Morgan Freeman Receives 43rd Annual Chaplin AwardPosted by Wilson Morales
April 25, 2016
Tonight, Academy Award–winning actor Morgan Freeman was honored with the 43rd Annual Chaplin Award Gala held at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, New York.
Blackfilm.com was in attendance to witness this exciting occasion as a host of celebrities came on stage to pay tribute to a man who has played some of the most legendary roles to date.
Among the notables who appeared on stage were Jerry Schatzberg, who gave Freeman his first breakthrough and Oscar nominated role for Street Smart, Danny Glover, who starred in Freeman’s 1993 directed film Bopha! Matthew Broderick, who worked with him in 1989’s Glory, Helen Mirren, who starred with him in Red, and Robert De Niro, who worked with him in Last Vegas.
Clips of Freeman’s past were shown, from his roles on The Electric Company, Lean on Me, Seven to his Oscar nominated performances for Street Smart (1987), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), The Shawshank Redemption (1994) and Invictus (2009), and finally his Academy Award in 2005 for Best Supporting Actor with Million Dollar Baby (2004). Also included was a clip from his upcoming film, Paramount Pictures’ Ben-Hur.
For those who couldn’t attend, heartfelt videos were shown from director Christopher Nolan, who’s directed in the Batman trilogies and Tim Robbins, who co-starred with Freeman in the classic film, The Shawshank Redemption.
The Film Society’s Annual Gala began in 1972 when it honored Charlie Chaplin, who returned to the U.S. from exile to accept the commendation. Since then, the award has been renamed for Chaplin, and has been presented to many of the film industry’s most notable talents, including Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, Laurence Olivier, Federico Fellini, Elizabeth Taylor, Bette Davis, James Stewart, Robert Altman, Martin Scorsese, Diane Keaton, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sidney Poitier, Barbra Streisand, and, last year, Robert Redford.
Support for the 43rd Chaplin Award Gala was provided by Major Sponsor Jaeger-LeCoultre.
