Last year, American Cinematheque, the fantastic Los Angeles-based non-profit that run all sorts of screenings out of three venues in and around Hollywood, gave Michael B. Jordan its centerpiece honor for his role in Sinners. The prize was one of many that Jordan would collect on the way to his first Best Actor win.
And now, American Cinematheque has just announced that Ryan Gosling will receive this year’s award.
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The decision, which comes well in advance of the organization’s November gala, is essentially a flag-planting for Gosling. His turn in Project Hail Mary is the lead male performance out of all the studio releases from the first half of 2026 (not counting Ralph Fiennes in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, as all the real ones know). Getting Gosling’s name down early for a fall award — especially one most recently given to the leading man of another major studio hit — can only mean good things for his eventual run at an Oscar.
At the age of 45, Gosling already has three Academy Award nominations to his name. His first was the only nomination for the low-budget indie drama Half Nelson — which saw him sparring with another up-and-comer, Anthony Mackie. His next two came from two highly nominated (and eventually awarded) films, 2016’s La La Land and 2023’s Barbie.
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Project Hail Mary puts Gosling in a similar position as Barbie. The film is currently the third highest grosser at the domestic box office this year, but the job for Gosling came with the added challenge of commanding most of the film’s running time all by his lonesome. (And when he does get a co-star, it’s a rock.) That difficulty involved in the part of Ryland Grace and the star power it required to turn an otherwise lonely movie into a hit certainly add to the argument that the performance could linger in the industry’s consciousness until the Fall — and with the American Cinematheque Awards already set, we know that Gosling will be on the scene once the season officially starts.
