Tessa Thompson, Delroy Lindo, Yahya Abdul Mateen II, and more to be honored at ‘Celebration of Black Cinema’

Black actors and filmmakers will be recognized in a ceremony taking place next year

Dec 9, 2020

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The Critics Choice Association has announced a long list of celebs who will be honored at its Celebration of Black Cinema.

Delroy Lindo will receive the Career Achievement award at the annual event. The actor recently starred in Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods and will appear in the upcoming Netflix film, The Harder They Fall.

Tessa Thompson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and singer/actress Andra Day are among the other honorees.

One Night in Miami stars Leslie Odom Jr., Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, and Aldis Hodge will be honored with the Ensemble Award for their work on the film directed by Regina King.

John Legend and Mike Jackson are set to receive the Producers Award. The duo who founded Get Lifted Film Co. eight years ago alongside Ty Stiklorius have since produced several impactful projects including Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey and Giving Voice.

Thompson, who starred in and executive produced the upcoming romantic film, Sylvie’s Love, directed by Eugene Ashe, will get the Actors Award.

Tessa Thompson Black Cinema Awards — Tessa Thompson attends the Premiere Of HBO’s “Westworld” Season 3 TCL Chinese Theatre on March 05, 2020 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

Multi-talented beauty Andra Day will get the Special Honoree Award for her role in Lee Daniels’ The United States vs. Billie Holiday.

The event will also showcase a series of photographs captured by Black filmmaker Tommy Oliver (40 Years A Prisoner, Black Love) around Los Angeles in the wake of the murder of George Floyd.

Bevy Smith will host the event, which will benefit the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Gold Program, which is an industry talent development, diversity and inclusion initiative to provide individuals, with a focus on underrepresented communities, access and resources to achieve their career pathways in filmmaking.

“The Critics Choice Association is thrilled to have the opportunity to recognize the work of these extraordinary artists in a year where the intersection of art and activism has never been more necessary,” executive producer Shawn Edwards said in a statement. “Each of our honorees personifies the greatness of Black cinema in 2020.”

The Celebration of Black Cinema goes down on February 2.

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