Tom Cruise, Debbie Allen, Wynn Thomas and Dolly Parton to receive honorary Oscars

Tom Cruise, Debbie Allen, Wynn Thomas, and Dolly Parton are set to receive honorary Oscars at this year’s Governors Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on June 17.

The 16th annual ceremony will be held on November 16 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Ovation Hollywood.

Cruise, one of the most recognisable names in film history, will be honoured with an Academy Honorary Award. Known for performing his own stunts and supporting the theatrical experience, Cruise has received three acting Oscar nominations for Born on the Fourth of July, Jerry Maguire, and Magnolia. His long list of credits includes Risky Business, A Few Good Men, and the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Debbie Allen, also receiving an honorary Oscar, is being recognised for her decades-spanning career in dance, acting, and production. She’s choreographed the Oscars broadcast seven times and worked on films like Forget Paris and A Jazzman’s Blues. As an actress, she’s known for her roles in Fame, Ragtime, and Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling.

Wynn Thomas will be honoured for his work as a production designer. He was the first African American to become a member of the Art Directors Guild and has worked on some of the most influential films of the last few decades, including Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, A Beautiful Mind, and Hidden Figures.

Dolly Parton will receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for her decades of philanthropic work. The award, which also comes with an Oscar statuette, is given to individuals in the film industry whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry.

Parton’s Dollywood Foundation and Imagination Library have provided hundreds of millions of books to children around the world. She’s also a two-time Oscar nominee for Best Original Song for Nine to Five and Travelin’ Thru from Transamerica.

All four recipients will be celebrated at the private Governors Awards event, where industry figures gather each year to honour lifetime achievement and humanitarian contributions to film.