SAM MENDES AND SKYFALL TRIUMPH AT THE 18TH JAMESON EMPIRE AWARDS
DANNY BOYLE, DAME HELEN MIRREN, DANIEL RADCLIFFE, MARTIN FREEMAN AND JENNIFER LAWRENCE ALSO HONORED
(London, March 24, 2013) The best movies of last year were finally revealed at this evening’s Jameson Empire Awards, as the public rewarded the movies that won their hearts and minds in 2012. The readers of Empire – the world’s biggest movie magazine – voted in their hundreds of thousands, from all corners of the globe, to bestow major prizes on the best of the best at the Jameson Empire Awards. The results showcased the movies and their makers that were loved most by the people who actually pay to see them.
Sam Mendes was victorious, scooping up three awards, including the Empire Inspiration award presented by Jameson Irish Whiskey as well as Best Film presented by Sky Movies and Best Director presented by Monitor Audio for UK box office smash Skyfall.
Danny Boyle also won gold at the Awards, collecting the Empire Outstanding Contribution award. The award acknowledges Boyle’s stellar career so far, with highlights cited on the night including his outstanding work on everything from Shallow Grave to Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours and this year’s Trance.
Collecting the Empire Hero award was Daniel Radcliffe, who was presented with his award by Woman In Black director James Watkins. He joins an illustrious list of previous winners including Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightley and Jude Law. Radcliffe was also in attendance on behalf of The Woman In Black, which won the award for Best Horror presented by Café de Paris.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, which had been neck-and-neck with Avengers Assemble in the nominations with five apiece, claimed two wins, taking Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Film presented by MediCinema and the Jameson Best Actor award, presented by Rebecca Hall, which was picked up by Martin Freeman.
Jennifer Lawrence won Best Actress presented by Citroën for her role in The Hunger Games and thanked the Empire readers from on location in Hawaii. Lawrence’s win tops off a long run of awards this year including Best Actress Golden Globe and Oscar ® awards for Silver Linings Playbook.
Best Male Newcomer presented by Entertainment Tonight went to Tom Holland for his role in The Impossible, whilst Best Female Newcomer was picked up by Samantha Barks for her role in Les Misérables. Both actors were in attendance to collect their awards.
Ted was awarded Best Comedy presented by Magic 105.4, whilst Headhunters won Best Thriller presented by Vue Entertainment. Dredd 3D picked up The Art Of 3D award presented by RealD.
This year’s winner of Best British Film presented by Tresor Paris was Sightseers. There to accept the award were co-writers and stars Alice Lowe and Steve Oram. Previous winners include Harry Brown, Kick-Ass and RockNRolla.
The Jameson Empire Done In 60 Seconds short film award-winner was Philip Askins for his remake of Blade Runner. He was shortlisted on a list of 22 nominees by the voting public, which were then whittled down to the Top 5 by 6 judges: Tom Hiddleston, Edith Bowman, Alex Zane, Joanne Froggatt, Bauer Media CEO Paul Keenan and Editor-In-Chief of Empire Mark Dinning, who finally picked their winner.
Also present at the event this evening were nominees and guests including Sir Ian McKellan, Mark Strong, Beth Tweddle, Edgar Wright, Johnny Vegas, Jenna Coleman, Nick Park, Sam Claflin, Mariella Frostrup and Blake Harrison, and the evening’s host, Ed Byrne.
Editor-In-Chief of Empire magazine, Mark Dinning, commented: “Given how vibrant and exciting the world of movies is at the moment, it’s perhaps no surprise that this year’s Jameson Empire Awards have been the best ever. In the year that box office records were smashed to pieces by the likes of Skyfall, it is terrific to see the Empire readers honour those achievements, with the movie awards that actually reflect the films that people really care about.”
The Jameson Empire Film Awards Special will be transmitted on Saturday March 30 on Sky Movies at 8.30pm and will be repeated on Sunday March 31 at 7.30pm on Sky Movies Showcase. It will also be repeated throughout the week and on Sky Go and On Demand on the Sky Box.
The 18th annual Jameson Empire Awards were once again held at Grosvenor House, a JW Marriott Hotel, in Park Lane in the heart of London’s Mayfair.
In celebration of the Jameson Empire Awards, U.S. fans can download the current issue of Empire magazine’s exclusive U.S. edition for iPad FREE from now through March 27th
