“Spotlight” stars Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel McAdams will receive the American Riviera Award at the 31st Santa Barbara International Film Festival, SBIFF organizers announced on Thursday.
Keaton, Ruffalo and McAdams play three members of the Boston Globe’s team of investigative reporters in Tom McCarthy’s “Spotlight,” which details how the Globe uncovered widespread sexual abuse by priests in Boston, and a lengthy, systematic cover-up of that abuse by the city’s Archdiocese.
The film is currently one of the frontrunners for the Oscars, whose top contenders often receive honorary awards and well-publicized tributes at the Santa Barbara festival, which takes place just before final voting begins.
The American Riviera Award has typically been given to single recipients, including Robert Redford, Martin Scorsese, Forest Whitaker and Quentin Tarantino. Last year, it went to the two stars of “Boyhood,” Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke.
“Michael, Mark and Rachel are three of the finest actors in the business,” said festival director Roger Durling in a statement. ” … Their recent turn in ‘Spotlight’ demonstrates their skills both harmoniously as an ensemble and individually.”
The tribute to Keaton, Ruffalo and McAdams will take place at the Arlington Theatre during the festival, which runs from Feb. 3 to Feb. 13 in the coastal town 100 miles north of Los Angeles.