UPDATED: Ralph Fiennes receives Empire Award

by · March 27, 2015

UPDATE Mar. 30: Ralph Fiennes’s former co-star from Schindler’s List, Liam Neeson, was on hand tonight to present Fiennes with the award. The actor, who received a standing ovation from the audience, said,

Thank you to my true long-time friend and real legend standing behind me. Thank you to Empire magazine and all its readers. I am feeling a mixture of slight embarassment and delight, joy and gob-smack. Thinking about what to say tonight, it was immediately clear that the ‘L’ word is best only applied to a small number of dead actors and best treated with irony.

You can watch his acceptance speech in full below.

 

Also, a big congratulations to the former Potter cast members involved with Game of Thrones, which took home the award for Empire Hero. Daniel Radcliffe and Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy) were also in attendance at the event as award presenters.

Be sure to check out some photos of the former Potter stars at the event below.

—

Ralph Fiennes (Lord Voldemort) will receive the Legend Award at the Jameson Empire Awards, which take place in London on Sunday.

The actor, who over the course of his career has starred in no fewer than 30 films, first came to international attention for his portrayal of the concentration camp commandment in Steven Spielberg’s 1994 film Schindler’s List, for which he won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.

He received his second Academy Award nomination in 1997 for The English Patient and has received multiple BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations, most recently for his role as concierge M. Gustave in The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Fiennes’s upcoming projects include the Coen Brothers’ Hail, Caesar! and the new Bond installment Spectre, in which he plays M. He can also currently be seen on stage in London at the National Theatre in its production of Man and Superman. Empire’s editor-in-chief Morgan Rees said,

When you look at the body of work he has given us, both on screen and behind the camera, he has achieved so much. I can’t think of anyone who deserves this award more. Ralph Fiennes is truly an Empire Legend.

Previous recipients of the award include Dame Helen Mirren, Tim Burton, and Tom Cruise. Apart from his performance as Voldemort in the Potter films, which is your favorite Ralph Fiennes role? Let us know in the comments.