Morgan Freeman will receive a Career Achievement Award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, it was announced Tuesday.
Freeman, who stars as former South Africa President Nelson Mandela in Clint Eastwood's upcoming film "Invictus,'' will be presented with the award
at the festival's Jan. 5 awards gala, said festival spokeswoman Emily Davis.
The film co-stars Matt Damon as the captain of a South Africa rugby team that Mandela believes will unite rugby fans in the racially and economically divided country in the wake of apartheid.
Harold Matzner, the festival's chairman, said Freeman was being honored "for his large and extraordinary body of work and his many memorable
performances throughout the years.''
Freeman won an Academy Award for his supporting role in another Eastwood film, "Million Dollar Baby,'' and was also nominated for Oscars for his
roles in "Street Smart,'' "Driving Miss Daisy'' and "The Shawshank Redemption.''
"Entertainment Tonight's'' Mary Hart will host the gala to kick off the 21st year of the film festival, which will run through Jan. 18 and feature
screenings of more than 200 films from about five dozen countries.
Festival organizers previously announced that Anna Kendrick will receive the Rising Star Award at the gala.
