Watch CBS News

London Film Fest to honor Ralph Fiennes, David Cronenberg

Actor Ralph Fiennes attends the premiere of "Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows - Part 2" at Trafalgar Square on July 7, 2011, in London. Ian Gavan

LONDON (CBS/AP) The evil Lord Voldemort of the "Harry Potter" movies will be honored later this month at the London Film Festival.

Actor Ralph Fiennes, who plays the Potter archvillain, and director David Cronenberg are to receive lifetime achievement awards at the London Film Festival awards on Oct. 26, organizers said Tuesday.

Pictures: Ralph Fiennes

Fiennes will receive a British Film Institute Fellowship in recognition of "a singular career" that has blended arthouse dramas and mainstream hits

.

Fiennes, whose directorial debut, an adaptation of Shakespeare's "Coriolanus," will screen during the Oct. 12-27 festival, said he was "extremely honored and delighted" by the award.

Cronenberg, director of "Videodrome," "The Fly" and "Crash," will receive the same honor in recognition of films "exploring the darker impulses and inner lives of his characters." He is the first Canadian to be honored.

Previous BFI fellows include "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle and actor John Hurt.

Organizers also announced a shortlist for the festival's best film prize.

Alexander Payne's "The Descendants," which stars George Clooney as a neglectful father of two daughters whose wife falls into a coma, is the only American film among the nine finalists.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.