Rome Film Fest: Javier Bardem and Julianne Moore to receive Lifetime Achievement Award

The Rome Film Fest returns from October 13 to 25, 2026 for its 21st edition, confirming itself as one of the most followed autumn events on the Italian film calendar. Among the accolades already announced by the Fondazione Cinema per Roma are two Lifetime Achievement Awards, presented this year to two performers from different generations and career paths, confirming an approach that in recent years has favored figures capable of moving between European productions and the Hollywood industry.

Javier Bardem will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award during the event, and the honor will be presented to him personally by director Paolo Sorrentino. The choice to entrust the presentation of the award to an internationally renowned Italian director confirms the tone the Festival has chosen for this edition, focusing on encounters between figures from different cinematic traditions. The pairing of the Spanish actor with the Oscar-winning filmmaker is among the moments that the Foundation has chosen to announce ahead of the publication of the full program.

The second Lifetime Achievement Award will go to Julianne Moore, who will receive it on October 21, eight days after the opening of the event. The ceremony will be accompanied by a screening of The Debut, a musical comedy directed by Jesse Eisenberg, whose cast includes, among others, Paul Giamatti and Halle Bailey. The pairing of the award with the screening of an ensemble film featuring performers from different backgrounds marks another feature of this edition of the Festival.

The two awards, spaced several days apart in the event’s calendar, represent the most significant institutional moments announced so far for the 2026 edition: on one hand, the recognition of Bardem, linked to Spanish-language cinema and the actor’s international career; on the other, that of Moore, accompanied by a film that brings a broadly international cast to the screen. The full program of the Festival, which will unfold over thirteen days starting October 13, has yet to be finalized in terms of the other sections of the event, including the official selections and side events not yet disclosed by the Fondazione Cinema per Roma.