In the annals of ridiculously long overdue acknowledgments of excellence, the news that Samuel L. Jackson is finally recieving an Oscar must rank pretty high. With a CV that in terms of quality and box office heft arguably has no equal, he is to recieve his award along with Elaine May and Liv Ullmann while the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award goes to Danny Glover.
Jackson’s career has encompassed his recurring role as Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and collaborations with directors Quentin Tarantino (“Pulp Fiction,” “Jackie Brown,” “Django Unchained”) and Spike Lee (“Do the Right Thing,” “School Daze”). He earned an Oscar nomination for his supporting turn as the Bible-paraphrasing hitman in “Pulp Fiction.”
The Governors Awards, an untelevised event that the academy established in 2009 as an evening to bestow its honorary Oscars, is typically held in November and also serves as something of an unofficial first campaign stop for contenders trying to capture Oscar voters’ attention. The most recent ceremony, held in 2019, honored David Lynch, Wes Studi and Lina Wertmüller, and bestowed the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to Geena Davis.
We await what is sure to be a must-hear acceptence speech at the 12th Governors Awards on 15th January 2022.