Viola Davis can add another award to her shelf.
Davis will be honored at this year’s Women in Entertainment Breakfast, put on by The Hollywood Reporter. She will be receiving the Sherry Lansing Award for exceptional leadership in the entertainment industry.
Davis has worked for years to end childhood hunger nationwide as she raised over $20 million as an ambassador for the charity Hunger Is. She has also fought to end poverty in her hometown of Central Falls. She has made various donations to places such as her high school and the public library. And, in 2016, Davis helped start a free clinic in her hometown for underprivileged residents. She has also spoken out numerous times about racism and sexual violence in Hollywood.
Past winners of the award have included Tina Fet, Oprah Winfrey, Shonda Rhimes, and Helen Mirren. The last recipient of the award was Jennifer Lawrence in 2017.
Sherry Lansing, the namesake of the award, released a statement regarding the announcement.
“Now is the perfect time to honor a woman as bold and generous as Viola. Over her remarkable two-decade career, Viola has remained steadfast in her support for marginalized communities, while cultivating one of the greatest bodies of work in the industry. She’s a motivating and refreshing voice in Hollywood when we need it most, and I couldn’t be more excited to honor her at the Women in Entertainment breakfast.” As the former CEO of Paramount, Lansing was the first woman to head a major Hollywood studio.
The annual event will take place on December 5th in Los Angeles.
