The Academy will present its Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Awards to filmmaker Tyler Perry and to the Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF). Perry is slated to receive the statuette at the 93rd Oscars, which airs live on ABC in April.
A producer, director, actor, writer, entrepreneur and philanthropist, Perry’s commitment to a wide spectrum of charitable and social justice causes has been particularly impactful during the challenges of the past year. He has addressed economic distress caused by the pandemic, racial reckoning and homelessness in his community. His privately owned motion picture studio on the site of a former Confederate Army base in Atlanta, Georgia, occupies more than 330 acres and is home to a state-of-the-art production facility with 12 soundstages that provides hundreds of job opportunities in film and television production in the local area.
“There has been such widespread generosity in our industry that limiting the Hersholt Humanitarian Award to one recipient, this year in particular, was impossible. So, we are breaking with tradition and giving two awards to honor that spirit,” said Academy President David Rubin. “Tyler’s cultural influence extends far beyond his work as a filmmaker. He has quietly and steadily focused on humanitarian and social justice causes from the beginning of his career, caring for people who are most often ignored. The work of the MPTF is more vital than ever, and the organization has gone above and beyond to help our community. The sheer number of individuals and families—from every corner of our industry’s workforce—aided during the pandemic and over the last 100 years is nothing short of extraordinary.”
The awards will be presented during the Oscars in lieu of the Academy’s Governors Awards, an annual ceremony in the fall, where the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award is customarily presented.
The 93rd Oscars will be held on Sunday, April 25, 2021, and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
By Samantha Ofole-Prince
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