The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced that actress Glenn Close, director Ridley Scott, and pioneering animator Floyd Norman will receive Honorary Oscars at the 2026 Governors Awards, while acclaimed independent film producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler will be presented with the prestigious Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award.
The honors will be presented during the 17th annual Governors Awards on Nov. 15 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles. The ceremony is held in partnership with Rolex.
The annual event recognizes individuals whose contributions have had a lasting impact on the motion picture industry outside the competitive Academy Awards categories.
“The Academy’s Board of Governors is thrilled to present this year’s Governors Awards to five remarkable individuals whose groundbreaking work has forever shaped the art of filmmaking,” Academy President Lynette Howell Taylor said in a statement.
Close, one of Hollywood’s most acclaimed actresses, will receive an Honorary Award after a career spanning more than five decades and over 100 film credits. Although she has earned eight Academy Award nominations—including for Fatal Attraction, Dangerous Liaisons, The Wife, and Hillbilly Elegy—she has never won an Oscar in a competitive category.
Her film career began with The World According to Garp in 1982 and has included standout performances in The Big Chill, The Natural, Air Force One, 101 Dalmatians, and the upcoming Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.
Legendary filmmaker Ridley Scott is also being recognized for a career that has helped define modern cinema. Scott has received Oscar nominations for directing Thelma & Louise, Gladiator, and Black Hawk Down, as well as a Best Picture nomination for producing The Martian. His influential body of work also includes Alien, Blade Runner, American Gangster, House of Gucci, and Napoleon.
Animator Floyd Norman, who became Disney’s first Black animator in 1956, is being honored for a groundbreaking 65-year career. Norman contributed to classic Disney films including Sleeping Beauty, The Jungle Book, and Robin Hood, before later working on projects such as Toy Story 2, Mulan, and Monsters, Inc.
The Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award will be presented jointly to producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler, founders of the independent production company Killer Films. Since launching the company in 1995, the duo has produced acclaimed films including Boys Don’t Cry, Carol, Far from Heaven, Still Alice, May December, and the Oscar-nominated Past Lives.
The Academy’s Honorary Award recognizes lifetime achievement and exceptional contributions to filmmaking, while the Thalberg Award honors producers whose careers reflect consistently outstanding motion picture production.
Together, this year’s honorees represent a cross-section of Hollywood’s creative community, spanning acting, directing, animation, and independent film production, with careers that have helped shape generations of cinema.