In addition to making history with his breakout smash Get Out, writer and director Jordan Peele will receive the “CinemaCon® Director of the Year” award next week.
On Monday, CinemaCon Managing Director Mitch Neuhauser announced that the 38-year-old filmmaker will be presented with this honor at the “CinemaCon Big Screen Achievement Awards†on March 30. The ceremony, which will be held at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, will take place on the last day of The National Association of Theatre Owners convention.
“With the phenomenon known as Get Out, Jordan Peele has instantaneously become a force to reckon with as a gifted and enormously talented director and filmmaker,†said Neuhauser in a press release. “He has audiences and critics around the globe enamored and spellbound, dare I say hypnotized, with his wildly inventive directorial debut, and we are ecstatic to be honoring him as this year’s ‘Director of the Year.’â€
Get Out is a horror flick that puts a dark, satirical twist on racism after a white woman introduces her family to her new black boyfriend. The film also makes a number of historical references such as the inclusion of a 21st-century slave auction.
Since its release on Feb. 24, the socially conscious thriller has raked in more than $134 million, as of March 20. This makes Peele the first African American writer and director to earn over $100 million at the box office with a debut feature film. To top it off, the film was made on a meager $4.5 million budget.
According to the press release, thousands of motion picture professionals are expected to attend CinemaCon in celebration of cinema. “From exclusive Hollywood product presentations highlighting a slate of upcoming films, to must-see premiere feature screenings, to the biggest stars, producers, and directors, CinemaCon will help jumpstart the excitement and buzz that surrounds the summer season at the box office.”