“The Godfather” trilogy and “Apocalypse Now” filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola will be the 50th recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award.
The American Film Institute (AFI) Board of Trustees announced that Coppola will presented the award — the institution’s highest honor for a career in film — during a gala tribute ceremony held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on April 26, 2025.
“Francis Ford Coppola is a peerless artist — one who has created seminal works in the canon of American film, and has also inspired generations of filmmakers who now embody his artistry and his independent spirit,” stated Kathleen Kennedy, chair of the AFI board of trustees.
Coppola is a six-time Academy Award-winning writer, director and producer (including the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award from the AMPAS board of governors), with an acclaimed filmography that also includes “The Conversation,” “The Outsiders” and “Bram Stoker’s Dracula.” Coppola’s latest film “Megalopolis,” launched earlier this year at the Cannes Film Festival and was released theatrically and in Imax globally this fall. Three of his films, “The Godfather,” “The Godfather Part II” and “Apocalypse Now” rank among AFI’s “100 Years… 100 Movies” list, as well as Variety’s 100 best films list.
As the co-founder of American Zoetrope with George Lucas, Coppola’s impact can also be measured by the careers of the filmmakers he’s supported (including Carroll Ballard, John Milius and Sofia Coppola, his daughter) as well as actors such as Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, James Caan, Harrison Ford, Richard Dreyfus, Diane Keaton, Robert Duvall, Matt Dillon, Diane Lane and Laurence Fishburne.
Established in 1973, the AFI Life Achievement Award is presented to a single honoree “whose talent has in a fundamental way advanced the film art; whose accomplishment has been acknowledged by scholars, critics, professional peers and the general public; and whose work has stood the test of time.” Recent recipients include Nicole Kidman (2024), Julie Andrews (2022), Denzel Washington (2019), George Clooney (2018) and Diane Keaton (2017).
The AFI Life Achievement Award Tribute special will air on TNT, with encore presentations on Turner Classic Movies (TCM).
https://variety.com/2024/film/news/film-news-in-brief-oct-28-2024-1236192406/
