Charlize Theron, John Carpenter and Colman Domingo to Be Honored at the 2026 Academy Museum Gala
Charlize Theron, John Carpenter and Colman Domingo will receive top honours at the sixth annual Academy Museum Gala on 17 October in Los Angeles, the museum announced on 13 August 2026.
Theron picks up the Icon Award, given to an artist whose career has had significant global impact. Carpenter, the director behind Halloween, The Thing and Escape from New York, receives the Luminary Award for his contributions to filmmaking. Domingo, whose recent work includes Rustin and Sing Sing, takes the Vantage Award, which honours an artist helping to challenge dominant narratives around cinema. WWD
The gala is the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures' annual fundraiser, supporting its exhibitions, screenings, educational programmes and other initiatives. Rolex, a founding supporter of the museum, presents the evening. Robert Rodriguez, Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw will serve as co-chairs.
Amy Homma, the museum's director and president, welcomed the honorees in a statement and credited Rolex, the co-chairs and the museum's founding supporters for their partnership.
The host committee reads like a red-carpet roll call: Jessica Alba, Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann, Adrien Brody and Georgina Chapman, Jon M. Chu, Kirsten Dunst, Nicholas Galitzine, Regina Hall, Kate Hudson, Greta Lee, John Legend and Chrissy Teigen, Rami Malek, Demi Moore, Olivia Munn, Questlove, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen, and Teyana Taylor.
Last year's gala honoured Penélope Cruz, the Brazilian director Walter Salles, Bruce Springsteen and Bowen Yang.
Both Theron and Carpenter have separate museum appearances lined up before the October event. Theron will join the museum's Teen Council — a programme for young people — for a conversation and a screening of Mad Max: Fury Road on 22 August. Carpenter will host three nights of screenings of his films beginning 26 September, timed to the opening of a new Academy Museum exhibition called The Horror Show.
For fans of any of the three honorees, that means two chances to see them at the museum well before the gala: Theron on screen in August, Carpenter curating his own retrospective in September.
