The words “greatest living director” and “Martin Scorsese” exist in the same sentence so often, you often wonder what award could be left to honor the legendary filmmaker, but the Producers Guild of America announced Thursday that Scorsese will be this year’s recipient for the David O. Selznick Achievement Award, taking place on Sun. Feb. 25, 2024, at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles.
The “Killers of the Flower Moon” helmer is on a major tear this awards season already, having just picked up both the Best Picture and Director prizes from the National Board of Review, the New York Film Critics’ Circle’s Best Picture prize, an AFI Top 10 distinction, a Historical Icon & Creator Tribute from the Gothams and the Vanguard Award for the upcoming Palm Springs International Film Festival, the latter to be shared with stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone.
Gladstone is also racking up the wins, having already won Best Actress from the National Board of Review and the New York Film Critics (not to mention an Outstanding Leading Performance win from the Gothams for another 2023 release, “The Unknown Country.”)
“Marty’s trailblazing career as a producer, marked by decades of bold, breakthrough projects, demands to be celebrated,” expressed PGA Presidents Donald De Line and Stephanie Allain. “His mastery and unwavering commitment to the craft are truly unparalleled. We are proud to honor him and his many filmmaking achievements this year at the PGA Awards.”
Said Scorsese, “In March 1965, I was flown out to Los Angeles by the PGA to receive an award for my student film ‘It’s Not Just You, Murray!’ I was 22 at the time. At the same event, a much older filmmaker was also being honored. His name was Alfred Hitchcock. 58 years later, I’m proud to say that I am now the much older filmmaker. And I’m touched and extremely honored to be receiving an award named after a true legend among producers, David O. Selznick. It makes me feel like I’ve come full circle.”
The David O. Selznick Achievement Award has been honored to many of the most heralded Hollywood figures in film history, including Steven Spielberg, Barbara Broccoli, Mary Parent, Tom Cruise, Brian Grazer, Frank Marshall, Kathleen Kennedy, and George Lucas.
Martin Scorsese is a nine-time nominee for Best Director at the Oscars, having won once for 2006’s “The Departed.” He has a total of 14 career nominations to his credit as a director, producer and writer on other films such as “Raging Bull,” “The Last Temptation of Christ,” “GoodFellas,” “The Age of Innocence,” “Gangs of New York,” “The Aviator,” “Hugo,” “The Wolf of Wall Street,” and “The Irishman.”
Documentary, sports, children’s programming and short-form nominations will be announced this month, with film and TV noms following on Jan. 12.
