The Zurich Film Festival will honor Brazilian actor, director and producer Wagner Moura with its Golden Eye award for career achievement.
Moura, who won best actor at this year’s Cannes Film Festival for his role in Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent, will travel to Zurich to receive the award during the festival, which runs September 25 to October 5. He will also present the film at a gala premiere and take part in a ZFF Masters session discussing his career and creative process.
“With The Secret Agent, Wagner Moura carries the story with an electrifying presence unlike anything else,” said ZFF artistic director Christian Jungen. “For his exceptional performance in the film and for a career that has made him one of Latin America’s most charismatic and versatile actors, we are honoring him with the Golden Eye. For the first time, this award goes to an actor from South America.”
In The Secret Agent, Moura plays Marcelo, a university professor and technology expert who returns to Recife in 1977 in an attempt to reconnect with his son but finds himself caught in the violence and political tensions of the time.
Moura first rose to international prominence with his performance as Pablo Escobar in Netflix’s Narcos, which earned him a Golden Globe nomination. His credits include Walter Salles’ Behind the Sun, José Padilha’s Elite Squad, Neill Blomkamp’s Elysium, Olivier Assayas’ Wasp Network, Anthony and Joe Russo’s The Gray Man, and Greg Barker’s Sergio. He appeared in Alex Garland’s Civil War and currently stars in Apple TV+’s Dope Thief.
As a director, Moura made his debut with Marighella, which premiered at the 2019 Berlinale.
“I’m deeply honored to accept the Golden Eye Award,” Moura said in a statement. “Thank you to the Zurich Film Festival for recognizing my work in Kleber Mendonça Filho’s truly beautiful and important Brazilian film The Secret Agent. I am humbled to be in the company of those who have received this award and I’m very proud to share the film with the Zurich festival audience in person this September.”