Monday Movie Report: Denzel Washington to receive AFI Lifetime Achievement

Acting legend Denzel Washington will be the 47th recipient of the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

According to Variety, the award will be presented to Washington at an event on June 6, 2019. The ceremony will be later broadcast on TNT.

In his career, Washington has won two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe awards and a Screen Actors Guild award. He’s also the recipient of the Cecil B. DeMille Award, the Golden Globe’s de factor lifetime achievement honor.

Variety reported that AFI Board of Trustees Chair Howard Stringer said “Denzel Washington is an American icon. As an actor, he stands tall as a heroic, stoic embodiment of the best in all of us, and he does so with heart, humanity and one of the brightest smiles to ever light up the screen… He is a creative force to be reckoned with – and one of the most vital, relevant artists working today.”

Along with his acting work, Washington has also found success as a director and a producer. For example, he had both credits with the 2016 film “Fences.”

Other recent AFI Lifetime Achievement honorees include George Clooney in 2018, Diane Keaton in 2017, John Williams in 2016 and Steve Martin in 2015.

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At the box office this weekend, it was the comic book adaptation “Venom” dominating the competition. Not only did the film’s $80 million haul earn the No. 1 spot, it also set an opening weekend record. “Venom’s” weekend take topped the previous record holder “Gravity,” which earned $55.7 million in its opening weekend. In second place, meanwhile, was “A Star is Born,” earning a respectable $41 million.

The full top five this weekend was:
1. Venom – $80,030,000
2. A Star is Born – $41,250,000
3. Smallfoot – $14,900,000
4. Night School – $12,275,000
5. The House with a Clock in its Walls – $7,295,000

For the upcoming weekend, new releases include the historical drama “First Man,” the action thriller “Bad Times at the El Royale” and the family Halloween flick “Goosebumps 2.” Additionally, the biographical drama “Beautiful Boy” will have a limited release.

Meanwhile, for the small screen, home releases this week include:

• Eighth Grade, my rating: 5 out of 5 (2018 Top 10), Rotten Tomatoes rating: 98%.
• Skyscraper, my rating: 2 out of 5, Large Association of Movie Blogs rating: 2.71 out of 5, Rotten Tomatoes rating: 46%.
• Hotel Artemis, my rating: 2.5 out of 5, Large Association of Movie Blogs rating: 2.67 out of 5, Rotten Tomatoes rating: 57%.
• Hotel Transylvania 3, my rating: 2.75 out of 5, Large Association of Movie Blogs rating: 2.92 out of 5, Rotten Tomatoes rating: 59%.
• Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot, Rotten Tomatoes rating: 76%.