Ron Howard to be Honored at 2026 Critics Choice Documentary Awards

Ron Howard is set to be honored at the 2026 Critics Choice Documentary Awards.

The veteran filmmaker, whose latest work is the Netflix documentary Avedon about renowned photographer Richard Avedon, will receive the Critics Choice Impact Award. The honor recognizes filmmakers whose work, influence and commitment to nonfiction storytelling have made a significant, lasting impact on documentaries.

Jehane Noujaim will receive the Pennebaker Award, formerly known as the Lifetime Achievement Award and named in honor of D.A. Pennebaker, given to filmmakers whose work made an influential contribution to documentary filmmaking as an art form.

Noujaim, known for The Square and The Vow, recently co-directed the HBO Burning Man docuseries The Man Will Burn.

It was also announced Monday that Ross Mathews would host the 2026 Critics Choice Documentary Awards. The 11th annual ceremony is set to take place on Sunday, Nov. 8 from New York’s Edison Ballroom. Nominations for the 2026 Critics Choice Documentary Awards are set to be announced on Tuesday, Oct. 13.

“Documentary filmmaking has the extraordinary ability to illuminate our world through the people and stories that shape it, and this year’s honorees represent the very best of what the form can achieve,” The Critics Choice Association’s vp, documentary, Christopher Campbell, said in a statement. “Ron Howard has brought his remarkable gifts as a storyteller to nonfiction filmmaking, finding the humanity at the heart of every story he tells and expanding the reach and visibility of the documentary form. Jehane Noujaim has spent her career immersing audiences in pivotal moments as they unfold, bringing an intimacy and immediacy to her filmmaking that has helped define contemporary documentary storytelling.”