The Palm Springs International Film Awards has named Austin Butler as this year's recipient of the Breakthrough Performance Award for his role in "Elvis."
Festival Chairman Harold Matzner said Butler's acting "commands the screen" and that his portrayal of the King of Rock was the "heart and soul of the movie". Butler will receive his award at the in-person ceremony on Jan. 5, along with actors Cate Blanchett, Colin Farrell, Sarah Polley and Michelle Yeoh, who have been named as award winners this year in other categories.
“Austin Butler commands the screen with a larger-than-life performance as Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s spectacular film "Elvis". The heart and soul of the movie, Butler’s dedication to this role shows in the nuances he brought to the character, seen through multiple decades of the often-tumultuous life Elvis lived, as well as the sprawling live performances where Austin embodies the iconic artist in a way previously unseen on the big screen," Matzner said on Facebook. "We are honored to present the Breakthrough Performance Award to Austin Butler.”
This is not the first time Butler has reaped accolades for his performance in "Elvis", IMDb said. Butler was awarded the Midseason Award for Best Actor by the Hollywood Critics Association in July of this year and recently was named winner of the Virtuoso Award by the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Butler's role also earned him several nominations including the Drama Movie Star award at the People's Choice Awards, the Hollywood Music In Media Awards and a nomination for Best Lead Actor in Film at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards.
In other awards cited on the Palm Springs International Film Awards website. Blanchett and Farrell were named for the Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress and Actor respectively.
Meanwhile, Polley has earned the Director of the Year Award for the movie "Women Talking". Yeoh will be receiving the International Star Actress Award for her performance in "Everything Everywhere All At Once". In addition, "The Fabelmans" is this year's choice for the Vanguard Award, a group honor that recognizes a film's cast and director in their collaborative work on an "exceptional film project".
The awards presentations represent just a portion of the festival that runs until Jan. 16 at the Palm Springs Convention Center.