Sam Barks awarded top Hollywood honour
TRUE TALENT: Samantha will be mixing with the megastars
MANX singer and actress Samantha Barks will be honoured at a glittering Hollywood awards ceremony on Monday night.
Fresh from filming the Les Miserables blockbuster with Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe, Laxey girl Sam will pick up a coveted Hollywood Spotlight Award at the Hollywood Film Awards Gala Ceremony.
Sam told the Isle of Man Courier she would be attending the glitzy event at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills on Monday night.
The Spotlight Awards are handed out annually to ‘exciting new talents’ in the film world.
Explaining their choice, an awards spokesman said: ‘Samantha Barks is emerging as one of Hollywood’s most engaging, vivacious and talented young actresses.
‘Samantha will next be seen in the Universal film Les Miserables directed by Tom Hooper. She will star as Eponine, which was one of the most coveted and sought-after roles of 2012. She will co-star with Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and Eddie Redmayne.’
Others set to receive a Spotlight Award on Monday night include Bella Heathcote, Tom Holland, John Magaro, Ezra Miller and Kelly Reilly.
‘We are very excited that we will be able to recognise acting talents that are on their road to discovery and stardom,’ said Carlos de Abreu, founder and executive director of the Hollywood Film Awards.
Former St Ninian’s High School pupil Sam will be rubbing shoulders with some of the biggest names in the industry at the event.
The ceremony will also honour many other big names, including actor Richard Gere with the Hollywood Career Achievement Award, actor Bradley Cooper with the Hollywood Actor Award, Academy Award-nominated writer/director Quentin Tarantino with the Hollywood Screenwriter Award and Oscar-winning actor Robert De Niro with the Hollywood Supporting Actor Award.
Sam, 22, first rose to fame when she came third in I’d Do Anything, Sir Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s search to find a face to play the role of Nancy in his West End production of Oliver!
A series of high-profile musical theatre roles led her to Les Miserables, where she played the tragic Eponine to critical acclaim. This collaboration with Sir Cameron Mackintosh has led to great things for Sam, who sang as Eponine at the O2 Arena in London to celebrate the musical’s 25th anniversary.
It was while playing Nancy in the touring production of Oliver! that she learned she had landed the Les Mis film role, when Sir Cameron took to the stage at the end of a performance to deliver the good news.
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Friday 24 May 2013
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