Despite his death-defying stunts as the spy Ethan Hunt, Tom Cruise has yet to land an Oscar for any of the eight installments of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise. His portrayal of the sports agent Jerry Maguire in 1996 earned him a nod from the film academy for best actor, and as a producer he was up for best motion picture in 2023 with “Top Gun: Maverick.”
But his career has not included a golden Oscars statuette. Until now.
In November, Cruise will receive an honorary Oscar at the Governors Awards, alongside the production designer Wynn Thomas, and the choreographer and actress Debbie Allen, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Tuesday.
Dolly Parton, the singer and actress, will be presented with the annual Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for her charitable works.
The honorary awards, in their 16th year, are given out by the academy’s board of governors to recognize “extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement” in the film industry or “outstanding contributions” to the state of filmmaking. They will be presented months before the main Oscars ceremony in March and will not be televised.
This time the awards celebrate four “individuals whose extraordinary careers and commitment to our filmmaking community continue to leave a lasting impact,” the academy president, Janet Yang, said in a statement.
Cruise, 62, was first nominated for an Academy Award in 1990 for his portrayal of Ron Kovic, a Vietnam War veteran, in the biographical film “Born on the Fourth of July.” He has received three other nominations since then, for “Jerry Maguire,” “Magnolia,” and “Top Gun: Maverick.”
Allen, 75, has never been nominated for an Oscar, though her work as a choreographer, actor and producer has gained critical praise in films like “Forget Paris,” “Ragtime,” “Fame” and “Amistad.” Over the years, she has choreographed the Academy Awards ceremony seven times.
Thomas, the production designer, has also never received a nomination from the Academy, despite his well-known collaborations with Spike Lee, including on “Do the Right Thing” and “She’s Gotta Have It.” He also had a credit on “A Beautiful Mind,” which won best picture in 2002.
The academy’s announcement said that Cruise, who is known for doing his own stunts and is one of the highest grossing actors of all time, was a “committed advocate of the theatrical experience” who had played an important role in helping the industry weather the coronavirus pandemic. Allen was honored for her “indelible impact onscreen” in her film career of nearly five decades, and Thomas was applauded for his “visionary eye and mastery of his craft.”
The humanitarian award goes to an industry member who promotes human welfare and contributes to “rectifying inequalities.”
In 1988, Parton, a Tennessee native, launched the Dollywood Foundation, which helps support education for children in East Tennessee. In 1995, she also started a literacy program in honor of her father, “Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library,” which has distributed nearly 285 million books to children worldwide.
Over her career, Parton has won 11 Grammy Awards and a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy. Her single “Nine to Five” earned an Oscar nomination for best original song. She was also nominated for an Oscar in 2006, for the song “Travelin’ Thru” from the movie “Transamerica.”
The Governors Awards will be presented on Nov. 16 at Ovation Hollywood. Past ceremonies have included a posthumous award for Quincy Jones, and honors for Angela Bassett and Samuel L. Jackson.
Michaela Towfighi is a Times arts and culture reporter and a member of the 2025-26 Times Fellowship class, a program for early career journalists.
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