# AFI Life Achievement Award

The AFI Life Achievement Award was established by the board of directors of the American Film Institute on February 26, 1973, to honor a single individual for their lifetime contribution to enriching American culture through motion pictures and television. The recipient is selected and honored at an annual ceremony, with the award presented by a master of ceremonies and, recently, the prior year's recipient.
The AFI's trustees initially specified that "The recipient must be one who fundamentally advanced the art of film and whose achievements had been acknowledge by film scholars, critics, their individual peers and the general public". The trustees also specified "That the work of the recipient must have withstood the test of time".

## History of the award

Director John Ford was the unanimous choice of the board of trustees for the first award as he "clearly stands preeminent in the history of motion pictures."
President Richard Nixon attended the gala dinner at which Ford was presented the award on March 31, 1973.
The board of trustees later amended the "test of time" requirement to enable the AFI Life Achievement Award to be presented to individuals with active careers, such as Steven Spielberg.

## Trivia and firsts

Lillian Gish was awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1984, aged 90, becoming the oldest recipient of the prize; Mel Brooks was the oldest male recipient, awarded at age 86 in 2013. Tom Hanks was awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2002, becoming the youngest recipient of the prize at age 46 and Meryl Streep was the youngest female, awarded at age 54 in 2004.
Of the 49 honorees eleven have been women: Bette Davis (the first female recipient), Lillian Gish, Barbara Stanwyck, Elizabeth Taylor, Barbra Streisand, Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Julie Andrews, and Nicole Kidman.
Composer John Williams was the first recipient of the award to not be an actor or director.
Three sets of family members have received the award: father and son Kirk and Michael Douglas, father and daughter Henry and Jane Fonda, and siblings Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine.
Julie Andrews' award event was originally scheduled for April 25, 2020, with a broadcast on May 7 on TNT, but the event was postponed to 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This marks the first time an AFI Life Achievement Award event was delayed. The event was rescheduled for November 11, 2021, before it was postponed a second time on October 4, 2021.
Nicole Kidman’s ceremony was originally scheduled for June 10, 2023, but was postponed due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. Kidman is also the first Australian actress to receive the award, and the third non-American actress to be honored after British stars Elizabeth Taylor and Julie Andrews.

## Televised broadcast

All Life Achievement Award ceremonies have been televised on major TV networks and cable channels: CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, USA, TV Land, TNT and TBS. Agreeing to appear at the televised ceremony apparently is part of the AFI's criteria for selecting the award. The televised ceremony generates income for the AFI, which is no longer funded by the US government.

