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JOHN C. REILLY and Cork native Éanna Hardwicke were among the actors to be honoured at last night’s Oscar Wilde Awards in Los Angeles.
Reilly praised Ireland for its “common decency” and the “care they give to the most vulnerable” in his speech.
The Oscar Wilde Awards are held by the US-Ireland Alliance in the run-up to the Oscars and celebrates Irish entertainment contributions in the US.
The annual event created nearly 20 years ago by Alliance founder Trina Vargo.
Last night’s event was held in the Ebell Los Angeles and honoured actors John C. Reilly and Éanna Hardwick, as well as Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall.
John C. Reilly is of Irish descent and was the international guest of honour at the 2022 St Patrick’s Day parade in Dublin.
Will Ferrell presented the honour to Reilly and remarked: “All the gifts that historically have come out of Irish society radiate from John.”
In his acceptance speech, Reilly spoke of his love of Ireland and growing up in the south side of Chicago, home to many Irish people.
He also remarked on how much he’s “learned” from the Irish and added: “What really stands out to me at this moment is their love of democracy and their common decency.
“Someone more eloquent than me once said, a nation’s greatness is measured by the care they give to the most vulnerable.
“That’s how you make a country great. You put your beliefs to work. That’s what the Irish do.”
Reilly also spoke about Oscar Wilde and remarked: “Those in power who were not confident enough to trust the truth of love sought to destroy him.
“Oscar dying penniless in a cheap French hotel may make it appear to some that the Establishment succeeded in destroying him.
“But his work lives on and tells another story of resilience, survival and brilliance. It lives on and it continues to inspire us.
“And I doubt anyone today is receiving an award named after one of those who tried to break him.”
Meanwhile, Éanna Hardwicke, who will play Roy Keane in the upcoming film ‘Saipan’ on the infamous episode in the run-up to the 2002 World Cup, was presented with a Wilde Card Award.
This award is given to those seen as a rising star in the entertainment industry.
Hardwicke said he’d coveted this Wilde Card award for a long time, noting that he was honoured to be in the company of others who’d receive the award such as Saoirse Ronan, Eve Hewson, and Barry Keoghan.
Kathleen Kennedy was also honoured at the awards – she is the president of Lucasfilm, which is behind Star Wars.
She spoke about her time on location in Ireland in Dingle and on Skellig Michael while filming the prequels to the film franchise which were directed by J.J. Abrams.
Kennedy is married to Franck Marshall, who was also honoured on the night, and the US-Ireland Alliance remarked that he is “now an honorary Irishman”.
Marshall is a film-maker and producer who is one of the few people to have received an EGOT, which means winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony.
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