Glenn Close, Ethan Hawke and If Beale Street Could Talk won the top prizes at the 2019 Film Independent Spirit Awards, held Saturday on the beach in Santa Monica, California.
Beale Street also won Best Director for Barry Jenkins and Supporting Actress for Regina King.
Glenn Close stole the show by inviting her dog Pip up on stage to accept best female lead, causing massive oohs and ahhs and considerable distraction from her triumph for “The Wife.”
“It’s always the work, isn’t it?” Close said of the Sony Pictures Classics film, before thanking the women in her category including Carey Mulligan and Regina Hall.
Producers for “Beale Street,” led by Adele Romanski, agreed with Close in a short but sweet acceptance speech that justly gave all the credit to author James Baldwin for his touching romance.
Ethan Hawke won for best male lead for Paul Schrader’s “First Reformed,” though his costar Amanda Seyfried accepted on his behalf.
Richard E. Grant took the best supporting male prize for his role in “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