## Recipients

The American Film Institute has awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award to one person each year since 1973. The 50th Award will be presented to Francis Ford Coppola in Los Angeles on April 26th, 2025.
| # | Year | Honoree | Image | Profession | Age | Date of Ceremony | Network | Award Presenter/Host |
| 1 | 1973 | John Ford | | Director | 79 | March 31, 1973 | CBS | Danny Kaye |
| 2 | 1974 | James Cagney | | Actor | 74 | March 31, 1974 | CBS | Frank Sinatra |
| 3 | 1975 | Orson Welles | | Actor, director, screenwriter | 59 | February 9, 1975 | CBS | Frank Sinatra |
| 4 | 1976 | William Wyler | | Director | 73 | March 9, 1976 | CBS | Gregory Peck |
| 5 | 1977 | Bette Davis | | Actress | 68 | March 1, 1977 | CBS | Jane Fonda |
| 6 | 1978 | Henry Fonda | | Actor | 72 | March 15, 1978 | CBS | — |
| 7 | 1979 | Alfred Hitchcock | | Director | 79 | March 7, 1979 | CBS | Ingrid Bergman |
| 8 | 1980 | James Stewart | | Actor | 71 | March 16, 1980 | CBS | Henry Fonda |
| 9 | 1981 | Fred Astaire | | Actor | 81 | April 10, 1981 | CBS | David Niven |
| 10 | 1982 | Frank Capra | | Director | 84 | March 4, 1982 | CBS | James Stewart |
| 11 | 1983 | John Huston | | Actor, director, screenwriter | 76 | March 3, 1983 | CBS | Lauren Bacall |
| 12 | 1984 | Lillian Gish | | Actress | 90 | March 1, 1984 | CBS | Douglas Fairbanks Jr. |
| 13 | 1985 | Gene Kelly | | Actor, director | 72 | March 7, 1985 | CBS | Shirley MacLaine |
| 14 | 1986 | Billy Wilder | | Director, screenwriter | 79 | March 6, 1986 | NBC | Jack Lemmon |
| 15 | 1987 | Barbara Stanwyck | | Actress | 79 | April 9, 1987 | ABC | Jane Fonda |
| 16 | 1988 | Jack Lemmon | | Actor | 63 | March 10, 1988 | CBS | Julie Andrews |
| 17 | 1989 | Gregory Peck | | Actor | 72 | March 9, 1989 | NBC | Audrey Hepburn |
| 18 | 1990 | David Lean | | Director, screenwriter | 82 | March 8, 1990 | ABC | Gregory Peck |
| 19 | 1991 | Kirk Douglas | | Actor | 74 | March 7, 1991 | CBS | Michael Douglas |
| 20 | 1992 | Sidney Poitier | | Actor, director | 65 | March 12, 1992 | NBC | Harry Belafonte |
| 21 | 1993 | Elizabeth Taylor | | Actress | 61 | March 11, 1993 | ABC | Carol Burnett |
| 22 | 1994 | Jack Nicholson | | Actor | 56 | March 3, 1994 | CBS | Mike Nichols |
| 23 | 1995 | Steven Spielberg | | Director | 48 | March 2, 1995 | NBC | Sidney Sheinberg |
| 24 | 1996 | Clint Eastwood | | Actor, director | 65 | February 29, 1996 | ABC | Steven Spielberg |
| 25 | 1997 | Martin Scorsese | | Director, screenwriter | 54 | February 20, 1997 | CBS | Gregory Peck |
| 26 | 1998 | Robert Wise | | Director | 83 | February 19, 1998 | NBC | Julie Andrews |
| 27 | 1999 | Dustin Hoffman | | Actor | 61 | February 18, 1999 | ABC | Jack Nicholson |
| 28 | 2000 | Harrison Ford | | Actor | 57 | February 17, 2000 | CBS | George Lucas & Steven Spielberg |
| 29 | 2001 | Barbra Streisand | | Actress, director | 58 | February 22, 2001 | Fox | Sidney Poitier |
| 30 | 2002 | Tom Hanks | | Actor | 46 | June 24, 2002 | USA Network | Steven Spielberg |
| 31 | 2003 | Robert De Niro | | Actor | 59 | June 12, 2003 | USA Network | Martin Scorsese |
| 32 | 2004 | Meryl Streep | | Actress | 54 | June 21, 2004 | USA Network | Mike Nichols |
| 33 | 2005 | George Lucas | | Director, screenwriter | 61 | June 9, 2005 | USA Network | Steven Spielberg |
| 34 | 2006 | Sean Connery | | Actor | 75 | June 8, 2006 | USA Network | Harrison Ford |
| 35 | 2007 | Al Pacino | | Actor | 67 | June 7, 2007 | USA Network | Sean Penn |
| 36 | 2008 | Warren Beatty | | Actor, director, screenwriter | 71 | June 12, 2008 | USA Network | Al Pacino |
| 37 | 2009 | Michael Douglas | | Actor | 64 | June 11, 2009 | TV Land | Jack Nicholson |
| 38 | 2010 | Mike Nichols | | Director | 78 | June 10, 2010 | TV Land | Meryl Streep |
| 39 | 2011 | Morgan Freeman | | Actor | 74 | June 9, 2011 | TV Land | Clint Eastwood |
| 40 | 2012 | Shirley MacLaine | | Actress | 78 | June 7, 2012 | TV Land | Meryl Streep |
| 41 | 2013 | Mel Brooks | | Actor, director, screenwriter | 86 | June 15, 2013 | TNT | Martin Scorsese |
| 42 | 2014 | Jane Fonda | | Actress | 76 | June 13, 2014 | TNT | Michael Douglas |
| 43 | 2015 | Steve Martin | | Actor, screenwriter | 69 | June 4, 2015 | TBS | Mel Brooks |
| 44 | 2016 | John Williams | | Composer | 84 | June 9, 2016 | TNT | Steven Spielberg |
| 45 | 2017 | Diane Keaton | | Actress | 71 | June 8, 2017 | TNT | Woody Allen |
| 46 | 2018 | George Clooney | | Actor, director, screenwriter | 57 | June 7, 2018 | TNT | Shirley MacLaine |
| 47 | 2019 | Denzel Washington | | Actor | 64 | June 6, 2019 | TNT | Spike Lee |
| 2020 | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED |
| 2021 | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED |
| 48 | 2022 | Julie Andrews | | Actress | 86 | June 9, 2022 | TNT | Carol Burnett |
| 2023 | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED | NOT AWARDED |
| 49 | 2024 | Nicole Kidman | | Actress | 56 | April 27, 2024 | TNT | Meryl Streep |
| 50 | 2025 | Francis Ford Coppola | | Director, screenwriter | 86 | April 26, 2025 | TBD | TBD |