The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced late Friday that the legendary writer/director Woody Allen will receive its lifetime achievement award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, during the next Golden Globes ceremony.
“There is no one more worthy of this award than Woody Allen,” HFPA president Theo Kingma said in the announcement. “His contributions to filmmaking have been phenomenal and he is an international treasure.”
Allen, 77, has never stopped directing and continues to make a film a year. His 2013 film is Blue Jasmine, which has won rave reviews for its writing and Cate Blanchett’s performance. His 2011 film, Midnight In Paris, won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. He is currently working on a film with Colin Firth and Emma Stone.
Over the course of his 60-year career, Allen’s 55 films have scored two Golden Globes and 11 nominations.
“Fame has many drawbacks and many advantages and it’s close, but the advantages just outweigh the drawbacks,” he said during a recent meeting with the HFPA. “Believe it or not, there are many terrible things about being famous and many wonderful things, too...In the end, the good things are better than the bad, so if you have the chance, it’s better to be famous.”
Allen follows in the footsteps of Jodie Foster, who received the award last year. (His speech probably won’t be as surprising as her’s. Maybe he'll play some clarinet.)
The 71st Annual Golden Globe Awards is set for Jan. 12, 2014 and will feature a tribute to Allen.
Allen’s other films include the 1977 Best Picture Oscar winner Annie Hall, Manhattan, Stardust Memories and Hannah And Her Sisters, to name just a few.