Italian
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival has announced its 2025 Virtuosos Award honorees.
This year’s honorees are Kieran Culkin (“A Real Pain”), Selena Gomez (“Emilia Pérez”), Ariana Grande (“Wicked”), Harris Dickinson (“Babygirl”), Karla Sofía Gascón (“Emilia Pérez”), Clarence Maclin (“Sing Sing”), Mikey Madison (“Anora”) and John Magaro (“September 5”).
The award recognizes “a select group of talent whose noteworthy performances in films this season has propelled them into the forefront of national cinematic conversation.” The ceremony will take place on Feb. 9 during the 40th Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
The event will be moderated by Turner Classic Movies host Dave Karger, who said in a statement, “It’s my 15th consecutive year hosting this event, and this year’s lineup is as impressive as ever, ranging from megastars like Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande, to veteran actors like Kieran Culkin and John Magaro, to true breakouts like Clarence Maclin, Mikey Madison, Harris Dickinson and Karla Sofía Gascón. I can’t wait to gather them all in front of the wonderful Santa Barbara audience.”
Popular on Variety Past Virtuosos honorees include Lily Gladstone, Zendaya, America Ferrera, Andrew Scott, Austin Butler, Vanessa Kirby, Stephanie Hsu, Kerry Condon, Ke Huy Quan, Danielle Deadwyler, Tahar Rahim and Jeremy Strong.
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place Feb. 4-15. The festival will have screenings, filmmaker Q&As, industry panels and celebrity tributes that will occur at the SBIFF’s Riviera Theatre and its new film center, plus the Arlington Theatre. Passes for the event are currently available online at sbiff.org.
The film lineup and schedule will be announced January 2025.
