Schlesinger Britannia Award for Excellence in Directing, Samuel L. Jackson will be honored with the Albert R. Broccoli Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution to Entertainment, and Ricky Gervais will be honored with the Charlie Chaplin Britannia Award for Excellence in Comedy. World-renowned television and event production company Done + Dusted will produce the ceremony.
The Britannia Humanitarian Award is presented to a colleague who has used the art form of the moving image or their position in the entertainment industry to create positive social change, and actively shine a light on important humanitarian issues. The award has previously recognized Idris Elba, Richard Curtis, Don Cheadle, Colin Firth, Mark Ruffalo, and Orlando Bloom. McGregor receives this honor in light of his work with UNICEF, having recently travelled to northern Iraq to see how the conflicts sweeping across Iraq and Syria are devastating children’s lives. McGregor, who makes his directorial debut this year with “American Pastoral,” is using his platform to bring awareness to the unimaginable horrors facing these children, and worked with UNICEF to help provide lifesaving food and water, child protection services, and healthcare to those families in need.
“Ewan McGregor is not only a multi-talented individual, but has led by example in showing that even one person can make a huge difference in the life of a child,” said Kieran Breen, Chairman of BAFTA Los Angeles. “Given his most recent work in Iraq, and ongoing commitment to the fight against the horrific conditions in which children there are living, he is most deserving of this honor. We are thrilled to be able to recognize his work and shed light on the initiatives about which he is most passionate.”
The British Academy Britannia Awards evening is BAFTA’s big night out in Hollywood, where Brits and anglophiles alike come together in celebration of exceptional individuals who have dedicated their careers to advancing the art forms of the moving image in the US, UK and beyond. Known to be an enjoyable evening that captures a unique blend of sincerity and British irreverence, the evening also serves to celebrate the long-standing collaboration between the British and American industries. The Britannia Awards are BAFTA Los Angeles’ highest accolades, recognizing both outstanding British talent, and exceptional international talent by virtue of their strong connection to the British industry through their body of work. Proceeds from the event support BAFTA Los Angeles’ on-going education, scholarship, community outreach and archival projects.
Often hailed as one of the finest actors of his generation, Ewan McGregor consistently captivates audiences with a diverse line-up of roles across a multitude of genres, styles and scope.
Up next, McGregor will star in his directorial debut American Pastoral, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name. McGregor will star in the film opposite Jennifer Connelly and Dakota Fanning. Lionsgate will release the film October 21, 2016 and premiered at the Toronto Film Festival on September 9, 2016.
McGregor recently wrapped production on Trainspotting 2, where he will reprise his role as “Renton,” opposite Jonny Lee Miller, Ewen Bremner and Robert Carlyle. The highly anticipated sequel, based on characters created by Irvine Welsh, will reunite Danny Boyle as director with screenwriter John Hodge and all of the principal cast of the 1996 film. The story, set in the late ’80s, follows a group of heroin addicts in an economically depressed area of Edinburgh. Sony will release the film February 3, 2017.
On March 17, 2017 McGregor will star in Disney’s remake of the classic film Beauty and the Beast in which he plays “Lumiere.” McGregor will soon begin production on FX’s Emmy-winning drama, Fargo. He will play brothers, Emmit and Ray Stussy, in the season-three anthology which is set to air in 2017.
McGregor can recently be seen in the political thriller Our Kind of Traitor opposite Stellan Skarsgard, released July 1, 2016. Additionally, he can recently be seen in Rodrigo Garcia’s Last Days in the Desert, where he plays both a demon and a holy man on a journey through the desert. The film premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and was released on May 13, 2016 by Broad Green Pictures. McGregor can also be seen in Don Cheadle’s Miles Ahead opposite Cheadle and Zoe Saldana. The film premiered at the New York Film Festival and was released by Sony Pictures Classics on April 1, 2016.
The 2015 ceremony took place in October at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Harrison Ford received the Albert R. Broccoli Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution to Entertainment, Orlando Bloom received the Britannia Humanitarian Award presented by the Beazley Group, Meryl Streep received the Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film, Sam Mendes received the John Schlesinger Britannia Award for Excellence in Directing presented by the GREAT Britain campaign, James Corden received the Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year presented by Burberry and Amy Schumer received the Charlie Chaplin Britannia Award for Excellence in Comedy presented by Kodak.
The British Academy Britannia Awards is produced through a partnership between BAFTA Los Angeles and Done & Dusted. Event Production and Management is by MTA Events
