Viola Davis to Receive Honorary Doctorate from American Film Institute

Oscar-winning actress Viola Davis will be awarded an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts by the American Film Institute (AFI) in recognition of her exceptional contributions to the moving image.

The honor will be presented during the AFI Conservatory’s commencement ceremony for the Class of 2025, scheduled to take place on August 8 at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

Viola Davis will receive the distinction alongside acclaimed film editor and sound designer Walter Murch, known for his work on Apocalypse Now and The English Patient.

“Their contributions to the art form have inspired audiences around the world, as they will inspire this year’s graduates of the AFI Conservatory,” said AFI President and CEO Bob Gazzale in a statement.

With a career spanning film, television, and theater, Davis has become one of the most decorated actors of her generation. She is among a rare group of performers to achieve EGOT status, winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony, a milestone she completed in 2023 with her Grammy win for narrating the audiobook of her memoir, Finding Me.

Davis’s Academy Award came from her performance in Fences, while she earned her Emmy for the groundbreaking role of Annalise Keating in How to Get Away with Murder. She has also received two Tony Awards for her performances in Fences and King Hedley II.

Beyond her artistic accolades, Viola Davis is widely recognized for her work as an advocate and philanthropist. Through her Davis-Tennon Foundation, she has supported efforts to combat childhood hunger and uplift underserved communities.

In 2011, she and her husband, Julius Tennon, launched JuVee Productions to expand opportunities for underrepresented voices in Hollywood.

She has also been acknowledged for her broader cultural influence. In 2017, Time magazine named her one of the world’s most influential people. More recently, she received the Public Counsel’s William O. Douglas Award in 2022 and the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 2025 Golden Globes.

With this latest honor, Viola Davis joins a distinguished group of AFI honorary degree recipients, including Maya Angelou, Angela Bassett, and Spike Lee. She previously received honorary degrees from The Juilliard School and her alma mater, Rhode Island College.