The French Film Academy will present filmmaker David Fincher with its highest honor, the César d’honneur for lifetime achievement, at next year’s César Awards, the French equivalent of the Oscars.
The director of Se7en, Fight club, Missing girl and The social networkas well as director and producer of groundbreaking television series like House of cards, mind hunter and Love, Death & Robots – all for Netflix – will be honored at the 48th César Ceremony in Paris on February 24. The show will be broadcast live on the French pay TV network Canal+.
“David Fincher is one of those rare directors whose entire filmography has become iconic over the years,” the French academy said in a statement. “An outstanding technician, a true visionary, his cinema is hypnotic, cerebral, a source of inspiration for countless artists.”
Given Fincher’s close relationship with Netflix, the honor could be read as an act of détente between the French academy and the streaming giant. Netflix has been a punching bag of choice for many in the French industry who blame the declining box office for the rise of online viewing. France still has one of the longest and strictest window constructions in the world. Under current guidelines, movies released in theaters typically have to wait 17 months before they can be streamed online. Netflix’s refusal to commit to theatrical releases for its films in France led to Netflix films being banned from competition at Cannes, France’s premier film festival.
But there’s arguably no director more closely associated with Netflix than Fincher. In addition to his television work, Fincher directed 2020s limping for the streaming giant and its upcoming feature film The murdererstarring Tilda Swinton and Michael Fassbender, will also hit Netflix worldwide.
The French academy announcement Friday mentioned Fincher’s Netflix work, but the streamer’s name was conspicuously absent from the release.
