Spike Lee to Receive the Golden Eddie Filmmaker of the Year Award from ACE

Today, the American Cinema Editors (ACE) have announced that they will be giving their Golden Eddie Filmmaker of the Year Award to Spike Lee. With the announcement, newly elected ACE president Kevin Tent stated, “From ‘She’s Gotta Have It’ in 1986 to ‘Da 5 Bloods’ in 2020, Spike has directed an astonishing number of feature films… 24!  Not to mention his work in documentaries, television, music videos and commercials.  Spike’s an artist who has entertained, enlightened and challenged us.  But he’s not only a prolific director, he’s been a friend, producer and guidance counselor to countless young and emerging filmmakers. His generosity is an inspiration to us all. For these reasons and more, we at ACE recognize his enormous impact on the industry and are proud to present him with this much deserved award.” 

Past recipients of the Golden Eddie include Quentin Tarantino, Kathleen Kennedy, Christopher Nolan, Lauren Shuler Donner, Guillermo del Toro, Vince Gilligan, J.J. Abrams, Nancy Meyers, Martin Scorsese, Norman Jewison, Robert Zemeckis and George Lucas, among others. 

The announcement comes at a crucial time for Lee’s hopes at awards glory this year for Da 5 Bloods. While the movie was picking up steam with wins for Best Picture and Best Director from the National Board of Review, its position got unbalanced last week with a complete shutout from the Golden Globes, as well as a not particularly glowing reception from the SAG, where it made the cut in Best Ensemble, but missed for Delroy Lindo. Da 5 Bloods was seen as one of the top contenders for this year’s Oscars, but now it might be on the outside looking in when it comes to the Best Picture race. 

Time will tell there, but Lee and his film could use all of the good press they can get for now. The 71st Annual ACE Eddie Awards will be held on April 18th, 2021, and we all know that if you can count on Spike for one thing it’s a damn good speech. Exact plans for the ceremony are still to be determined, but ACE have said that it will likely be a virtual event.