Honorary Oscar recipients for 2017 will likely be selected at the next board of governors meeting of the motion picture academy later this month. The three or four honorees will receive their trophies at a special ceremony in November. With brand new governors such as actress Whoopi Goldberg and director Kimberly Peirce offering their first suggestions, how will that impact this year’s choices?
The selection process is fairly straightforward. The 54 branch governors and three at-large members put forth suggestions, with each of the top choices then voted on individually. Honorees must receive support from at least half of those on the board. The usual limit is three honorees. For a fourth to be named, he or she needs to garner two-thirds of the votes. Since the academy shifted these honorary kudos from the telecast to a separate non-televised ceremony eight years ago, they have celebrated 30 people. (See that list below.)
We recently asked you who among our top 10 of past Academy Award nominees was most overdue to be recognized at the Governors Awards in November. Your top choices were Doris Day (Best Actress nominee: “Pillow Talk,” 1959) and Ridley Scott (Best Director nominee: “Thelma and Louise,” 1991; “Gladiator,” 2000; “Black Hawk Down,” 2001; and Best Picture nominee: “The Martian,” 2015). However, it’s very unlikely that either of those legendary entertainers will be chosen. Day has reportedly turned down this selection multiple times. Scott has a potentially strong contender this year in “All the Money in the World,” so the governors might want to wait to see what happens in his active career.
We’ve put together a lengthy and hopefully complete list of possibilities currently being discussed in our notorious forums. Who do you think are the best bets for honorary Oscars plus the Irving Thalberg Award (for a producer) and Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award this year?
DIRECTORS:
Michael Apted, Peter Bogdanovich, Stephen Frears, Michael Haneke, James Ivory, Mike Leigh, Richard Lester, David Lynch, Terrence Malick, Rob Reiner, Ridley Scott, Peter Weir, Lina Wertmuller
PERFORMERS:
Ann-Margret, Ned Beatty, Leslie Caron, Glenn Close, Billy Crystal, Doris Day, Catherine Deneuve, Bruce Dern, Mia Farrow, Albert Finney, Harrison Ford, Hal Holbrook, Samuel L. Jackson, Ian McKellen, Nick Nolte, Kim Novak, Burt Reynolds, Martin Sheen, Sylvester Stallone, Donald Sutherland, Lily Tomlin, Cicely Tyson, Liv Ullmann, Max von Sydow
OTHERS:
Albert Brenner (designer), Roger Deakins (cinematography), Robert Evans (producer), Philip Glass (composer), Lawrence Kasdan (writer/producer), Philip Kaufman (writer), Pat Kingsley (public relations), Richard Marks (editor), Elaine May (writer), Neil Simon (writer), Douglas Trumbull (visual effects)
THALBERG:
James L. Brooks, Mel Brooks, James Cameron, Brian Grazer, Gale Ann Hurd, Alan Ladd, Jr., Arnon Milchan, Scott Rudin, Martin Scorsese
HERSHOLT:
Ann-Margret, Julie Andrews, George Clooney, Mia Farrow, Michael J. Fox, George Lucas, Martin Sheen, Barbra Streisand, Lily Tomlin
And here is the roster of past recipients since a separate ceremony was spun off in 2009:
In 2009, honorary Oscars went to actress Lauren Bacall, cinematographer Gordon Willis and producer Roger Corman while studio executive John Calley received the Irving Thalberg Award.
In 2010, honorary Oscars were bestowed on actor Eli Wallach, filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard and film historian Kevin Brownlow while Francis Ford Coppola was given the Thalberg.
In 2011, honorary Oscars were awarded to actor James Earl Jones and makeup pioneer Dick Smith while TV personaility Oprah Winfrey was given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
In 2012, the academy snubbed on-screen talent entirely with honorary Oscars going to stuntman turned director Hal Needham, documentarian D.A. Pennebaker and director/producer George Stevens, Jr. while studio exec Jeffrey Katzenberg received the Hersholt.
In 2013, honorary Oscars went to actors Steve Martin and Angela Lansbury as well as costume designer Piero Tosi while actress/director Angelina Jolie was feted with the Hersholt.
In 2014, actress Maureen O’Hara, animator Hayao Miyazaki and writer Jean-Claude Carrière got honorary Oscars while actor/singer Harry Belafonte got the Hersholt.
In 2015, actress Gena Rowlands and director Spike Lee received honorary Oscars while Debbie Reynolds was feted with the Hersholt.
In 2016, action star Jackie Chan, film editor Anne V. Coates, casting director Lynn Stalmaster and documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman all received honorary Oscars.
