TheCritics Choice Association (CCA) announced today the
full slate of honorees for the 6th annual Celebración of Cinema & Television. The Celebración honors performances and work, both onscreen and offscreen, from the Latino and Hispanic entertainment community.
John Leguizamo will be honored with the Career Achievement Award in recognition of his more
than four decades of groundbreaking work across film, television, comedy, and theater, as well
as his recent standout performance in Universal Pictures’ The Odyssey, directed by Christopher
Nolan. The film delivered the biggest live-action opening weekend of the year and surpassed $1
billion at the global box office just three weeks after its release.
Emmy Award winner, Special Tony Award recipient, and four-time Tony Award nominee, Leguizamo’s remarkable career spans critically acclaimed dramas, blockbuster franchises, comedy, and theater, from his breakout performances in Brian De Palma’s Carlito’s Way and Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet
to his work in the Ice Age animated franchise and Bob Trevino Likes It, directed by Tracie
Laymon.
Judy Reyes will accept the Trailblazer Award in recognition of her outstanding body of work
across film, television, and theater. She currently stars in both ABC and Hulu’s High Potential
and Scrubs, and is widely known for her standout roles in Devious Maids, Claws and
Birth/Rebirth. In High Potential, which became ABC’s top-rated series in its debut season and
the network’s most-watched new series in six years, Reyes stars as fan favorite Lt. Selena Soto.
Reyes also recently reprised the role fans grew to love her in for nine seasons on Scrubs, with
its revival returning for a second season on ABC and Hulu this fall.
The Emmy and SAG Award winner Oscar Nuñez will be recognized with the Vanguard Award
for his extraordinary body of work, and most recently for his role in Peacock’s The Paper, where he plays Oscar Martinez, a role he originated on The Office. He returns to the iconic character
for a second season of The Paper, premiering on September 9.
Academy Award-nominated producer Rodrigo Teixeira will receive the Producer Award for
NEON’s Paper Tiger. Through his company RT Features, Teixeira produced Call Me by Your
Name, which earned four Academy Award nominations, and I’m Still Here, which made history
as the first Brazilian Portuguese-language film to be nominated for Best Picture and to win the
Oscar for Best International Feature. Paper Tiger marks Teixeira’s third collaboration with
director James Gray and premiered as a Cannes 2026 selection. Paper Tiger will also serve as
the Opening Night selection of the New York Film Festival.
Javier Calvo & Javier Ambrossi (popularly known as “Los Javis”) will be honored with the
Director Award for Netflix’s La Bola Negra. The pair behind the Netflix hit Paquita Salas, Rose
d’Or Award-winning La Mesías, and HBO’s Veneno, Calvo and Ambrossi won the Best Director
prize at the Cannes Film Festival for their sweeping, multigenerational drama inspired by an
unfinished work by Federico García Lorca. The film stars Guitarricadelafuente, Miguel
Bernardeau, Carlos González, Milo Quifes, Lola Dueñas, Julio Torres, Penélope Cruz, and
Glenn Close.
Actor and master puppeteer James Ortiz will accept the Innovator Award for Amazon MGM
Studios’ interstellar epic Project Hail Mary. Known for his puppet design work on Broadway,
including the Tony-nominated The Skin of Our Teeth, Ortiz made history, opposite Academy
Award nominee Ryan Gosling, as the puppeteer and voice behind Rocky, bringing the beloved
and unlikely companion to life, and becoming eligible for awards consideration for his standout
supporting role.
Aimee Carrero will be recognized with the Supporting Actress Award – Series for Apple TV’s
Your Friends & Neighbors. Carrero captivates in the dark comedy, as part of an ensemble cast
that helped earn the series a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series in its
second season. Carrero is well-known for voicing Elena, Disney’s first Latin Princess, in the
“Elena of Avalor” series as well as She-Ra and Adora in “She-Ra and The Princesses of
Power.” Among other films, Carrero co-starred in Searchlight’s hit “The Menu” opposite Ralph
Fiennes.
Brazilian and Chinese American filmmaker Beth de Araújo will receive the Breakthrough
Director Award for Sumerian Pictures’ Josephine. De Araújo made history at the 2026
Sundance Film Festival by winning both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award for
Josephine, a rare double win. The film stars Channing Tatum, Gemma Chan, and breakout star,
Mason Reeves.
Inde Navarrette will receive the Breakthrough Actress Award – Film for her role in Focus
Features’ Obsession. Her fearless breakout performance helped propel the film into a box office
and cultural phenomenon ($495.5 million worldwide), and turned Nikki into an instant icon of
horror cinema.
Laysla De Oliveira will be honored with the Breakthrough Actress Award – Series for
Paramount+’s Lioness. Holding her own alongside Oscar winners Zoe Saldaña and Morgan
Freeman, De Oliveira can be seen across all three seasons of the hit Taylor Sheridan
espionage thriller built around a female-led ensemble – rising from Marine recruit to Delta Force
operator to CIA contractor. She is also known for her roles in In the Tall Grass, Locke & Key,
and Guest of Honour.
“To honor this remarkable class of Latino and Hispanic artists is nothing short of a gift,
especially during a time that has been difficult for our communities,” said Critics Choice
Association Member and Co-Programmer Clayton Davis. “Latino and Hispanic storytellers keep
creating from a place of joy and defiance, turning our histories and culture into art that moves
the culture forward. Their work builds a larger, more inclusive tent for everyone to be invited to
join.”
The Critics Choice Celebración of Cinema & Television will held in Los Angeles on October 2, 2026.