Andrew Garfield’s Santa Barbara award comes as he takes on Sam Altman in ‘Artificial’
Garfield is set to receive the film festival’s highest honor on February 6, 2027, with Leonard Maltin leading a conversation about his career.
Andrew Garfield has been selected for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s Maltin Modern Master Award, its highest honor, The Hollywood Reporter reported on October 20. The actor is scheduled to receive it at the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara on February 6, 2027, as attention turns to his role as Sam Altman in Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Artificial.’
The tribute will feature clips and an onstage conversation with film critic Leonard Maltin, for whom the award is named. Maltin praised Garfield in a statement: ‘It’s no simple matter to balance a career between mainstream Hollywood movies and challenging director-driven projects, but he has done exactly that and done it well.’
Why Andrew Garfield is getting the Maltin Modern Master Award
Garfield’s career spans the ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ films and director-led projects including ‘The Social Network,’ ‘Silence’ and ‘Hacksaw Ridge.’ Variety reports that he has received two Academy Award nominations and won both a Golden Globe and a Tony Award. His television work includes an Emmy-nominated performance in ‘Under the Banner of Heaven.’
His upcoming ‘Artificial’ performance gives the tribute a current talking point: Garfield plays OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman in Guadagnino’s film. Variety says the planned conversation with Maltin will look back over Garfield’s decades-long career. The award recognizes his body of work, rather than that single role.
When is the Santa Barbara tribute?
The Garfield event is scheduled for February 6 during the festival’s 42nd edition, which runs from February 3 to 13, 2027. The Hollywood Reporter says John Malkovich, associated with ‘Wild Horse Nine,’ had already been announced as another honoree. Variety says the festival program will also include screenings, filmmaker question-and-answer sessions, industry panels and celebrity tributes.
The festival established the Modern Master Award in 1995 to recognize contributions to film and renamed it for Maltin in 2015. Past recipients include Denzel Washington, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Nolan and Jamie Lee Curtis. Maltin has moderated festival tributes for decades and is set to lead Garfield’s conversation at the historic Arlington Theatre.
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Sources and context
- Santa Barbara Film Fest: ‘Artificial’ Star Andrew Garfield Tapped for Maltin Modern Master AwardThe Hollywood Reporter
- Andrew Garfield to Be Honored at Santa Barbara Film FestivalVariety
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.