Bryan Cranston’s been earning high praise for his starring role in Trumbo, including Screen Actors Guild and Critics’ Choice nominations, and today the Palm Springs International Film Festival announced he’s earned their Spotlight Award. Announcing the honor, PSIFF chairman Harold Matzner stated, “Whether on film, television or Broadway, Bryan Cranston is an outstanding actor who delivers an extraordinary and memorable performance with each character he takes on. In Trumbo, Cranston brings his amazing talent to his portrayal of blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo. For this brilliant performance, worthy of the awards recognition it has been receiving, it is an honor to present Bryan Cranston with the 2016 Spotlight Award, Actor.”
Cranston joins a list of 2016 honorees that includes Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Johnny Depp, Michael Fassbender, Brie Larson, Rooney Mara, Tom McCarthy, Saoirse Ronan and Alicia Vikander. All of the award winners will be recognized during the Awards Gala on January 2nd at the Palm Springs Convention Center.
Past Spotlight Award winners include J.K. Simmons, Julia Roberts, Jessica Chastain, Amy Adams and Helen Hunt.
The Trumbo Plot:
Screenwriter Dalton Trumbo’s acclaimed career comes to a crushing halt in the late 1940s when he and other Hollywood figures are blacklisted for their political beliefs. Directed by Jay Roach, Trumbo recounts how Dalton (Bryan Cranston) used words and wit to win two Academy Awards and expose the absurdity and injustice under the blacklist, which entangled everyone from gossip columnist Hedda Hopper (Helen Mirren) to John Wayne, Kirk Douglas and Otto Preminger. The film also stars Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Louis C.K., David James Elliott, Elle Fanning, John Goodman, Diane Lane, Michael Stuhlbarg, Alan Tudyk and Mirren.
