Venice, Italy – Toni servillo has been awarded the volpi Cup for Best Actor at the 82nd Venice Film Festival for his performance in Paolo Sorrentino‘s “La Grazia.” The 66-year-old Italian actor was recognized for his portrayal of President of the Marian Republic De Santis, a former jurist grappling with the moral complexities of granting clemency to two life-sentenced prisoners and approving a euthanasia law before his term ends.
This marks the first win for an Italian actor at the festival since Pierfrancesco Favino’s victory in 2020 for “Padrenostro.” “La Grazia” represents the seventh collaboration between Servillo and director Sorrentino.
“I owe a lot to Paolo and I don’t know how to repay the trust that he still gives me in facing such a stunning character as this President of the Republic that only from his imagination could he come out,” Servillo stated after receiving the award,adding,”It’s a very welcome prize as it has a noble story that is delivered in a very noble event and the actors consider it a reward area.”
Servillo also used the occasion to express solidarity with the Global Sumud Flotilla, stating, “On behalf of a feeling that all of Italian cinema feels at this moment, I feel all my admiration for those who have decided to get into the sea with courage and reach Palestine to bring a sign of humanity to a land where human dignity is vilified.”
